Woman denies Christmas Day murder of her mother

A woman strangled her mother on Christmas Day before attempting to take her own life, a court has been told.

Stefania Glowka, 64, has denied murdering Tamara Glowka, 86, at their home in Devizes, Wiltshire, but pleaded guilty to manslaughter.

But Simon Jones, prosecuting, said: "That guilty plea entered to manslaughter does not go far enough. It does not properly reflect the defendant's true level of responsibility for what she did."

Bristol Crown Court heard Glowka - who had a recurrent depressive disorder - had been the primary carer for her mother and "reached the end of my road" before killing her in their home on Keepers Road in the early hours of Christmas Day 2025.

Jones told the court Glowka had prepared her mother's favourite meal on Christmas Eve and spent a "nice evening" with her, before they both went to bed.

Glowka, who never married or had children of her own, would later tell police she was the sole carer for her mother, who had suffered a decline in her mental and physical health and had recently been diagnosed with schizophrenia.

She told the police it was a "spur of the moment" decision to strangle her mother using a belt as she rose from her bed to use the bathroom in the early hours of the morning.

Mr Jones told the court he felt this "was a deliberate act".

He added: "We say those planned actions, very carefully planned actions, together with the careful means by which the defendant sought to put her affairs in order, after the event, show… this defendant was fully capable of understanding what she was doing."

The court heard Glowka laid next to her deceased mother and attempted to take her own life.

Despite losing consciousness briefly, she later awoke and phoned the police to explain what had happened.

She said she had been the sole carer for her mother over a period of 17 years and described herself as being "at the end of my road".

When officers arrived at the property, Glowka directed them to a box which contained a letter addressed to a friend, in which she had written: "I killed my mum as I cannot continue to look after her, and I love her too much to put her into an institutionalised care.

"I also cannot envisage life on my own, old age and inevitable health issues."

The jury was told two psychiatrists had assessed Glowka and believed she was suffering from a recurrent depressive disorder.

The trial continues.

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