Kent Murders (Sutton True Crime History)

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A 17-year-old boy from Coulsdon, south London, a 15-year-old girl and two 16-year-old boys, all from Tonbridge, were arrested on Sunday morning on suspicion of murder, Kent police said. Despite numerous appeals for information and multiple arrests, police have never been able to make any significant progress, leaving his family desperate for answers. A Kent police spokesperson said the death was being treated as suspicious. He said: “Officers have attended a location near Minnis Bay, Birchington, where a woman was found deceased. Kent police was alerted by a member of the public shortly after 7pm on Friday 25 August and patrols are currently at the scene. And at the heart of all of them is a simple question – did the man convicted of the crime actually do it?

The man who killed her is still on the loose and he is believed to be a serial killer who five months later targeted another young woman in the town, Caroline Pierce. The 33-year-old from Latvia was meant to be flying to Egypt with her husband and children and police enquiries showed she arrived at the airport. Her dog was found on its own in Minnis Bay by officers on Wednesday. Her car, a silver Suzuki, was found parked in the village of Saint Nicholas-at-Wade, where she is believed to have walked from. Anyone with information should call 999, quoting reference number 23-1922. For any other information that may assist the investigation call 01843 222289, quoting the same reference number.

Explains Stone’s barrister, Mark McDonald: “From that meeting, we got a lot more detail. We had the description by Bellfield, of what they were wearing, how he did it, who he hit first, how he murdered them, who he tied up, how he’d killed the dog. He said he knew the area very well. The area where the victim was assaulted was close to Tonbridge Park and a large number of residential properties. If you think you may be able to assist the investigation please don’t hesitate to call us.”

Miss Knell's body was left in her bedsit by the murderer, whereas Miss Pierce's was dumped on Romney Marsh. Mr Dighton said: "I have still got hope that it will be done and dusted one day and they will catch who did it."In April last year Laura El-Hagrasi was reported missing from her Cliftonville home after failing to board a plane at Heathrow. Constance Kent was unusually strong — and “she appears to possess a very strong mind,” Whicher said. She also slept alone and had hidden things in the outhouse in the past. And while the weapon used to beat Miss Knell to death was never found her parents Bill and Pam still hope the man responsible will be found and brought to justice. Formal identification has not yet taken place, however, the family of a 54-year-old woman reported missing from Upstreet on Wednesday 23 August are aware. The death is being treated as suspicious and on 24 August a man in his 20s from Margate was arrested on suspicion of murder.”

The Kent family lived in the peaceful village of Road in Wiltshire. Their home, known as Road House Hill, was an elegant setting for the family of nine and their three servants. Hulton Archive/Getty Images Detectives initially did not suspect Constance Kent of killing her brother — attention focused on the nanny and the boy’s father. The detonation caused the building to collapse and a further 21 people were injured but the people responsible have never been found. The evidence was fundamentally the same – Daley again providing the one key piece of non-circumstantial evidence linking Stone to the killings. Again, Stone was convicted.Constance Kent went down in history as a cold, calculating teen killer. But the truth of what happened in Hill House Road the night Francis Kent died may remain a mystery.

He concludes: “Josie and Shaun Russell blame me for that crime. It really tears me apart thinking they think I did that. That’s the worst part of it. I want them to know I didn’t do that.” Dr Shaun Russell and his surviving daughter Josie moved out of Kent after the murder Stone, himself, features heavily – heard in telephone conversations with his long-time barrister, Mark McDonald, with whom he speaks “every day”.

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A full DNA profile, which police believe belongs to the killer, was created from crime scene evidence in 2008 but "a missing piece of the jigsaw has yet to be traced". As Jim Fraser, head of forensic investigations at Kent Police at the time, says: “Could he have done it? Yes. Did he do it? That’s a completely different question.” As a result of it being leaked, Bellfield goes up the wall. He writes to Kent Police saying ‘it’s all a load of lies – I’m withdrawing it’.” Hulton Archive/Getty Images Constance Kent was 16 years old when her brother’s body was found behind her house. Richard Leivers – the Kent Police officer who saw the dead bodies and carried Josie Russell from the copse when he noticed she was still alive – speaks of the profound impact it still has on him all these years later. “Nothing,” he reflects, “could prepare me for what I saw.”