WHERES PC CHRIS NOW TRIAL

WHERES PC CHRIS NOW TRIAL

Stagg was charged with the murder, but the case fell apart at trial with the judge condemning the police investigation and branding it 'deceptive conduct of the grossest kind'.

Stagg's lawyers later argued that he had been encouraged to do so by James – in other words, by the investigation.Ĭrucially though, Stagg never once admitted any involvement in Nickell's murder – in fact, he actively denied it. James and Stagg met a number of times in person, and he responded to her letters (which were sexual in nature) with fantasies that were deemed to be violent. There was no forensic evidence linking him to the crime, so the covert operation was designed in order for the culprit to implicate himself. It was said that they interviewed around 500 suspects, but they focused on Colin Stagg – a local man who would often walk his dog around the common.Īfter Paul Britton provided a criminal profile, it was decided that Stagg was a fit. What's more, the story spurred a high level of media attention and so, the police were under huge pressure to solve the murder. Given that Nickell was so brutally murdered in a public space and in broad daylight, there was a lot of public fear surrounding the crime. It was thought that once close enough to James, he would reveal his involvement in the crime. Her undercover persona included a backstory that was designed to appeal to the mindset of Nickell's killer. Niamh Algar as Lizzie James in Channel 4 KEVIN BAKER // Channel 4

Wheres pc chris now