ITV A Confession: The way serial killer Chris Halliwell was exposed

2 September 2019

ITV’s A Confession is due to air tonight at 9pm. The series follows the true story of the moral dilemma a detective, Steve Fulcher, was faced with while investigating the disappearance of 22-year-old Sian O’Callaghan in Swindon in 2011.

One man’s pursuit for the truth results in devastating consequences.
A Confession. Starts Monday 9pm @ITV @goffpip pic.twitter.com/BffYTemtZL

— ITV (@ITV) September 1, 2019

On March 24th 2011, former detective Steve Fulcher charged Chris Halliwell, a local taxi driver, with the abduction of Sian O’Callaghan on March 19th 2011. Whilst under police surveillance on the morning of the 24th he had been seen buying a large quantity of pills and was later Sian’s abduction.

Instead of the officers taking Halliwell to the police station, detective Fulcher ordered that Halliwell be sent to Barbury Castle. There was two main reasons he did this, one was Fulcher was believed that immediate questioning was required to protect Sian’s life and the second was Fulcher wanted to look Halliwell in the eye and access from his gut whether or not Halliwell was guilty.

After four hours of intense questioning, Halliwell finally admitted and took the detective to the area in which he had dumped Sian’s body. Halliwell also confessed to the murder of 20-year-old Becky Godden, who had been missing since 2003, before taking the detective to a field where he said he had dumped Becky’s body.

Detective Fulcher had broken Code C of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act in the process of the murder confessions. Halliwell claimed Fulcher had threatened his family, and that his confession was evoked under threats. The evidence of Becky Godden’s disappearance was ruled inadmissible in court.

In 2014, Fulcher was found guilty of gross misconduct and resigned from the police force however, he had the support of Becky and Sian’s family throughout.

On October 19th 2012, Halliwell pleaded guilty to murdering Sian O’Callaghan and was sentenced to life imprisonment and must serve a minimum of 25 years.

In 2016, a judge ruled the evidence obtained by Fulcher about Becky Godden’s murder could and should be used in court. The court heard how Halliwell had been a regular customer of Becky, Becky struggled with drug addiction and was a sex worker. Halliwell was found guilty and was given another life sentence which we will never be released.

The ITV six part drama will see Martin Freeman plays Fulcher.Freeman and Fulcher met while filming and Freeman sympathised with him, defending his actions as “morally reasonable”.

“People don’t always do the right thing,” Freeman told Good Housekeeping UK.

He added: “Unfortunately Fulcher has paid for that. I don’t I’m not a expert in Pace but I’m a person and I’m alive and I can’t think of what else he should have done.