LYING on her again along with her throat slit, the grisly homicide of eight-year-old Helen Bailey nonetheless stays a thriller half a century later.
The teen was final seen alive enjoying with a skipping rope close to her house in Birmingham on August 10, 1975.
BPMHelen Bailey was murdered half a century in the past[/caption]
West Midlands PoliceShe was final seen enjoying close to her house in Birmingham in 1975[/caption]
Her physique was found the next day on a farm near the M6 motorway in an space regionally dubbed the “Magic Wooden”.
Helen was nonetheless carrying her blue shorts, blue shirt and blue plimsolls – inflicting the tragic teen to turn into referred to as “Little Woman Blue”.
Regardless of a 50 12 months investigation and a chilling confession made by a chief suspect, the schoolgirl’s killer has by no means been caught.
Now because the anniversary of her demise approaches, we have a look at the ugly homicide that horrified the nation.
The disturbing story started in the summertime of 1975 because the Bailey household deliberate a vacation to Cornwall.
Helen was final seen alive at round 4.30pm – an hour earlier than her mother and father reported her lacking when she did not return house for tea.
An enormous search was launched as police searched native waste floor, a quarry and carried out house-to-house inquiries.
At 6.30am on August 11, Helen was discovered mendacity on her again with a knife wound to her throat by her distraught dad.
Some locals reported seeing the schoolgirl strolling by way of an underpass beneath the motorway at 7.10pm on the evening she was killed though this was by no means confirmed.
There have been additionally claims of a “ginger-haired” younger man seen loitering near the place Helen’s physique was discovered that afternoon however he was by no means traced.
The case went chilly in 1976 when an inquest jury returned an open verdict after listening to proof she might have died as a part of an “accident or sensible joke gone unsuitable”.
It got here after a pathologist discovered there have been no indicators of a wrestle and the circumstances of Helen’s demise “lacked the important hallmarks of a homicidal assault”.
Two harmless boys, who some locals believed have been linked to the demise, have been even blamed for the horror in consequence.
However the teen’s mum Margaret fought tirelessly to get justice for his or her daughter and have been rewarded in 2014 when the case was re-opened.
A pathologist, who examined the unique autopsy pictures, mentioned the cuts on Helen’s neck weren’t shallow as beforehand described and there have been typical indicators of strangulation.
The unique inquest verdict was quashed in 2018 following the bombshell new proof.
At a recent listening to the next 12 months, an enormous breakthrough got here when a chief suspect was named.
John Sir had been grilled intently following Helen’s demise however was by no means charged.
It emerged Sir – also referred to as Kenneth Etchells – made three “solely constant” confessions to killing the schoolgirl between 1978 and 1979.
The monster, who was jailed in 1991 for trying to kill his personal mom, had lived in close by Tamworth on the time of Helen’s homicide.
His household house was near the place the little woman’s physique was discovered and he admitted being within the neighborhood on the day she died.
Sir informed a physician he had strangled Helen in 1975 after which used a pen knife to chop her throat.
However when he was questioned on the new inquest, Sir claimed he solely confessed to safe admission into Highcroft psychological hospital.
The inquest was informed his account of the killing was according to pathological proof that was not obtainable to the police till 2014.
However when later requested particularly about this, Sir put the chilling similarities all the way down to a “coincidence”.
Giving proof, Detective Chief Superintendent Caroline Marsh mentioned a chilly case evaluate, which led to Sir’s questioning in 2014, had left her “completely sure” Helen was murdered.
The officer added: “I’ve little doubt in my thoughts. I imagine the perpetrator was Kenneth Etchells and there aren’t any excellent suspects on this inquiry.”
Following a verdict of illegal killing, Coroner Louise Hunt mentioned she would write to the Crown Prosecution Service urging them to re-consider their earlier choice to not re-investigate the case.
However in one other blow to Helen’s household, the CPS mentioned a “practical prospect” of securing a conviction in opposition to Sir in mild of the dearth of any adequate new proof could be extremely unlikely.
Tragically, Helen’s dad, who had been “tormented” by discovering his daughter’s physique, handed away with out ever seeing anybody dropped at justice.
Mum Margaret was additionally confronted with the double heartbreak of studying a long time later that her little woman had been murdered and never unintentionally killed as per the unique inquest ruling.
She mentioned following the recent verdict: “I’ve by no means been the identical since. Clearly I’ve grieved for all these years. She’s by no means left me actually.
“She’s with me on a regular basis, I’m speaking about her on a regular basis, my pals all find out about her, and my household, all people is aware of about it.
“It’s simply blighted our lives. So now it might be pretty to have closure – a bit late. However higher late than by no means.”
Anybody with data can contact West Midlands Police on 101
BPMHelen’s demise was initially dominated as a tragic accident[/caption]
SWNSThe tragedy was later dominated as a homicide – to the anguish of her mum Margaret[/caption]