Linda, if I could start with you, tell me about the last time you saw Danielle. Well, it was the morning that she left for school. Just a very normal morning. Said goodbye, got dressed, said goodbye, see you later, and that it was just so normal. I am determined to find Danielle’s body. The searches will stop at the end of this month.
They will, however, be resumed whenever we receive any intelligence that justifies a further search. Now, the date for the uh searches ceasing actually coincides with the start of the trial. And whilst it was always my intention to start to to continue searching up to the start of the trial, actually, we have now come to the end of the intelligence packages which have been prepared looking at likely deposition sites.
But, I do stress and I’ve reassured Tony and Linda Robb this, that whenever we get any intelligence which may identify another possible site, we will resume our search. Children from across the UK are waiting for their final term at school to wind down and for the summer holidays to begin. After getting dressed, having her breakfast, and telling her family goodbye, a 15-year-old girl sets off to school at around 7:55 a.m.
Her parents receive a call. It’s their daughter’s school and she hasn’t turned up. She hasn’t taken her phone charger, she hasn’t taken a change of clothes, and she doesn’t have any money with her. Danielle Jones has seemingly vanished. On the 16th of October, 1985, Danielle Sarah Jones is born to parents Tony and Linda in Essex, England.
She lived with her parents and two younger brothers. According to her mother, as a toddler, Danielle was very happy and lovely to have around, but not very confident. As she got older, Danielle was a homely child with a great sense of humor, but still very shy. Despite her lack of self-confidence, she did have a big group of friends.
One of her biggest passions were animals, and she adored her two young rabbits. One member of the family that Danielle had grown close to was her uncle. Tony’s sister was married to a man called Stuart Campbell from Grays, Essex. The father of two worked as a builder, and when Danielle and her brothers were small, their uncle would spend time with them and play with them, treating his nephews and niece exactly the same.
Linda said that he was a bit of a charmer, but also full of himself. When talking about the relationship between him and her husband Tony, she said that although they got along, there was something about Stuart Campbell that Tony didn’t like. When Stuart married Tony’s sister, Danielle had served as a bridesmaid, >> [music] >> and Stuart Campbell was now part of the family.
Campbell’s presence had caused tensions. Linda and Tony had become frustrated with his constant intrusion. As Danielle grew older, he had taken a particular interest in her. He would meet Danielle off the bus as she got in from school. He would stand [music] outside his van making sure that everybody knew he was there.
Danielle was embarrassed by this and didn’t like the extra attention it brought to her. He would come to the house four or five times a week to the point that Linda and Tony were becoming fed up with it. On one occasion, Tony recalled Stuart sitting on the sofa next to Danielle. He was repeatedly asking his niece, “Why are you embarrassed, Danielle? Why are you going so red?” When Tony intervened and asked what the problem was, Campbell brushed it off and said that there was no problem at all.
Danielle had apparently tried to disengage with his behavior, but Campbell resisted. This was an incredibly difficult situation for Linda and Tony. If they confronted Campbell about his behavior and were wrong, it could cause immeasurable damage in the family. Also, all they had was seemingly isolated incidents that Campbell could explain away as innocent misunderstandings.
On the morning she had gone missing, Danielle’s brother was watching from the window. He saw her turn left as she went out of the gate, which was her normal route to school. Seconds later, he watched as she turned around to begin walking the other way. She was also seen by two schoolboys who assumed that she could have been heading to a nearby shop, but she could have also caught the bus to school heading in that direction, too.
When the call came from Danielle’s school, Linda was horrified. She knew that daughter was not a rule-breaker and would never have bunked off. Linda, miss, is this a possible number? Yes, it’s the one that you can. Um it’s regarding my daughter, Danielle. How old is your daughter? What is her date of birth? Two, and how long has she been missing? I think that’s what’s wrong.
Her father said that even in the unlikely event that she had skipped school, she would certainly be home as soon as the sun started to go down. Danielle was afraid of the dark and would never have stayed out late. Her friends and family continued to text and call her. Danielle never answered. This was completely out of character for Danielle.
She would often leave her mother notes telling her where she was going, if it was next door or to a friend’s house, and she would always call when she got there. As family and friends went out and trawled the estate for her, Linda didn’t leave the house or lock the door in case Danielle contacted them or came home.
Tony went round to his sister’s house. He couldn’t get a response, but upon looking through the window, Tony saw camera equipment set up in the living room, which he found bizarre. It also seemed strange that everyone was out looking for Danielle, except Stuart Campbell. Linda said Tony was agitated when he arrived home, frustrated with his brother-in-law that he wasn’t searching for her.
It wasn’t just her family who were incredibly concerned. Detective Superintendent Peter Coltman of Essex Police explained that Danielle’s school friends were deeply worried and were actively seeking the help of police to also try and find her. Linda stayed awake most of the night hoping that her daughter would walk back through the front door.
As night fell, Danielle still hadn’t come home. The police arrived at the house with sniffer dogs and went through the estate. They established the route that she had taken. They ascertained that she had walked and then retraced her steps. Her mother said that she was in shock and continuing to cling to the hope that her daughter was still alive and going to come home.
In the three days that followed, searches were made of the family home, but nothing of relevance was found. The search soon expanded and every house in the village of East Tilbury was visited by the police. The residents were spoken to and asked to check their sheds and outbuildings to ensure that she wasn’t hiding. The response from the public was huge.
Linda said the support from the community was absolutely outstanding. Four weeks today since Danielle went missing. Tasking today for teams two and three will be a footpath that runs from Butts Lane um to a railway bridge at Linford in Essex. Okay. The drivers will be continuing today at the lake nearest to the East Tilbury village.
There’s um tire tracks, foot marks on one area of that lake where they will be paying particular attention. As the hours ticked by and with still nothing from Danielle, hope began to fade, and the police were becoming increasingly convinced that [music] something awful had happened to her. They referred the case up to the major investigation team.
DC Ed Mayo was assigned to be the family liaison officer, whose job it is to support the family through the case and provide them with updates as and when the police get them. Family liaison officers provide that vital link between the family and the investigating team. As the investigation escalated, it was vital for Ed to build a rapport with the family and understand their dynamics.
This would help determine what kind of girl Danielle was and how the family unit worked. Her parents raised their concerns with the police about her relationship with Stuart. Now that she had gone missing, they were concerned about what that relationship actually was. Danielle had now been missing for three days, and suspicion was on one person, Stuart Campbell.
Initial inquiries by Grays Police and then confirmed by the major investigation team centered around a blue van. A witness had seen the driver of a blue van talking to Danielle. There was also a sighting of a girl matching Danielle’s description having an altercation with a man in a blue van. Danielle’s uncle, Stuart Campbell, owned a blue van.
Once this information came to light to confirm the worst fears of officers, she had most likely been abducted. A press conference was quickly set up and the media interest in the story continued to grow. When someone goes missing, the press is vital in circulating names, photographs, and descriptions, hopefully generating new leads for the police.
As the interest in Stuart Campbell continued to mount, the police dug into his background. What they found was horrifying. He had forcibly detained a 14-year-old girl in his house and taken indecent photographs of her. He entered a plea of guilty for this offense. Having served a year on remand, he was freed at the end of the trial.
Whilst Linda and Tony knew that he had had a run-in with the law, when they asked questions, they were told it was nothing and all a big mistake. Linda would later say that she and Tony had been led to believe that he had been acquitted. Further investigations by the police found 30 victims over a 20-year period.
His modus operandi was always the same. He would pose as a glamour photographer and hand out business cards with his details on them. He would lure unsuspecting victims back to his house to proceed to taking decent pictures of them under the guise that they were going to be glamour shots. Following his arrest for detaining the 14-year-old, he was able to manipulate the family into thinking that he was the innocent victim in a big misunderstanding.
Police were now so concerned about Campbell, they even needed to eliminate him or find evidence that implicated him. He was placed under surveillance. But his behavior only exaggerated their concerns. He didn’t seem to be a concerned uncle whose niece was missing. He spent time driving to car parks taking photographs of silver cars which matched the description of his own Nissan Primera.
It appeared he was trying to build an alibi for himself. Following the surveillance that lasted for several hours, the police had to make a decision. It was important for the investigating team to weigh up all the possibilities. It was vital that they didn’t risk Danielle’s life if she was still alive and being held captive by Campbell.
But also that they didn’t risk the possibility of him leading them to her. Five days she was last seen at around midnight, >> [music] >> Stuart Campbell was placed under arrest. Can you say your name, please? Stuart Campbell. We have reasonable grounds to believe, Stuart, you know where she is, don’t you? No. Where is she? >> The lady said to me not to say nothing, right? Right.
Can you Can your conscience allow you to do that? You know where she is? What’s her name? Danielle. Danielle. You’re not going to talk to us, Stuart? I’m not going to say. Stuart, we’re worried about your relationship with Danielle. Tell me what it was about her, Stuart. Why you wanted to be with her? No comment.
As Danielle had moved into her teenage years, her relationship with her father could occasionally be strained with Linda saying it appeared to be nothing more than what can happen with teenage girls and their fathers. Campbell spoke of this during his interview saying that prior to Danielle going missing, the family was at their breaking point.
You don’t understand the actual structure of the family in this house. Explain. >> With no disrespect to Tony and Linda. They sort of had their wits’ end with Danielle. So much so that she can’t stand being in the same room as her dad. And it’s just easier to try and be a middle broker between them. So he can try and get mom and dad to talk to Danielle, Danielle to give a bit there, them to give a little bit there.
Just to keep peace and then the boys aren’t all upset all the time. Campbell’s alibi was that he had been at a DIY shop in Rayleigh. He hadn’t purchased anything which the investigating team found strange. He said that he was returning home but was delayed and that he had telephoned his wife to inform her of this.
He said that after getting home, he went to his neighbor’s house to do some decking. Following these interviews and despite his refusal to cooperate, the police did not have enough to hold him in custody any longer. He was released on bail pending further inquiries. Detective Superintendent Peter Colman said that the prospect of releasing Campbell worried him as he believed he was a highly dangerous offender.
The police needed evidence. Everything was checked and then checked again. During a search of Danielle’s room, a pencil case was found. Inside it were two notes. The first of which read, “Hi princess. Hope you have a lovely holiday. Text me when you get back. Love, Stuart. Kiss.” The second one read, “Hi princess.
In case you missed my last notes, I just thought I’d pop in another to let you know that I do miss your smile. Kiss kiss.” In the weeks before Danielle had gone missing, she had gone on holiday with her family. While they were away, Campbell had gone into Danielle’s bedroom and left her the notes. She didn’t talk about this with her mother, but she did confide in a friend.
Her friend was incredibly concerned wondering how he had gotten into the house and why he had crossed that line with his niece. Campbell had previously done some work on the house and fitted a new back door. While the police were never able to find the keys, they believed that he did have a key to that house.
Simultaneous searches were also carried out on Stuart Campbell’s family home, a semi-detached house on Meadow Road. The police found a plethora of photography equipment alongside indecent images that he had taken of young girls. They also found he had indecent images of children which he had downloaded off the internet.
When the search moved up into the loft, a bag was found hidden. The bag contained many disturbing items including lingerie and handcuffs. Police believed that when Campbell got a young girl to his house, he would use the contents of this bag and take indecent photographs of his victims. >> [music] >> Also in the bag, police found a pair of white stockings.
While perhaps innocuous at first glance, when seen in the context of the rest of the items that had been found, these were a vital piece of evidence. On the stockings was a small amount of blood. The stockings were sent away to be tested. When the results of the testing carried out on the white stockings came back, it contained a mixture of Campbell’s and Danielle’s DNA.
As part of their search, his vehicle was removed, a blue van. Detective Chief Superintendent Steve Reynolds told the BBC that Campbell had developed a relationship with Danielle that was certainly inappropriate and probably unlawful. The police could not reveal that they suspected Stuart Campbell of murdering his niece.
They could only reveal an offender’s name once they had been charged. The response from the public was enormous. People turned out in droves to help conduct searches of the Thames near to Danielle’s home. It was described as having an eerie silence and a steely determination to find Danielle. And people would search for her for as long as it took.
Danielle’s family continued to hold onto the hope that she could still be alive. But as the police extended their search to deep water and abandoned buildings, their hope began to fade. Stuart Campbell was keen to show officers a text message that he had received. It was from his niece’s phone. It read, “Hi Stu.
What you up to? I’m in so much trouble.” Police also discovered that on the day she had disappeared, a text had been sent from her phone to Campbell. It read, “Hi Stu. Thanks for being so nice. You’re the best uncle ever. Tell mom I’m so sorry. Love you loads. Dan. Kiss kiss kiss.” It appeared that Danielle was still alive.
While this had renewed her parents’ hope, they were incredibly upset that she still hadn’t made direct contact with them or come home. This hope was short-lived, however. When piecing the bits of the puzzle together from the evidence found in his home to his history with young girls, this text message was an incredibly sinister development.
In light of this, the major investigation team drafted in several experts including a telephone expert. This cemented the police’s belief that Campbell had lied about being in the DIY store in Rayleigh. Cell site analysis was conducted regarding the phone call he had allegedly made to his wife. It concluded the call had not been made in Rayleigh but rather in the East Tilbury Corringham area.
Police also brought in a forensic linguist to analyze the language used in the two text messages compared to the ones they knew had been sent by Danielle before she went missing. One thing that immediately stood out was the spelling of the word what. The text message to Campbell showed it as WOT. Danielle never spelled it like this.
She spelled it correctly when texting. Analysis showed that both his phone and Danielle’s phone had been within the range of the same single phone mast when that text message was sent to him. Investigations also revealed that his phone and Danielle’s phone were together near his home for around 30 hours after she vanished.
In a bid to generate new leads and any new information, her devastated family appealed to the press. I’m so desperate to get her back. We treat this as The case would soon be picked up by the BBC show Crimewatch and 4 weeks after she had gone missing, an episode about Danielle would air. You can’t have missed this in the news.
It’s had huge publicity and perhaps the chance of finding [music] new witnesses tonight might be slim. Well, I’m convinced that Danielle has been abducted. I know that she was last seen walking towards Coronation Avenue, but after that, I don’t know where she went to, and we really need to speak to anybody who saw her after she left uh the road close to where she lives.
Anyone who may have been there, they might think that we already have the information and we don’t need to speak to them again. We do. Anybody who can tell us anything about Danielle’s movements after she left home should contact us urgently. And what about the the the the possible sighting of Danielle arguing with a man? You you know about that, but you want more witnesses on that, if possible.
>> want witnesses to anything that happened to Danielle. Um it’s possible that it was her involved in that argument. It may have been somebody else, and if it was, let’s speak to them. Let’s rule them out so we can be clear what we’re now looking for. But if that was Danielle and anybody else saw an argument or a conversation between two people, speak to us.
Tell us what you saw, no matter how insignificant it is, it can contribute to our investigation. It may be the absolute key to what we’re looking for. Given that you believe she was abducted, is there anything that may have been going on in her life before this that might shed any light? I certainly think it’s a possibility.
There may be friends who have been confided in. There may be somebody who knows something um that she’s talked about at school or in the village. Contact us and tell us that. There may be good reasons why you haven’t spoken to us before. They may be frightened with this with this length of time having passed that they will be criticized if they come forward now.
We must speak to them. Tell us now whatever you can to help, and let us be the judge of how useful it is. Her parents were interviewed as part of this episode. Her father said he did not believe that she would have run away. Linda begged for anyone with information to [music] talk to the police. She said she understood that it was scary to come forward, but that it was necessary for them to find their daughter.
Stuart Campbell had to answer his bail. Detective Chief Superintendent Steve Reynolds of the Major Investigation Team said that based on the indecent images of the girls that had been found in his home, he was arrested and charged with these offenses, and he was taken to Harlow police station to be questioned by detectives.
In the background, police continued to build their case against Campbell for Danielle’s murder. Campbell’s brother Alex visited him shortly after his arrest. He said, “The police asked me, could you go and talk to him, then come back and just tell us your gut feeling. Tell us what you think.
” I went to see him, and within 10 minutes, I knew he was lying, and there’s never been any shadow of doubt in my mind since that moment. As the police continued to update Danielle’s family, they were devastated that the man they thought they knew, they really didn’t know at all. Linda would later say that one of Campbell’s tactics was to drive wedges between fathers and daughters, just like in his previous interview when he insinuated that the family home was not a happy one.
His manipulation was further brought to light when it emerged that he would speak to Danielle and tell her he wouldn’t put up with her family if he was her. He would then go and talk to her parents saying that he had spoke with Danielle and things would get easier, thus playing Linda and Tony off against their daughter, all while maintaining a facade of trying to be helpful.
Campbell also kept a diary the police would later refer to as the Danielle diary. Any contact he had with her, whether it was a call or a text message, he would record. It was obvious that he was becoming not only more obsessed with her, but increasingly dangerous. There was one instance that also highlighted his incredibly manipulative ways.
He had taken Danielle shopping and then out to the cinema. She mentioned to her friend that during this trip, Campbell had held her hand. Her friend’s father was concerned by this. He would later say in a documentary, “I don’t think at that stage it was for me to take the matter up with Lin and Tony because I didn’t want to upset Lin and Tony’s relationship with Tony’s family.
It could have been construed as me interfering, and I didn’t think at that point in time that was the right thing to do.” Campbell played on the fact that Danielle was growing up and used that to flatter her and draw her into his lies. The CPS decided that although Danielle’s body hadn’t been found, the police had enough evidence to charge Stuart Campbell with kidnap and murder.
Following this, he would be on remand for the next 11 months. Despite Campbell being charged with her murder, police had more than 800 sightings from throughout the UK and Europe purporting to be Danielle. This provided a massive logistical problem for Essex police. Every sighting had to be investigated and eliminated.
If there was even the slightest chance that she was alive and that particular sighting had not been investigated, it would be easy for the defense to raise that during the trial and raise a shadow of doubt that Danielle was still alive, meaning the case of murder could not be proven. Before the trial and with one of their sons being called as a witness, Linda and Tony took both her boys to the court to familiarize them with the surroundings and help them prepare for the proceedings that were to follow.
Linda said that Danielle’s brothers were both devastated and hugely affected by her disappearance. She said that one was very matter-of-fact, and the other was deeply angry. It wasn’t just the impending trial that caused the Jones family unimaginable stress. Tony was self-employed and had to return to work at his dry cleaning business.
However, Linda had given up her part-time cleaning job. Linda explained in a documentary that Stuart’s link to Tony’s side of the family had caused tension between them saying, “I know it’s not his fault, but it’s caused me some resentment.” She explained that Tony was understanding and [music] knew that she was simply venting her anger about the situation.
She spoke about how even simple tasks like washing and ironing clothes was now incredibly difficult for her as she had no clothes of Danielle’s to do. In a documentary that followed the family in the year after Danielle’s disappearance, Tony explained that there had been a falling out with his parents and sister, too.
It’s gone too far now to get back together. In the months leading up to the trial, the search effort was increased to try and find her body. Not only was this about finding vital evidence that could help complete the puzzle, this was about giving her family the peace of mind they desperately needed and deserved.
They needed to be able to lay her to rest and have their questions answered. 12 days before the trial, a body was found in Hampshire. The police quickly cordoned off the area and conducted inquiries to try and ascertain who it was. As the family, press, and public waited for news, the results came in. In the last hour, Hampshire police have confirmed that the body found in woodlands near Fleet is the missing schoolgirl Milly Dowler.
Forensic teams have been examining the remains all day, and tests have been carried out this afternoon. The police made this statement. >> fears have been confirmed, and I can now tell you that the search for Milly has changed from a missing person inquiry into a murder investigation. Milly Dowler was a schoolgirl who had been murdered by serial killer Levi Bellfield.
He would not face [music] justice for her murder for another 10 years. Hers was a case that would spark national outrage, an inquiry into phone hacking, and would bring one of the United Kingdom’s biggest newspapers to its knees. Tragically for the Jones family, they were now back at square one. It was time for the family to hold a pre-trial press conference.
Facing the media was a mammoth task for the family. Linda, if I could start with you, tell me about the last time you saw Danielle. Well, it was the morning that she left for school. Just a very normal morning. Said good got up, got dressed, said goodbye, “See you later.” And that It was just so normal.
And are you determined to find Danielle’s body? The searches will stop at the end of this month. They will, however, be resumed whenever we receive any intelligence that justifies a further search. Now, the date for the the searches ceasing actually coincides with the start of the trial. And whilst it was always my intention to start to to continue searching up to the start of the trial, actually, we have now come to the end of the intelligence packages which have been prepared looking at likely deposition sites. But I do stress, and
I’ve reassured Tony and Linda of this, that whenever we get any intelligence which may identify another possible site, we will resume our search. It was now time for the trial of Stuart Campbell. The man who had married into their family, the man they had trusted, the man who had put on a front of being a loving uncle, stood accused of the kidnap and murder of Danielle Jones.
It was scheduled to last for 8 weeks at Chelmsford Crown Court. A journalist described Campbell as having an air of confidence about him, seemingly unfazed by the magnitude of the charges leveled against him. As they still had not found a body, the case of the prosecution was circumstantial, and they would need to convince a jury that Danielle had been murdered.
The prosecution’s case was that, unbeknownst to Tony and Linda, Stuart Campbell had been grooming Danielle, launching a campaign of manipulation, obsessing over her, and driving a wedge between her and her parents. This was the first time her parents had seen him since Danielle’s disappearance. >> [music] >> Despite the rage and pain they felt, Linda and Tony sat in the courtroom and came face-to-face with the man who had ripped their family apart.
The prosecution’s case was reliant on several pieces of evidence. On the morning she was last seen, she had been seen talking to a man in the blue van, similar to the one owned by Campbell. She had gone missing without being in contact with her parents. The blood-stained stockings that contained DNA matching both Campbell and Danielle.
His diary revealing his obsession with teenage girls and containing testimonies that he had manipulated young girls into posing for topless photographs. Another key piece of evidence were the text messages that Campbell claimed Danielle had sent to him. These did not match the patterns usually seen in messages sent by Danielle.
Her messages were sent in lower case as opposed to these messages sent in all caps. Forensic authorship analysis indicated that Campbell was the author and that this had been done in an attempt to prove that Danielle was still alive. Records from the mobile switching center revealed Campbell’s false alibi. His claim that he had been in Braintree, 30 minutes away, at a DIY store could not be backed up by the mobile phone records.
Analysis showed that both his phone and Danielle’s phone had been within the range of the same single phone mast when the messages were sent. Investigations also revealed that his phone and Danielle’s phone were together near his home for around 30 hours after she had vanished. Whilst Campbell was quiet throughout the trial, he was often passing notes to his legal [music] team if he was not happy with one of the witnesses, showcasing his need to be in control of what was being asked to each witness.
After an 11-week trial, the jury had reached their verdict. Stuart Campbell was found guilty by a majority of the abduction and murder of Danielle Jones. He was sentenced to life in prison for her murder. This was to run concurrently with his 10-year sentence for abduction. Later, the High Court would rule that he must serve at least 20 years before he can be considered for parole.
The police would speak with him on Christmas Eve, but Campbell refused. Following his conviction in 2004, Campbell was granted leave to appeal. His lawyers argued that the trial judge, Mr. Justice McKinnon, should have excluded highly prejudicial evidence to the effect that Campbell had a fixation for young girls and taking photographs of them and downloading material about teenage girls from the internet.
They also urged Lord Justice Kennedy, Mr. Justice Simon, and Mr. Justice Bean to rule that as one of the jurors lived next door but one to a police officer involved in the case and that a senior investigating officer lived in the same village, they should have been discharged from the jury. In 2005, this appeal was dismissed by the Court of Appeal.
The verdict of the inquest into Danielle’s death was returned. It was ruled as an unlawful killing. Police interviewed Campbell in custody and he refused to cooperate or tell officers where Danielle was. Following the case of Danielle Jones, the use of text message evidence also had wide-reaching impact.
The University of Leicester had a group of researchers to begin studying the various text messaging styles under the hypothesis that forensic research into authorship analysis might prove helpful in future criminal cases. It was announced that Essex and Kent Police had started searching a garage block in Thurrock after receiving new information.
The parents of Danielle Jones have long spoken of the pain and torture they have endured. Their daughter was missing, then murdered. Her uncle was jailed, but has always withheld the details of her burial place. So, could this site provide [music] the breakthrough? Focusing on the area hidden by the white tent, these garages are around 6 miles from where Danielle was last [music] seen.
Her mother and father came to meet police here earlier, a sign of the significance of this new line of inquiry. They spent 15 minutes at the spot, which police say they never searched a decade and a half ago, despite receiving information at the time. The information we received was there was some suspicious activity in that area where a male was seen in the garage block shortly after Danielle’s disappearance.
This is a credible line of inquiry and we will conduct a thorough and professional search to do all that we can to make sure that we return Danielle’s body to her family. >> Police have erected fences here at the site, which is around half a mile away from where Campbell lived. The team is expected to be here for the next week and their excavation work is due to start imminently.
Danielle’s parents say they hope this search will bring answers about what happened 16 years ago. It was later announced that following the search, no discovery had been made. In 2019, Linda backed the campaign for Helen’s Law, named after murder victim Helen McCourt, making killers ineligible for parole if they do not tell police where they’ve hidden the body of the victim.
This followed the tireless campaign of Marie McCourt, Helen’s mother. Helen was a 22-year-old insurance clerk who was murdered in 1988. Her murderer, Ian Simms, has never revealed her body’s location. The petition calling for Helen’s Law had more than 600,000 signatures and high-level government support. In November 2020, Helen’s Law received Royal Assent.
Under the law, killers could still be released if no longer deemed a risk to the public, even if they refuse to disclose information. But, the Parole Board will legally be required to consider whether they have cooperated with inquiries as part of their assessment. Justice Secretary and Lord Chancellor, the Right Honorable Robert Buckland, QC MP, said, “Denying families a chance to lay their loved ones to rest is a cruelty beyond words, compounding their grief further.
Helen’s Law makes it absolutely clear that murderers and evil sexual offenders who refuse to disclose information about their victims should expect to face longer behind bars.” Thanks to the tireless efforts of Marie McCourt and other campaigners, more families should get the answers and closure they deserve.
In 2021, Campbell’s brother, Alex Sharkey, published a book entitled My Brother, the Killer, detailing his life with his brother and the events after Danielle’s disappearance. On the 20th anniversary of Danielle’s disappearance, Essex Police held an event to remember her. 20 years ago today, on Monday, the 18th of June, 2001, 15-year-old schoolgirl Danielle Sarah Jones left her home in East Tilbury to go to school.
Little did anyone on that day know that not only would she never be seen again, but that her disappearance and murder would touch the lives of so many of us here at Essex Police from that moment and for the ensuing 20 years. From her disappearance to the eventual realization that she had been murdered, to the conviction of her uncle, right through to now, Danielle’s murder has affected hundreds of us here at Essex Police.
Many of you who have come to know the family through this case still feel their pain as they continue to live without having been able to say a final goodbye to their lovely daughter. They will never give up hope of finding Danielle and giving her the burial that she deserves. And we will always remain committed to achieving this for them.
Over the years, we have continued in our commitment to act on every piece of information in the hope that one day we will be able to return Danielle to mom and dad and the rest of her family so that she can finally be laid to rest. Today, we gather to remember the life of Danielle, that vibrant young girl, to remember the pain and loss of her mom and dad and siblings, to pause and consider all the things that Danielle never got to know and do because her life was so tragically cut short.
But, most of all, in remembering Danielle, we remember our pledge to her parents and the rest of her family that we will always act on any information we receive that may bring us closer to bringing her home.
