[38] These appeals for information on the whereabouts of Wells and Chapman produced over 2,000 phone calls and tips from the public, with all information obtained entered into the investigation's HOLMES 2 database. Read more: Heartbreak of Ian Huntleys daughter as father shows no remorse for Holly and Jessicas murder. [238] Further criticism was directed at the force for their initial failure to scrutinise Carr's claims to have been in Soham on the date of the children's disappearance. [174], In April 1998, Huntley was arrested on suspicion of raping an 18-year-old woman. Today marks 20 years since schoolgirls Jessica Chapman and Holly Wells vanished from a family barbecue and later turned up dead. Two decades ago, 10-year-old schoolgirls Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman were murdered by their school caretaker Ian Huntley. The families of Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman yesterday paid their last respects to their beautiful 'Soham Roses' at separate private services in the Cambridgeshire town. Jessica had just returned from a family holiday and wanted to catch up with her friend and give her a gift that she bought for her. Two years later, on 21 March 2010, he received non life-threatening injuries to his neck after his throat was slashed by convicted armed robber Damien Fowkes. Although Mr Huntley made clear attempts to appear insane, I have no doubt that the man currently, and at the time of the murders, was both physically and mentally sound and therefore, if he is found guilty, carried out the murders totally aware of his actions. Sign in to watch. He was again the target of physical and verbal bullying at this school, but did form a few friendships via a shared interest in computer games. We had a flood. [24] Weeping, Huntley admitted responsibility for both deaths, but repeated his insistence that both deaths had been accidental. The evidence and artefacts were not made public at the time, but the items recovered from the school grounds included items of clothing the girls had been wearing when last seen; their charred and cut Manchester United shirts were recovered from a bin in a hangar at Huntley's place of work. I was stood on the front doorstep grooming my dog down. [242] This recommendation later led to the foundation of the Independent Safeguarding Authority. 10 year old Jessica Chapman called over to see her friend Holly Wells. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Thank you! [46] Police also received statements regarding a suspicious white van that had been seen in Soham on the evening of the children's disappearance. The jury accepted her insistence that she had only lied to the police and media in order to protect Huntley because, prior to their arrest, she had believed his claims of innocence. ", "Police Reveal Horrors of Bodies in Ditch", "Last Farewell: Holly Buried in Private Service with Flowers from The Beckhams; Jessica is Laid to Rest 24 Hours Earlier as The Two Families Grieve Alone", "Police Identify Holly and Jessica's Bodies", "Soham Murders: Why Did Ian Huntley Kill Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman? The 10-year-old best friends were inseperable - even when their lives were cruelly snatched away by vicious killer Ian Huntley 18 years ago today. Four minutes later, Carr sent Huntley a text message which read: "Don't make me feel bad because I'm with my family. 15 August 2002[61], At about 12:30p.m. on 17 August,[62] a 48-year-old gamekeeper named Keith Pryer discovered the bodies of both girls lying side by side in a 5-foot (1.5m) deep irrigation ditch close to a pheasant pen near the perimeter fence of RAF Lakenheath in Suffolk,[63] more than 10 miles (16km) east of Soham. Girl who thinks she might be Madeleine shunned by family for giving hope to McCanns, Ant and Dec defend Saturday Night Takeaway pranks in wake of Ofcom complaints. As for Hollys younger brother Oliver, who was six-years-old at the time of her murder, hes gone on to have a family of his own with his partner Lydia. He was also forbidden from initiating contact with his baby daughter or her mother. [19] Following subsequent frantic efforts by the families of both girls to locate their daughters, Wells and Chapman were reported missing by their parents at 9:55p.m.[20], Police immediately launched an intensive search for the missing children. [82][n 7] These conclusions were physically supported by an analysis of the shoots of nettles at the crime scene which enabled forensic ecologist and palynologist Patricia Wiltshire to estimate that the bodies had been placed at this location almost two weeks before. Here, his mental state was assessed by Christopher Clark, a consultant forensic psychiatrist, to determine whether he suffered from any form of mental illness and whether he was mentally competent to stand trial. Mark Tuck informed investigators that as he had driven past the girls on Sand Street in Soham town centre at approximately 6:30p.m. on 4 August,[44] his attention had been drawn toward their Manchester United replica shirts, causing him to remark to his wife, Lucy: "Look! His erratic behaviour and apparent distress led to him being prescribed anti-depressants on 13 August. "[141] and that he had then accidentally suffocated her while attempting to stifle her screaming, which had preoccupied his attention as opposed to ensuring Wells did not drown. OLIVER KOUMBAS JOANNE LEES TAMZIN LILLYWHITE JADE LITTLE . The couple relocated to East Anglia in early 2001. In an effort to lose weight, she developed a habit of forcing herself to vomit after eating. Songs by: Van Dyke Parks. Shortly before the two returned to College Close,[58] a neighbour of Carr's mother named Marion Clift saw the couple standing at the rear of the vehicle, with the boot open. Her age was 10 years at the time of her tragic death. Both girls had been missing for thirteen days when their bodies were found, and their corpses were in an advanced state of decomposition. [106][107], During initial questioning, Huntley refused to answer questions and appeared evasive, confused, and emotionally detached, occasionally drooling during police attempts to question him in an effort to feign mental illness. There's two little Beckhams over there. [158], Ian Kevin Huntley was born in Grimsby, Lincolnshire, on 31 January 1974, the first of two sons born to Kevin Huntley and his wife, Lynda (ne Nixon). Jessicas parents are Sharon and Leslie Chapman. "[67] Lawrence immediately reported the discoveries to police. The murder took its toll on their marriage for a while, the pair have admitted. According to Huntley, he, Wells and Chapman had entered his bathroom to stem a mild nosebleed Wells had been suffering when the girls had walked by his home. Holly and Jessica had been playing together at a . A Tim Burton Film. [170], In March 1996, Huntley was charged with burglary. Today's service is a small milestone in our shared journey of grief and sorrow it is our hope that we may perhaps draw a line under one phase of our grieving and begin to look forward. The costs of imposing this order have been reported by differing tabloid newspapers as being between 1million and 50million. A new Channel 5 documentary Soham: The Murder of Holly & Jessica dives into what happened immediately after their parents declared them missing, and how they achieved justice when Huntley was sentenced to two life sentences. On 9 June 2003, he attempted suicide by taking 29 antidepressants which he had accumulated in his cell. Morris stated that the most likely cause of death of both girls had been asphyxiation. The person responsible for this abduction and assault was also believed to have followed a 12-year-old girl in the same area, although in this instance, his car had been fitted with number plates which had been stolen in Nottinghamshire. I'll rot in here, I know it. [203] He soon found new employment at a finance company in Binbrook while Carr maintained her employment packing fish at a local fish processing factory. The case reached court, but the prosecution offered no evidence, resulting in a judge ordering the offence to lie on file. [88], By the second week of the children's disappearance, Huntley had become an unofficial spokesman for the community of Soham. He revealed: She was lost in a kind of wilderness whereas I was more hard-line about my emotions. Their disappearance attracted international media attention and precipitated the biggest ever manhunt in Britain. I've just watched the programme. Soham: The Murder of Holly and Jessica 1/2 - True Crime DocumentaryTwo girls go missing from a Cambridge town in August of 2002, leaving their community reel. )[177][n 12], By 2001, Huntley's proven and alleged criminal activities had been reported to Humberside Police on ten occasions and to the social services on five occasions. Huntley's mother's maiden name had been Nixon. Had they done so, they would have discovered an outstanding burglary charge on file relating to his November 1995 arrest for this crime. Each of these girls was at least one year younger than himself; none of these relationships lasted longer than a few weeks. Latham contended Huntley had deliberately lured the girls into his home at approximately 6:37p.m.[128] and that both girls had been murdered shortly thereafter, with cell site analysis showing Huntley had switched off Chapman's mobile phone either outside his home or within the grounds of Soham Village College after both girls had been murdered. Huntley also developed a hobby of plane spotting. Their daughters best friends who were just 10 years old were murdered by Ian Huntley after he lured them back to his house in August 2002. Huntley admitted having sex with this woman, but insisted the act had been consensual. In reference to the evident extensive cleaning of the house's interior, Huntley stated: "Excuse the dining room. [14] Pathological evidence retrieved from the bodies indicating at least one of the girls had been subjected to a sexual assault either before or after her murder was not disclosed to the jury at Huntley's trial. Huntley would later inform investigators he had taped bin liners around his feet prior to carrying the children's bodies from his vehicle to the irrigation ditch. . [89] In one interview with Sky News correspondent Jeremy Thompson during the second week of the search, he claimed to be holding on to a "glimmer of hope"[61] the children would be found safe and well, and that he had last seen the girls walking in the direction of a local library. [152] On 17 December 2003, they returned a majority verdict of guilty on two counts of murder against Huntley. To download all election summary data click here. The injuries Huntley received in this attack resulted in his being unable to attend the hearing at which his minimum term of imprisonment was decided. As well as Jessica, the Chapmans are also parents to daughters Rebecca and Alison. I wish I could see her now, see what shed have looked like, he is quoted as telling RadioTimes in 2012 , prior to having his own kids. [171] This complainant stated Huntley had threatened to kill her before assaulting her. This information was later included in a televised appeal about the children's disappearance on the BBC's Crimewatch, but this potential lead failed to bear fruit. We have the professionals you need. [118] This led to her developing anorexia at 16, with her weight at one stage plummeting to six stones (38 kg), and her mother forcing her to eat in order for her to regain weight. The girls had been at a Wells family barbecue before sneaking out to buy sweets. The parents of murdered Soham girls Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman have been visited by police investigating phone-hacking by journalists. 13 days later after their disappearance their bodies were found on August 17th 2002 in a wooded area in LakenHeath Suffolk 10 Miles from Soham where the two Girls lived. Latham delivered his closing argument on behalf of the prosecution by describing Huntley and Carr as "accomplished liars"[143] before outlining the prosecution's case that both children had to die to satisfy Huntley's "selfish self-interest" before Huntleywith Carr's supporthad embarked on twelve days of "cynical deception", with Carr only revealing the truth to police after being informed of the discovery of the children's bodies. Holly and Jessica's families still live in Soham. Shortly thereafter, she and her daughters moved to the village of Keelby. It was introduced to close gaps in information-sharing between police forces. The Bichard Inquiry Report of 2004 was commissioned by the government following the conviction of Ian Huntley for the murders of Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman in 2003. "[69][n 8], By the second week of the children's disappearance, Huntley had begun to lose weight and was displaying visible symptoms of insomnia. [221] This resulted in his hospitalisation and a thorough search of his cell, in which a cassette tape was recovered. [24], Huntley's car was also forensically examined on 16 August. Two girls go missing in August of 2002, leaving their community reeling. Jessica Wells, Wiki, Biography, Age. Sign up for Bustle UK's twice-weekly newsletter, featuring the latest must-watch TV, moving personal stories, and expert advice on the hottest viral buys. By subscribing to this BDG newsletter, you agree to our. Private investigator Glenn Mulcaire, working for the . Rating: PG. [50][n 4] According to Huntley, Wells and Chapmanboth "happy as Larry"[52]had briefly enquired as to whether his partner, Carr, had been successful in a recent application for a full-time teaching assistant position at their school. And soccer star David . Huntley's parents enrolled their son in Immingham Comprehensive at age 13. [73][77] Nine days later, a public memorial service was held at Ely Cathedral for both girls. On 14 September 2005, while an inmate at HM Prison Wakefield, he was scalded with boiling water by convicted spree killer Mark Hobson. A prisoner who is serving a life sentence for the notorious murders of British schoolgirls Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman is in hospital after having . Oliver Wells was 12 when Holly . [142] When questioned about why she had then helped Huntley in extensively cleaning their home in the days after the children's murder, Carr claimed she had done so as she had always been "obsessive about tidiness. By John McGurk. What is their net worth? Staff and agencies. Two decades ago, 10-year-old schoolgirls Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman were murdered by their school caretaker Ian Huntley. Ten years after the murders, in 2012, Hollys parents Kevin and Nicola Wells opened up about the death of their daughter for the first time, via the Daily Mail. Music Composed and Conducted by: David Newman. After two months of courtship,[163] Huntley proposed to Evans. [168] The marriage was short-lived due to Huntley's volatile temper, which surfaced within days of their marriage. Its strange being three of us when there used to be a fourth.. He would only resume using his father's surname following the 2002 reconciliation of his parents. Maxine Carr is a former teaching assistant at St. Andrew. Where is Joseph Fritzl now? Huntley saw the girls and lured them back to his house on the pretence that their teaching assistant Maxine Carr, his girlfriend was also at the house. [215] Following this attack, Huntley alleged that prison authorities had failed in their duty of care towards him, and launched a claim for 15,000 in compensation. [6], The two girls and a friend named Natalie Parr played computer games and listened to music for about half an hour. Both services were held at St Andrew's parish church and officiated by Tim Alban Jones, and the girls were buried in adjacent graves in Soham's Fordham Road Cemetery, following ceremonies attended by only family and close friends. [68] While Kevin and Nicola have remained together since the unimaginable death of their daughter, they struggled for quite some time. "[155], On 29 September 2005 High Court judge Mr Justice Moses announced that Huntley must remain in prison until he had served a minimum of 40 years' imprisonment; a term which would not allow parole eligibility until 2042, by which time he would be 68 years old. They have two children together, and Oliver regularly speaks about his sister to keep her memory alive. [29] Over 260 registered sex offenders across the UK - including 15 high-risk paedophiles - were also questioned; all were eliminated from the investigation. "[134], Testimony relating to the forensic evidence linking Huntley was heard on 24 November. One heartbreaking aspect of the murder of Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman was that parents everywhere could imagine that these could have been their children. [42], Shortly after the children's disappearance, Staffordshire Police contacted the investigating officers to report their suspicions the girls could have been abducted by the same man responsible for an abduction in their jurisdiction the previous year, in which a six-year-old girl had survived an indecent assault by an abductor who was still at large and whose green Ford Mondeo had number plates which had earlier been stolen in Peterborough. There's no trace of the building which once stood there, nor a memorial to the two young girls murdered inside. We have her pictures in and around the house, but its not a shrine we dont live in the past.. [236], Upon learning of these public disclosures, Home Secretary David Blunkett announced a public inquiry into the intelligence-based record keeping and vetting system which had allowed Huntley to obtain employment as a school caretaker despite these previous criminal complaints, which had been reported to police and social services. Most watched News videos. [212], At 9:53a.m. on 4 August, Huntley attempted to phone Carr, but she did not answer her mobile phone. Huntley was given two life sentences by the judge. A further two part, 60-minute documentary, commissioned by Channel 5, Channel 5 first broadcast the three-episode drama, This page was last edited on 24 February 2023, at 18:00. [113] Carr was also charged with attempting to pervert the course of justice on this date. When they were returning home, they were lured into the local resident, Ian Kevin Huntley's home. Ian Huntley is found guilty of murdering both Jessica Chapman and Holly Wells. We hope [the databases] use will mean other families dont suffer the same loss and heartbreak as we did, they said per the Evening Standard. "[21], Concluding his questioning, Hubbard cautioned the jury not to succumb to the temptation of judging Carr's morality, but to consider her state of mind prior to her arrest when considering whether the lies she had told warranted any criminal liability, stating she had "done no wrong" on the date of the children's murder, and had not returned to Soham until 6 August. Referencing one of the 1998 rapes he had committed but had earlier claimed to her to have been falsely accused of in this phone call, Huntley then began voicing concerns as to again being falsely accused of involvement on this occasion, also claiming his previous arrest had caused him to suffer a nervous breakdown. [156] In setting this minimum term of imprisonment, Mr Justice Moses stated: "The order I make offers little or no hope of the defendant's eventual release. They were determined to be among the five per cent of couples who stay together after losing a child to murder. [10] Coroner David Morris testified the bodies of both girls were partially skeletonized, and that no precise cause of death could be determined for either of them. Lyrics by: Alan Menken. They were 17 and 14 at the time of their sisters murder. "[79], An online book of condolence attracted more than 31,000 messages of grief and sympathy[80] and on 24 August, football clubs across Britain held a minute's silence before games. [166] He also viewed himself as something of a ladies' man, and was scrupulous about his personal appearance and personal hygiene. Season 1. [71], The funeral services for Wells and Chapman were held on consecutive days in September 2002. [103][n 9] Fibres recovered from these garments were a precise match to samples retrieved from Huntley's body and clothing, as well as from 5 College Close. Chaired by Sir Michael Bichard, the Bichard inquiry opened on 13 January 2004. After the kidnapping, both girls were killed. She preferred to do what she could to make the best of the position she was in. Via this hobby, he became familiar with the environs of RAF Lakenheath. LYDIA GRIFFITHS JAMIE HARVEY JESSICA HASSALL OLIVIA HULME . Within a month, Huntley had begun to regularly sexually assault his wife, also subjecting her to indignities such as locking her in their house and cutting off her hair. [136], On 1 December, Huntley testified before the court in his defence. Episode 2 of Soham: The Murder of Holly & Jessica airs tonight (March 10) on Channel 5 at 9pm. Ian Huntley was found guilty of their murders and sentenced to life in prison. [92] Carr also displayed a thank-you card to this reporter which had recently been given to her by Wells on the last day of the school year. Carr's decision to corroborate Huntley's lies to investigators and media in the early stages of the police investigation briefly resulted in police discounting Huntley as a suspect before eyewitness accounts of Carr's whereabouts on 4 August and a search of mobile phone and telephone records proved the, Huntley had attempted to burn these clothes in the late evening of 4 August; the, Investigators later discovered that a week before his arrest, Huntley had taken his car to an. Now, almost 20 years on, Channel 5 tonight (March 10) continues its documentary series Soham: The Murder of Holly & Jessica. Today, August 4, marks 20 years since schoolgirls Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman went missing after they left a family barbecue to buy sweets. [30] Police also investigated the possibility that the girls had arranged to meet someone they had contacted via an internet chat room, but this was soon ruled out. Ian Huntley and Maxine Carr are taken in to help police with their enquiries, On August 17, police arrested Ian Huntley and his girlfriend, Maxine Carr, for the murders of Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman. [217] Huntley again applied for compensation for the injuries he received in this attack, seeking 20,000 in damages. By the time his state of panic had waned, it had been too late to save the lives of either of the children[50] and that his first coherent memory had been of sitting on his vomit-stained landing close to Chapman's body. Huntley denies murdering the two girls and Carr, a former classroom assistant at . Huntley killed Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman, each 10 years outdated, in Soham, England, in August 2002. [48] The initial speculation by the jogger had been that these mounds of earth might have been the burial locations of the two missing girls. From the moment Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman are discovered missing (4th August 2002) every heart rending . Carr pleaded not guilty to the charges of attempting to pervert the course of justice and assisting an offender. Holly's parents moved out of the home where she had spent her last day, enjoying a family barbeque with best friend Jessica, who had rushed . At age 10, Wells and Chapman went missing from the Wells home on August 4, 2002, and were found dead on August 17, 2002, after going missing for almost two weeks. [163] Huntley began work at Soham Village College on 26 November. But, whatever he initiated, plainly went wrong. On one occasion, he beat his wife so badly she suffered a miscarriage. It is believed that Cambridgeshire Police failed to perform a background check under the name Huntley. [14] His employers helped him to get the tenancy of 5 College Close,[208] and he and Carr moved to Soham in late September. School caretaker Ian Huntley is currently serving a prison sentence for the young girls' murder. Jessica Chapmans parents, Leslie and Sharon, have rarely spoken publicly about the murder. Grief does not diminish, but you can manage the intensity and learn to live with it.. And hes even walked the Great Wall of China to raise funds for it. Carr only replied to his missed call at 6:23p.m. [174] Furthermore, both Huntley and Carr are known to have conducted affairs throughout their relationship. "[45] A young woman named Karen Greenwood also reported seeing the girls walking "arm in arm" along College Road about two minutes later. Both the Humberside and Cambridgeshire Police were heavily criticised for their failings in maintaining criminal intelligence records on Huntley. Available Until: 05 September 2026.

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