A coroner has found that Donald McPherson must have murdered his wife Paula Leeson after she was found in a pool in 2017, despite him previously being cleared of the killing17:41, 06 Aug 2026A coroner has concluded that a man who was previously cleared of killing his wealthy wife during a trial in Manchester did actually murder her and reached a verdict of unlawful killing, a court heard.‌Convicted fraudster Donald McPherson, 53, walked free after a judge's direction to the jury for the then-accused to be found not guilty halfway through the trial at Manchester Crown Court in 2021. This came as the 53-year-old took out £3.5million life insurance on his wife, Paula Leeson, shortly before her "accidental drowning" on June 6, 2017.‌Within hours of Ms Leeson's death, McPherson was emptying the mother-of-one's accounts of thousands of pounds to pay off his debts. McPherson was blocked from inheriting his late wife's £4.4million estate two years ago by the woman's family, who run a plant hire business in south Manchester.‌McPherson had 32 convictions spanning 15 years in three countries. Upon first meeting his wife, he used multiple name changes and a "cover story" of being an orphan to hide his past after serving jail time for an £11 million bank fraud in Germany.A judge in civil proceedings brought by the Leeson family at the High Court ruled McPherson had unlawfully killed his wife, 47, for money by throttling her unconscious then drowning her in the swimming pool while on holiday in Denmark in 2017. An inquest delayed until today by the murder trial and civil proceedings saw a coroner ruling that she agrees with the unlawful killing verdict.‌In criminal trials, juries must convict of being sure of guilt. In civil cases, a finding such as unlawful killing can be returned on the balance of probabilities. Such a finding can be also be returned by coroners at inquests - or inquest juries - on the balance of probabilities.Alison Mutch, senior coroner for Manchester South, told Stockport Coroner’s Court McPherson was heavily in debt and he was the only person to benefit from his wife’s death. She added: "I am therefore satisfied he did murder his wife."Her death occurred because her husband compressed her neck to render her unconscious, causing her body to enter the pool, causing her to drown, to financially benefit from her death. Her death was as a result of an unlawful killing." Earlier, Detective Chief Inspector Daniel Clegg, of Greater Manchester Police said: "There’s no doubt this was a homicide.‌"She died at his hands. I have not looked for anyone else." The coroner asked the officer: "You don’t believe this was an accident. There’s too many coincidences and only one person benefited from her death?"He replied: "That’s right." Sophie Cartwright KC, representing the Leeson family at the inquest, asked the officer: "Your firm belief is that Donald McPherson murdered Paula Leeson?"Mr Clegg replied: "That’s correct, yes. Donald McPherson had backed himself into a financial crisis and the only way out was with the death of his wife."‌The officer said he agreed with the Leeson’s family view that this had been a miscarriage of justice and McPherson, currently living in New Zealand, should be serving a life sentence for murder. The inquest heard no retrial for murder can take place unless compelling new evidence is found.Ms Cartwright said "investigations are ongoing" and the Leeson family hope police, having in the last 12 months gained access to McPherson’s old laptop, will uncover evidence to "get them over the line for a retrial", adding: "Their fight will continue after today".‌Ms Leeson’s brother Neville told the hearing her life had been taken by McPherson’s "greed". He added: "Now the man who murdered her is walking around free."Paula has repeatedly been let down by the criminal justice system. We will never accept that and will continue fighting for her."Ms Leeson drowned in the swimming pool at a remote holiday cottage, booked by McPherson for a summer break in Denmark in 2017. She was 5ft 5in and could swim but drowned in the pool of a depth of 4ft, the murder trial heard.‌McPherson told police he awoke to find Ms Leeson face down in the pool. Her death was initially treated as a tragic accident by the Danish authorities – though she had 13 separate external injuries.Within hours McPherson was transferring thousands of pounds from her accounts. Soon after, McPherson cleared their home in Sale, Greater Manchester, of his late wife’s possessions and joined bereavement group Widowed And Young – which he called "Tinder for widows", referencing the Tinder dating app.Ms Leeson’s elderly father Willy sat in the inquest hearing with his son Neville, and Ms Leeson’s son Ben. Ms Leeson oversaw the skip hire part of her family’s successful ground-working business that her father had built up in Sale after emigrating from Co Wicklow, Ireland, in the 1960s.Article continues belowMs Leeson and brother Neville stood to inherit the business. She had the "misfortune" of coming across McPherson, a failing and indebted property developer, who came in to hire a skip in 2012. Two years later the couple wed at a no-expense-spared ceremony at a Cheshire castle after a "whirlwind romance".McPherson has always denied any involvement in his wife’s death, describing it a "tragic accident". His lawyers argued Ms Leeson’s injuries could be a result of her rescue from the pool and resuscitation and pathologists could not rule out that she could have fainted or accidentally fallen into the pool and drowned.McPherson’s murder trial was halted by Mr Justice Goose, ruling insufficient evidence for jurors to safely convict as accidental death could not be ruled out. He directed the jury to return a not guilty verdict to murder.