[213], On 3 April 2004, the three-bedroomed house in College Close in which the murders occurred was demolished and the site levelled, with all rubble from the property being discarded in various undisclosed locations. "[225], Carr was released on probation from HM Prison Foston Hall on 14 May 2004 after serving a total of 21 months' imprisonment (including the 16 months she had been detained while on remand). To download all election summary data click here. [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. We have her pictures in and around the house, but its not a shrine we dont live in the past.. Ian Huntley and Maxine Carr are taken in to help police with their enquiries, [97] By this date, police had received information from several Grimsby residents who had recognised Huntley in the television interviews he had given, and recalled that he had been accused of rape several years earlier. The family regularly experienced financial difficulties, but Shirley would later state she "spoiled" her daughters to the best of her financial ability. [15][16] Chapman's Nokia 6110 mobile phone was switched off at 6:46p.m.[17][1][18], At 8:00p.m., Nicola Wells entered her daughter's bedroom to invite the girls to say goodbye to her house guests, only to discover both children were missing. [24] A cover from the rear seat was missing, and the lining of the boot had been recently removed and replaced with an ill-fitting section of household carpet. When Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman went missing in Soham in 2002, Dennis was called in by Holly's family to help. Pervert alert at primary school. 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. The horrific murders of Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman Sharon and leslie chapman the parents of jessica hi-res stock - Alamy [15], Within days of Huntley's formal sentencing, he reflected to the media on the prospect of spending the remainder of his life behind bars and of his fears for his security, exclaiming: "I'm going to rot inside this place. But where are Holly & Jessicas families now? [10] At 5:04p.m., a photograph of the two friends was taken by Wells' mother before the children ate dinner with the other house guests. Investigators were able to obtain extensive footage of the children's movements following their departure from the Wells household. Holly Marie Wells and her Best Friend Jessica Aimee Chapman went Missing on 4th August 2002 as they were walking along a Street in Soham, England. He then speculated Huntley's defence counsel may try and argue that he had been confused, commenting: "In that case, they would have to consider [Huntley's] behaviour over the fortnight between the girls' disappearance and their bodies being found. Responding to questioning from her defence counsel, Michael Hubbard QC, Carr briefly discussed her initial acquaintance with Huntley, their subsequent relationship and plans to start a family once they both obtained financial stability before Hubbard directed his questioning toward her return to Soham on 6 August and her discovering Huntley had recently washed their bedding and had evidently cleaned sections of the house. [38], Maxine Carr was born Maxine Ann Capp. That involved at all costs protecting Ian Huntley. [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. These disclosures revealed that not only had police failed to pursue numerous previous criminal complaints of sexual offences against underage girls and young women by Huntley, but he had then secured a job in Soham allowing him access to children. I was the last person to see them!" In an attempt to emotionally blackmail his wife into remaining with him, Huntley alternately feigned an illness and, later, began drooling before faking an epileptic seizure; neither ploy succeeded. Miss ya! Ian Huntley was found guilty of their murders and sentenced to life in prison. [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. 2023 BDG Media, Inc. All rights reserved. Available Until: 05 September 2026. Wonder Woman 1984 | WARNER BROS. PICTURES Presents An ATLAS [24], Huntley's car was also forensically examined on 16 August. [209] One of the children to express dismay at this decision was Wells, who having broken down in tears upon learning Carr's application for the teaching position had been unsuccessful, presented her with a hand-drawn card,[210] depicting a smiling face, in which she stated: "I'll miss you a lot. [37] Other family members and friends of both girls also appealed via the media for the safe return of the children. He eventually started his new job months later. Staff initially feared Huntley might die as a result of this overdose,[124] but he was returned to his prison cell within 48 hours. These findings ultimately led to the tightening of various procedures within the Criminal Records Bureau system, including compulsory checks into potential criminal backgrounds of people who apply to work with children.[243]. [82], Over the course of three days, Latham outlined the efforts of both defendants to divert suspicion away from Huntley, and Huntley's own efforts to destroy all physical and circumstantial evidence linking him to the crime,[24] but despite these efforts, investigators had retrieved enough evidence to show the children had been murdered within his home andwithin approximately twelve hours of their deathstransported in his vehicle to the location where their bodies were discovered on 17 August. The Wells family had moved out of the house they raised Holly and her younger brother Oliver in, as the memories were too painful. They both lived in the village of Soham in Cambridgeshire, where they went to St Andrew's Primary School. Huntley's parents had separated in 1993. The inquiry scrutinised the investigation by Cambridgeshire Police into the children's disappearance and murder, as almost two weeks had elapsed following the disappearance of Wells and Chapman before Cambridgeshire Police became aware of Huntley's previous criminal background, despite his claims to be the last person to see the children alive. Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman were best friends. Maxine Carr is found not guilty of helping Ian Huntley in relation to the deaths of the girls but guilty of lying to the police about what happened. [121][122] On 8 October, Huntley was deemed mentally competent to stand trial.[122]. School caretaker Ian Huntley is currently serving a prison sentence for the young girls' murder. She further explained her focus had therefore been to protect Huntley's job and reputation, adding that had she known of Huntley's guilt, she would never have attempted to provide him with a false alibi, stating to her counsel: "If, for a minute, I [had known] or believed he'd murdered either of those girls I would have been horrified. . Referencing Carr's conscious efforts to deceive the police and media alike, Latham stated: "She had the prospect of marriage, a baby, a nice home and a new start. Holly Wells Parents & Ethnicity:- Holly Wells was a 10 years old school girl who was kidnapped alongside her friend Jessica Chapman by a school caretaker Ian Huntley. [162] The bullying Huntley endured escalated when he entered Healing Comprehensive School aged 11, resulting in his academic performance waning. Jessicas parents are Sharon and Leslie Chapman. He would typically use guile or force to achieve his desires. [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. ", "Caretaker Charged With Murder of Two Girls and Sent to Rampton", "Holly and Jessica: Two Bodies Found in Woods", "The Whole Town is Weeping: A Community Dazed by Grief and Disbelief", "Chatroom Contact Dismissed as False Lead", "Reconstruction of Children's Walk Too Painful for Parents to Watch", "Walking in the Last Known Footsteps of Holly and Jessica", "Abduction of Six-year-old May be Linked to Missing Girls", "A Long Night Waiting for News That Never Came", "Countdown to Murder of 'Two Little Beckhams', "Soham Murders: Why did Ian Huntley Kill Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman? 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. Sharon and Leslie have kept their grief largely private. Submitted Comments (Click here for meetings with SEC officials) Comments have been received from individuals and entities using the following Letter Type A: 31 B: 24 C: 6,254 D: 5 Sat 21 Sep 2002 at 16:00. There's no trace of the building which once stood there, nor a memorial to the two young girls murdered inside. [98], The same evening, police conducted a thorough search of both 5 College Close and the grounds of Soham Village College where Huntley worked as a senior caretaker[100] as the couple remained under police watch at separate locations outside Soham. Runtime: 92 minutes. Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman were two 10-year old classmates who had been friends since they were only four years old. [17], When they met, Huntley temporarily worked for an insurance company in Market Rasen. RMG6JATP - The parents of murdered Soham schoolchildren Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman, from left, Leslie and Sharon Chapman and Kevin and Nicola Wells, arrive at the Old Bailey in London, where the prosecution is expected to outline its case at the trial of Ian Huntley and his former girlfriend Maxine Carr. When Huntley became aware of Clift's presence, he abruptly closed the boot. The family had just arrived home from a sunshine holiday before Jessica rushed round to see her friend at the barbecue at her house. [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. And the intensity of your grief does diminish as the years pass., He added: Grief Encounter helped us learn how to manage our grief and that is why I will never stop supporting this charity..