Russell Bishop denies murdering Nicola Fellow and Karen Hadaway in a second trial. There are questions over whether the convicted paedophile touched the bodies of the two dead girls in 1986 as it may explain DNA evidence in the case.
The accounts differ over whether Bishop took their pulses when they were found. Old Bailey jurors have heard that the 52-year-old took the pulses of the girls but never touched their bodies.
Joel Bennathan QC said: “Did Russell Bishop touch the bodies of the girls when they were discovered on 10th October – because if he did take their pulses then there is an obvious simple explanation why he knew what they looked like and the DNA.”
Bishop is being accused of killing, sexually assaulting and strangling Karen Hadaway and Nicola Fellows in October 1986.
Bishop has been convicted of kidnap, sexual assault and attempted murder of a seven-year-old girl on the South Downs.
The two girls disappeared on 9th October 1986 whilst out playing near their home in the Brighton area. The following day they were found on the south downs in wild park (around half a mile from their home). When the search of the girls started Bishop joined the search but at one point, he told a police officer he would not like to look alone, he added that he would “hate to find the girls, especially if they had been messed up”. A post-mortem of the girls showed they were both strangled and sexually assaulted.
The trail continues…
