A wealthy estate agent has appeared in court accused of murdering his ex fiancée at a luxury hotel used by the England football and rugby teams.
James Cartwright was arrested after the body of Samantha Mickleburgh, 54, was found in a £500 a night room the couple had booked for his 60th birthday earlier this month.
Paramedics were called to the exclusive five-star Pennyhill Park at Bagshot, Surrey, on Sunday, April 14 after Samantha’s body was discovered when estate agent Cartwright called 999 saying he had ‘found her dead’.
Prosecutor Gus Walter told the court the couple had met via a dating agency in September 2022 and they had planned to get married.
A source at the hotel revealed that a man and a woman arrived at the hotel last Friday.
The source said at the weekend: ‘The couple had arrived on the Friday and had been booked in for the whole weekend with spa treatments as well.
‘They had been booked for a massage that morning but didn’t turn up and staff didn’t even know it might be murder as the management wanted it kept quiet.
‘Staff were told that there had been a death and nothing else so when the news broke everyone was shocked although police have been there all week but it’s been kept very quiet.
‘The hotel prides itself on privacy and discretion and guests have still been checking and using the facilities but none of them know what happened.
‘The room where it happened is closed off and that area is out of bounds to everyone apart from the police and management.’
Senior Investigating Officer Detective Inspector Debbie Birch said: ‘Our thoughts are with the victim’s family at this difficult time.
‘The investigation is in the early stages and a specialist team of officers are working around the clock to follow up enquiries.’
Pennyhill Park, which sits in 120 acres of parkland, near Bagshot, is described as ‘Surrey’s most luxurious spa and hotel retreat’ and located around two miles from Bagshot Park, where Prince Edward, the Duke of Edinburgh lives.
Cartwright, of Axminster, Devon, spoke to confirm his name and age and was dressed in a quilted jacket and grey trousers. He was arrested the day after the postmortem.
He was accused of murder and controlling and coercive behaviour and remanded in custody until his next appearance on Wednesday at Guildford Crown Court.
