Is Ben Field still in prison? What happened to the killer portrayed in The Sixth Commandment?

26 July 2023, 12:12 | Updated: 26 July 2023, 12:24

The calculated student gaslit two vulnerable pensioners and murdered one, but what happened to killer Ben Field after he committed his crimes?

BBC crime drama The Sixth Commandment shocked viewers by revealing the chilling details of killer Ben Field's crimes in the final episode of the dark series.

The conclusion of the hit show, which tells the true story of the Maids Morton Murders, follows the manipulative student's trial, in which he was charged with the murder of Peter Farquhar, and the attempted murder of Ann Moore-Martin.

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It exposed sinister notes written in the churchwarden's diary, explored the ways in which he gaslit his vulnerable victims and delivered the all-important verdicts.

But what happened to Ben Field in real life? Is he still in prison? Here's everything we know about the killer since his conviction.

Was Ben Field found guilty of murder?

Trainee vicar and master manipulator Ben Field was found guilty of the 2015 murder of retired teacher Peter Farquhar by a unanimous jury.

After gaslighting him into thinking they were in a loving relationship and convincing him to change his will in his favour, Ben slowly poisoned his so-called partner over a period of time.

Drugging Peter with hallucinogens and sleeping tablets, the cruel student eventually killed the 69-year-old academic in his own front room, making it looks as though he drank himself to death.

Following the murder, Ben turned his attention to Mr Farquhar’s neighbour, Ann Moore-Martin.

Just 18-months later he began courting the retired headteacher and encouraged her to change her will to favour him.

During the trial, Ben admitted to duping Miss Moore-Martin as part of a callous plot to inherit her assets, drugging her and confusing her with religious messages written on a mirror pretending to be from God.

However, the 28-year-old was cleared of conspiring to kill Ann Moore-Martin and of her attempted murder.

He was found guilty of defrauding Peter and Ann out of over £225,000, though.

Is Ben Field still in prison?

Ben Field murdered Peter Farquhar on 26th October 2015, but it wasn't until January 2018 that he was arrested.

In October 2019, four years after the calculated killing, the judge sentenced him to life in prison with a minimum sentence of 36 years.

As part of the same trial, the unemployed churchwarden also pleaded guilty to charges of fraud and burglary against Peter and Ann, which were taken into account at his sentencing.

Since going to prison, Ben has made two unsuccessful attempts to appeal his conviction.

Both challenges were dismissed by the Court of Appeal, but that hasn't stopped the convicted killer of attempting to reopen his appeal.

According to the Oxford Mail, an application has since been made for the Criminal Cases Review Commission to review the case.

A spokesman for the CCRC told the paper: "An application has been received related to this case. It would be inappropriate for us to discuss the application or make any comment at this stage."

The Sixth Commandment airs on BBC One and is available to stream on BBC iPlayer.

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