a day ago
Billionaire who was convicted of hiding his wife's body in a barricaded room for two months becomes a Sir
A Swedish billionaire who hid his wife's body in a barricaded room for two months has been knighted for his services to the arts.
Hans Kristian Rausing was so distraught by the passing of his first wife in 2012 that he could not 'confront the reality' of her death and 'could not cope' without her.
So Eva, who died of suspected heart failure and drug use aged 48, was left in the bedroom they shared upstairs wrapped in bin bags and bed linen.
Mr Rausing was also struggling with addiction at the time and was only caught when he was arrested for driving erratically in Wandsworth eight weeks later.
Drug paraphernalia was found in the car and the heir to the Tetrapak fortune tested positive to cocaine, morphine, diazepam and temazepam.
The father-of-four was sentenced to ten months in jail, suspended for two years, after he was found guilty of preventing the decent and lawful burial of his wife.
The billionaire received an additional two-month suspended sentence for driving under the influence.
More than a decade later, Mr Rausing will now become a Sir thanks to his contributions to the art industry since he turned his life around.
The philanthropist has donated to art institutions like the National Gallery and supported charities throughout the pandemic by giving them hundreds of millions of pounds.
Much of Mr Rausing's transformation has been accredited to his second wife, Julia, who brought 'Hans back from appalling grief' and 'helped him find joy in life again', according to a friend who told The Independent.
In the years since they wed, she had dedicated herself to a life of philanthropy along with her husband, whose friends have said that his main satisfaction in life has always been giving money to good causes.
Around £50million is given to British charities every year through the Julia and Hans Rausing Trust, making it one of the largest philanthropic funds in the UK.
Most recently they provided a £18million 'lifeline' for small and medium charities under the Charity Survival Fund in 2020, as well as a £16.5million emergency donation for other Covid causes, including a £1million donation for the Mail Force campaign.
The friend said: 'They were palpably in love and affectionate towards each other and were a very touching couple who focused most of their time on how to give away money to those in need.
'They were also discreetly social while she also for many years had to battle cancer. Without a doubt, she was responsible for bringing Hans back from appalling grief and helping him find joy in life again.'
Julia died last year from cancer aged 63, leaving behind what chair of the chairty commission Orlando Fraser called a 'literally incredibly philanthropic legacy'.
