Edith Marshall died aged 89 at her home on Maple Road, Mexborough on July 5.

But she was sent sickening hate mail over a THREE-YEAR period as she battled cancer, her niece Janet Kennedy told the Times.

Distraught Janet, who cared for Mrs Marshall single-handedly, produced a final, callous letter that she said she received the day after her aunt's funeral.

The upper case printed message contained the chilling phrase: "DING DONG THE WICKED WITCH IS DEAD. ONE DOWN AND ONE TO GO..."

It went on to gloat over the family burial arrangements for Mrs Marshall, in Kilnhurst cemetery.

Mrs Kennedy told the Times that she has now passed the letter on to the police.

Fighting back the tears, Janet told the Times: "Someone tried to put the fear of God into Edith but they can't frighten me and now they can't frighten her any more."

"It is terrible sending such things to an old woman.

"I can't comprehend why anyone would do it."

Mrs Kennedy said: "My auntie Edith lived on her own as a widow for 36 years after her husband Cyril died.

"I have been here looking after her for the past three years because she didn't want to go into an old folks' home.

"She got her wish - she died at the home she had lived in for 55 years.

"Auntie Edith wouldn't hurt a fly and loved animals. She gave hundreds of pounds to animal charities- - there wasn't a bad bone in her body.

"She never did anyone any harm and yet she got all this."

She said the letters - which followed a sick pattern - started coming to the house addressed to her aunt about three years ago.

Mrs Kennedy added: "There were about seven of them over that time, usually starting with the phrase 'Ding dong, the wicked witch'.

"The last-but-one, which was posted to her, six months ago, really upset and frightened her. It said: 'Ding Dong the witch is not dead yet - as you are a wicked witch you will be burned and exterminated'."

"I never kept any of them - I wish I had now. I just tore them up because they made me feel sick".

Former social services worker Janet, 65, from Oxfordshire, retired five years ago and began taking care of her aunt whom she doted on and has visited since childhood.

She said: "I looked after her after her condition worsened. I would come up on Sunday and go back home on Thursday for three years.

"After that I spent most of the week with her. She had cancer and needed more and more care.

"Her funeral was on the Monday morning and the last letter came addressed to me on Tuesday lunchtime. It was posted in Sheffield.