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Daisy De MelkerPoisoner
Date of Birth: 01.06.1886
Country:  South Africa |
Content:
Biography of Daisy de Melker
Daisy de Melker, born Daisy Hancorn-Smith, was a nurse and caregiver who became infamously known as a poisoner. She poisoned two of her husbands with strychnine for insurance money and later, for reasons that were never determined, poisoned her son with cyanide. She became the second woman in the history of South Africa to be executed by hanging.
Early Life
Daisy Hancorn-Smith was born in Seven Fountains, Grahamstown, South Africa. She grew up with ten siblings and at the age of 12, she moved to Bulawayo, Rhodesia, to live with her father and two brothers. Three years later, she enrolled in a seminary school in Cape Town. However, she quickly grew tired of rural life and soon returned to South Africa.
During one of her visits to Rhodesia, Daisy met a man named Bert Fuller, who worked for the local administration of internal affairs. They soon began a romantic relationship, and their wedding was planned for October 1907. Unfortunately, Fuller contracted "blackwater fever" - a form of malaria - and died on the day of their scheduled wedding. Daisy remained by his bedside until the end. According to Fuller's will, Daisy inherited £100.
In March 1909, 18 months after Fuller's death, Daisy married William Alfred Cowle, a plumber from Johannesburg. The couple had five children, but tragically, four of them died at a young age. The first two, twins, died in infancy. The third child had a congenital liver defect, and the fourth suffered from seizures and intestinal problems. Their fifth child, Rhodes Cecil, was born in June 1911.
Suspicions and Trials
On the morning of January 11, 1923, William Cowle fell seriously ill shortly after ingesting "English salts" prepared by his wife, Daisy. The first doctor who examined him did not consider his symptoms to be dangerous. However, William's condition quickly worsened, and soon after the arrival of a second doctor, he passed away. The symptoms exhibited by William led the second doctor to suspect strychnine poisoning. However, Daisy managed to obtain a death certificate from another physician who diagnosed chronic nephritis and cerebral hemorrhage. According to William's will, Daisy inherited £1,795.
Three years later, Daisy remarried a plumber named Robert Sproat. In October 1927, Robert fell ill and died after a couple of painful weeks. The doctor who signed the death certificate diagnosed cerebral hemorrhage and atherosclerosis, and no autopsy was performed. Robert's death brought Daisy an immediate inheritance of £4,000 and £560 later on.
Daisy's third husband, Sydney Clarence de Melker, was also a plumber, and they got married on January 21, 1931. In February 1932, Daisy purchased cyanide in a neighboring town. On March 2, 1932, Rhodes Cecil, Daisy's son, felt severely ill at work, and his coworker, James Webster, also became sick. It was later revealed that Cecil had given Webster a sip of coffee brought from home - a thermos full of the beverage provided by his loving mother. James eventually recovered, but Rhodes died on March 5. Once again, medical professionals failed to detect anything suspicious about his death.
Exposure and Execution
Daisy de Melker was exposed by her relative, William Sproat, the brother of her second husband. At his initiative, the bodies of the deceased were exhumed. First, they dug up the body of Rhodes Cowle, which was remarkably well-preserved and led the doctors to suspect cyanide poisoning. Subsequent examinations confirmed the doctors' suspicions, and traces of poison were found in the bodies of Daisy's husbands.
De Melker was arrested, brought to trial, and found guilty. On December 30, 1932, she was executed by hanging.
