On a quiet street in Tewkesbury, a secret remained hidden for over two decades. In March 2021, the police uncovered one of the most disturbing cases of prolonged abuse in modern UK history. Inside a neglected home, officers found a woman who had effectively vanished from society, malnourished, isolated, and living in conditions described as inhuman…
Read moreThe Men Next Door / Drugs, Coercive Control & Cases Mirroring the Pelicot Trial / Rodney Johnston
When Gisèle Pelicot waived her anonymity in 2024 and exposed her husband's crimes to the world, many assumed what happened in Mazan was an isolated case. It wasn’t. A 66-year-old carer from Norfolk subjected a woman to almost three decades of sexual exploitation. He operated in plain sight, using digital networks to recruit men, threatened his victim into silence, and recorded everything…
Read moreReverend Emyr Owen: The Minister’s Dark Secret
A minister was hiding a terrifying secret. For years, Reverend Emyr Owen was one of the most respected men in the Welsh Presbyterian community, a charismatic preacher trusted to lead funerals, conduct marriages, and guide his congregation through life’s darkest moments. But behind the pulpit, Owen harboured a dark obsession. When anonymous letters threatening local families, including a four-year-old child, led police to his door, a detective’s gut feeling uncovered something far more disturbing than poison pen letters…
Read moreConsent, Contraceptives & Controversy / Brian Huntley / Judge Arthur Myerson
In the judicial system, the role of a judge is to ensure a fair and impartial trial. They maintain order, guide the jury and rule on legal issues. Sometimes, judges go far beyond their function and perpetuate injustice by letting bias influence their decisions…
Read moreTrauma On Trial / Filip Jaskiewicz / Martyna Ogonowska
Shortly before 7:20 on a Sunday morning in the autumn of 2018, officers at Thorpe Wood police station in Peterborough received a call from a public pay phone nearby. A young woman on the other end of the line said that she was outside and needed to speak with them. She added, “I think I killed someone”...
Read moreStolen Possibility / Stuart Worby
A horrifying “pills-by-post” plot is only uncovered by chance after life-altering damage has been caused by the ultimate betrayal...
Read moreBlackout / Natalie Shotter / Mohamed Iidow
Two officers from the Metropolitan Police were already dealing with an incident when they were asked to come and assist an unconscious woman lying on a park bench. They refused, leaving her alone, a decision that would have devastating consequences...
Read moreThe Air Steward & The Puppet Master / The Killing of Christophe Borgye
Officers from the Cheshire Constabulary stood guard at the rear of a property on Hylton Court in Ellesmere Port. An ominous white tent had been erected covering a section of the garden at the bottom of a terraced house. Specialists congregated in the confined space of a brick outbuilding and methodically began chipping away at layers of cement covering a large object that seemed out of place. After hours of painstaking work, a tightly wrapped sheet of tarpaulin was revealed. Thick elastic circled the plastic, and the ends of the bungee cords hooked together, securing whatever or whoever was inside...
Read moreA Tragic Pact / The Unbelievable Crimes Of Linsey Cotton
Passing through the hotel's hallway, one guest noticed something strange — a figure slumped against the wall outside room 25. As they got closer, the guest saw, to their horror, that the young woman was covered in blood, and a trail led back to her room. Staff members were quickly alerted and ran down the corridor. When they entered room 25, they found another woman badly injured. She was alive but barely breathing…
Read moreREPLAY - Midlands Ripper / Alun Kyte - Part 2
Investigators from numerous police forces across the Midlands had been searching for a connection between the unsolved murders of sex workers in the 1990s. After exhausting all resources, a cold case review was held in 1998 in an effort to identify the killer of Samo Paull and Tracy Turner. DNA obtained during Tracy Turner’s post-mortem had been collected after her death. As part of the re-investigation, the sample was cross-checked against the national DNA database in March 1998. After four years with no leads, the police finally had a match — a man awaiting trial for a violent sexual assault… (Part 2 of 2).
Read moreREPLAY - Midlands Ripper / Alun Kyte - Part 1
In February 2023, a man was convicted of sexually abusing a child during the 1980s. Aside from the harrowing details presented to the jury at Nottingham Crown Court, some information was kept from them. Jurors were unaware the defendant was already serving a life sentence or that he was suspected of being one of the worst serial killers in British history... (Part 1 of 2).
Read moreNo Justice / The Death of Jo Ramsden
Richard glanced at the clock. His daughter Jo was never late, but it was after 4 pm, and there was no sign of her. It was quiet in the gift shop on South Street, so Richard saw no harm in stepping outside to see if Jo was nearby. He half expected to see her ambling home from work experience, probably with a smile on her face. When Jo wasn’t there, Richard grew concerned. Jo’s world consisted of just four places within the market town of Bridport, and she wasn’t at any of them…
Read moreDouble Jeopardy / Hazel Backwell / Wendell Baker
Hazel was safety conscious, but the fact that she was not answering the door made George concerned that something had happened to her, so he alerted the police. When officers gained entry to the property, they found a pile of boxes blocking a cupboard under the stairs. Faint cries pleading for help were coming from inside. The reality of what had happened to Hazel was far beyond what George could have ever imagined…
Read moreMonster Working In The Morgue / David Fuller
A forensic review of the unsolved murders of two young women who were killed in 1987 turns up new evidence. Genetic genealogy tests lead to one man who left DNA at both crime scenes. During a search of the suspect's home, investigators learn that he not only evaded justice for the murders for over three decades, but the killer had continued to offend in the most horrific manner…
Read moreNeglect & Cruelty / The Death Of Hakeem Hussain
In December 2017, Birmingham was hit by a storm that left up to 12 inches of snow on the ground, forcing schools to shut and public transport to grind to a halt. Temperatures had been dropping rapidly, and people across the West Midlands braced themselves for a brutally cold winter. Two weeks earlier, amidst a cold snap in the city, the discovery of a vulnerable child’s body outside of a house in Nechells raised questions about the efficiency of the UK’s child protective services…
Read moreSeduction, Theft & Murder / The Killing Of Joan Beddeson
The latter years of a person’s life unfortunately involve making arrangements for when they die. These arrangements typically include organising their finances, writing a will, and planning a funeral. Thankfully, services exist that can assist in these situations, but as is often the case during this time, a vulnerable person can be susceptible to being exploited. Some people are willing to prey on the elderly in order to better their own situation, and some will go even further than taking money…
Read moreAbuse & Exploitation / The Murder of Michael Gilbert - Part 2
Michael Gilbert had been living with the Watt family on and off since 2001. At first, he believed he had found a haven, away from life on the streets, but Michael soon realised that his sanctuary was, in fact, a nightmare… (Part 2 of 2).
Read moreAbuse & Exploitation / The Murder of Michael Gilbert - Part 1
Arlesey has stood the test of time. It is mentioned briefly in the Domesday Book of 1086 and has been through many reinventions over the centuries. It has witnessed the births and deaths of thousands of fleeting occupants, but nothing in Arlesey’s varied history could compare to the horror of one man's murder in 2009… (Part 1 of 2).
Read moreNeglected / The Death Of Kaylea Titford
Early on an autumn morning, the emergency services received a call that a teenager was unresponsive in Newtown, Wales. It was Saturday, October 10th, 2020. What the panicked woman on the other end of the line described was a far cry from the typical teenage weekend drinking sessions that ended with alcohol poisoning or injury. The caller was the motionless girl’s grandmother. She contacted the emergency services as she had received a call from her son, Alun Titford. Alun was panicked. There was something seriously wrong with his 16-year-old daughter Kaylea. The caller relayed all the information she had to the operator. Her son told her that Kaylea was cold to the touch…
Read moreExacting Vengeance / Boiling Sugar Water
In the early hours of July 14th, a resident of Highfield Road in Neston heard banging on his front door. On his doorstep, he saw a middle-aged woman in a state of distress. The homeowner didn’t know her well, but he knew she lived further down the street. Through heaving sobs, his neighbour said: "I've hurt him. I've hurt him really bad. I think I’ve killed him…"
Read more