00:00:05
-During the winter of 2006,
Ipswich in Suffolk
00:00:09
was paralyzed with fear.
00:00:11
The bodies of five
missing prostitutes
00:00:14
had been found by police,
00:00:16
sparking the biggest-ever
manhunt in the east of England.
00:00:21
-And he's targeting these women
because they are vulnerable,
00:00:24
because they are easy for him
00:00:26
to access and easy
for him to control.
00:00:29
-As the horror began
to unravel,
00:00:32
it became a race against time
to catch the killer.
00:00:36
The police questioned over 2,000
motorists with no success.
00:00:41
-He had to be caught because
he wouldn't stop until he was.
00:00:45
-Steve Wright, through
this whole period,
00:00:47
was sitting at home watching
this whole drama played out
00:00:52
on 24-hour news channels,
thinking to himself,
00:00:56
"I'm doing this.
I'm controlling this.
00:00:59
I'm gonna try
and get away with this."
00:01:01
Steve Wright, the man
dubbed the Suffolk Strangler,
00:01:05
had earned his place as one of
the world's most evil killers.
00:01:09
♪♪
00:01:19
♪♪
00:01:29
♪♪
00:01:33
Steve Wright is one of Britain's
most prolific serial killers.
00:01:37
In the space of just six weeks
during the winter of 2006,
00:01:42
he murdered five young women
00:01:44
who were working as prostitutes
on the streets of Ipswich.
00:01:49
As the girls disappeared
one by one,
00:01:52
the world's media
descended upon Suffolk.
00:01:55
There was an inevitability
with each breaking news report
00:01:58
that another body
would be found.
00:02:02
-Two bodies have been
found near Ipswich.
00:02:05
This is breaking news, and we're
giving it to you as we get it.
00:02:09
-But Steve Wright's story
begins over 40 years before.
00:02:13
♪♪
00:02:20
Wright was born in
the Norfolk village of Erpingham
00:02:23
in 1958,
one of four children.
00:02:27
He grew up in a military family,
00:02:29
living on RAF bases
around the world
00:02:32
with his father, Conrad,
a retired corporal.
00:02:37
-He's a normal child,
I mean, no aggression.
00:02:39
He's your typical boy --
just wanted to play.
00:02:44
-But family life
was far from happy,
00:02:46
and Wright's mother left
when he was just 8 years old.
00:02:50
Wright and his siblings
stayed with their father,
00:02:53
who went on to remarry.
00:02:56
-While Steve was living
with me,
00:02:58
there was never a problem.
Never -- You know?
00:03:00
Never see one, even.
He's happy.
00:03:03
He'd had little bounties,
I suppose, with his stepmother
00:03:08
at times when he went
a bit mischievous, if you like,
00:03:12
but it was nothing
that you'd sort of think
00:03:14
about an hour later.
00:03:17
-Steve was not a particularly
bright young man
00:03:21
but cheery enough
in his own way.
00:03:25
Left school at 16 without
any qualifications to speak of
00:03:28
and got a job working
as a chef on the ferries,
00:03:33
which sailed from Felixstowe
to the continent.
00:03:36
-By the early 1980s,
Wright had become a steward
00:03:40
on the cruise ship the QE-2,
and it was during this time,
00:03:44
he reported he spent money
on sex workers
00:03:48
during trips to Thailand,
which some experts believe
00:03:51
may have altered his perception
towards the opposite sex.
00:03:56
-I think he's got
an expectation of women.
00:03:59
Women are that who perform
a service for him,
00:04:01
to play a particular role.
00:04:03
They serve a function for him,
and that's something that
00:04:07
we continually see
throughout the rest of his life.
00:04:10
-He would often return home
from sea penniless.
00:04:15
-He was a bit of loner-like,
in a way.
00:04:18
He didn't learn
to mix that much,
00:04:21
but he did come over to me on
the weekends when he lived here,
00:04:24
especially 'cause
he looked after the dogs,
00:04:26
and I had two then,
00:04:28
couple of beers down
at the end of the road, normal.
00:04:33
-So Steve Wright
was a performer.
00:04:35
He was performing a role
00:04:36
as a guy who was interested
in playing golf
00:04:39
and going to the pub
and going on holiday.
00:04:42
He appeared to be somebody
who was normal,
00:04:44
somebody who fitted in,
but behind that,
00:04:46
there was something
altogether different going on.
00:04:48
-Wright's married twice,
but both ended in divorce
00:04:52
with rumors
of domestic violence.
00:04:55
He struggled to hold down a job
and ran up large gambling debts.
00:05:00
-Well, I knew he put money
on the horses
00:05:02
because when he got his wage
from the Langham Hall,
00:05:05
I used to take his wages
off him,
00:05:07
believe it or not, and I said,
00:05:08
"I'll give you enough to see you
through the week,"
00:05:11
'cause I wanted him to build up
a kitty to escort himself out.
00:05:14
-Wright continued to gamble
00:05:16
and was eventually
declared bankrupt.
00:05:19
Unable to see a way
out of his debts,
00:05:21
he tried, unsuccessfully,
to take his own life.
00:05:25
-For him to want to gas himself
in the car,
00:05:30
it must've been something
I wasn't aware of,
00:05:33
for him to get pushed
to that limit, you know?
00:05:37
Whether he was trying
to befriend young females,
00:05:40
I think the girls
that he was getting
00:05:43
were younger than him,
and whether they...
00:05:46
in the end,
they turned him down,
00:05:48
and he couldn't face it
or something,
00:05:50
and he felt rejected
or whatever.
00:05:53
I don't know.
00:05:55
When he was here,
it wasn't a problem.
00:05:59
Where did he get it, then?
00:06:00
Did he get so much into debt
that it pressurized him
00:06:02
so much that he just broke?
00:06:05
-I think Steve Wright's
alleged suicide attempts
00:06:07
are quite significant.
00:06:08
So, what does suicide represent?
00:06:11
It represents somebody trying
to get control back,
00:06:15
somebody whose life has kind of
gone beyond their grip,
00:06:19
and they're desperately trying
to reel that power back in.
00:06:23
And I think for Steve Wright,
00:06:25
if we look at some
of his earlier experiences,
00:06:28
this is somebody
who came to crave control.
00:06:30
He wasn't in control of his life
as a child.
00:06:33
The family were moving around,
it was quite transient,
00:06:36
it was quite chaotic,
and as an adult,
00:06:38
I think he felt an intense need
to be in control,
00:06:41
and that was what he was
essentially doing here.
00:06:44
He was internalizing, so he was
being violent towards himself.
00:06:50
-In 2002,
while working as a barman,
00:06:53
Wright, now age 44,
00:06:55
was arrested for stealing
80 pounds from the pub till
00:06:59
to pay off his escalating debt.
00:07:02
This petty theft would later
contribute to his downfall.
00:07:06
-He'd been to court because
he'd taken money from the till,
00:07:11
but he kept that from me,
anyway.
00:07:13
So, again, if he can keep
one thing from you,
00:07:16
can he keep others?
00:07:18
-By October 2006,
48-year-old Wright
00:07:23
was living with
a new girlfriend on London Road,
00:07:26
in the heart of Ipswich's
red-light district.
00:07:29
In the same month,
19-year-old Tania Nicol
00:07:32
went missing from her home.
00:07:35
-She came out around maybe
about 8:00 at night --
00:07:39
It was something like that --
and she wanted a lift home,
00:07:44
so I gave her a lift.
00:07:46
Well, I didn't want to tatter
off about anything, you know,
00:07:49
but we knew...
Far as I was concerned,
00:07:52
she was taking cannabis
and whatever,
00:07:56
and I didn't know that
she was into drugs so heavily.
00:07:59
You see, you don't know.
00:08:02
We just talked like friends.
00:08:04
When we got there,
she just got out of the car.
00:08:07
One of the things I noticed
00:08:09
was she just walked
straight into the house,
00:08:11
whereas, you know...
00:08:14
you might turn around
and give a little wave,
00:08:16
but she just walked straight in,
00:08:18
so I suppose that's the sort of,
like...
00:08:21
This drug stuff, it dulls
your senses to a lot of things,
00:08:26
so it robs you of your life,
really,
00:08:29
and that was the last time
I saw her.
00:08:32
-The family was unaware
that Tania was living
00:08:35
a double life as a prostitute
to fund her addiction to heroin.
00:08:40
-I didn't know
that until afterwards.
00:08:42
Obviously, she was doing that
to feed her habit.
00:08:45
Isn't it?
That's what they --
00:08:46
That's what I've been told,
you know?
00:08:48
-Before 2006, Ipswich,
00:08:50
like many market towns
of this size in the U.K.,
00:08:53
experienced problems with drugs,
and we had a quite vivid
00:08:58
and lively street
prostitution scene.
00:09:01
It was around...
00:09:03
In summer of 2006,
we'd done some research
00:09:06
and identified
around 70-odd women
00:09:09
that were working on the streets
of Ipswich as prostitutes.
00:09:11
The main issue, obviously,
why they're out in the streets
00:09:13
in the first instance,
all these women were out there
00:09:15
to feed their drug habit.
00:09:17
They were all Class A addicts.
00:09:19
-Another young woman working on
the streets of Ipswich in 2006
00:09:24
was Jade Reynolds.
00:09:26
-And every morning,
I'd wake up, you know,
00:09:28
and I have a heroin addiction
to fund, you know?
00:09:31
So, unless you've probably
saved money from working
00:09:34
on the streets the night before,
you worked out late,
00:09:36
and you're not very well
for the morning and for the day,
00:09:39
and then I'd get up
at the nighttime,
00:09:41
put on makeup and clothes
and pretty much go
00:09:44
and sell myself down
on the street, you know?
00:09:47
It was cold, dark, you know,
very dangerous,
00:09:51
but you don't think
about the danger.
00:09:53
All you really just -- go out
there and do what you got to do,
00:09:56
but it wasn't a good lifestyle.
00:09:57
It wasn't an easy lifestyle,
really.
00:10:02
There was a lot of emotion
that goes with it,
00:10:03
and you'd have to learn
to switch off
00:10:05
or let it overrun you, you know?
00:10:07
And heroin is an easy way
to switch off all your emotions.
00:10:11
-After Tania Nicol's family
haven't heard from her
00:10:14
for 48 hours,
they reported her as missing.
00:10:18
Police began to investigate,
but it appeared
00:10:21
she'd just vanished off
the face of the Earth.
00:10:24
-We possibly thought she went
with a load of people
00:10:26
down to London somewhere
00:10:28
and just stayed in a house
or something like that.
00:10:30
-Prostitutes go missing
all the time, change cities.
00:10:33
That's not unusual.
00:10:35
Very seldom do they have
many relatives
00:10:37
who will identify
their disappearance.
00:10:40
Sometimes, they do.
Sometimes, they don't.
00:10:43
-As time passed, Jim became
00:10:45
increasingly concerned
about his daughter.
00:10:49
-You're terribly --
You're worried beyond --
00:10:51
You just go out your head,
you know?
00:10:55
You just can't think straight,
you know, you're so worried,
00:10:59
and it really hits
your mistakes.
00:11:01
And I think after
about 2 or 3 weeks,
00:11:04
it was sheer hell
not knowing where she was,
00:11:07
and by then,
you know that something's up.
00:11:11
-While Jim waited desperately
for any news
00:11:14
about his daughter, Tania,
00:11:16
on November the 15th,
00:11:18
another young woman
was reported missing --
00:11:21
25-year-old Gemma Adams.
00:11:25
-For Gemma to go missing,
that's when you worry
00:11:28
'cause Gemma would never
go missing, you know?
00:11:30
She's not like that, you know.
00:11:32
She's always certain time,
certain place,
00:11:34
this, that, that, you know?
00:11:36
Yeah, so, that was --
When Gemma went,
00:11:38
that's when you knew
something was wrong.
00:11:40
-The police stop nearly 2,000
people and over 500 cars
00:11:45
traveling through Ipswich's
red-light district
00:11:47
to see if anyone recognized
photos of Tania and Gemma,
00:11:52
but they drew a blank,
and it was a similar story
00:11:56
when they spoke
to the local sex workers.
00:11:59
-You don't report every attack,
but there's loads of times
00:12:02
where we get people
trying to steal our handbags or,
00:12:05
like, trying to accost us,
you know,
00:12:07
because we're saying,
"No," to them, you know?
00:12:09
You are worried,
and you are scared thinking,
00:12:11
"Hang on. Gemma's gone now.
00:12:13
I didn't know Tania,
but she's gone.
00:12:14
Where are they?"
00:12:16
And you think,
"Yeah. It could me.
00:12:17
I could be next,
but I've got to go
00:12:20
and get my money for my drugs,"
you know?
00:12:21
And you have to go out there.
00:12:23
You have to learn
to put emotions
00:12:25
to the back of your mind
while you're out on the street.
00:12:27
I can then go home
and be really scared,
00:12:29
but if I was gonna be scared
that the girls had gone missing,
00:12:32
I'm not gonna be able to earn
the money for my drug addiction.
00:12:36
-Then on December the 2nd,
2006,
00:12:40
the police got the call
they'd be dreading.
00:12:43
A body had been found in a brook
on the outskirts of town.
00:12:49
-Right on the bend,
right on the corner was a head,
00:12:51
this end, facing upstream,
her legs downstream,
00:12:55
arms beside her body.
00:12:58
I saw the hair flowing
and a golden earring,
00:13:02
and the head was on its side,
and my immediate thought was,
00:13:06
"One of the missing girls."
00:13:08
-Tania's father, Jim Duell,
feared the worst.
00:13:12
-By this time, I concluded
that she'd gone, quite honestly.
00:13:18
I concluded this,
that she was dead.
00:13:21
That's what I concluded
'cause by this time,
00:13:24
she would've phoned her mother
00:13:25
'cause she always
phones her mother
00:13:27
if she's gonna be
back late or anything.
00:13:29
She was good.
00:13:32
-But it wasn't Tania.
00:13:34
Police identified the body as
that of 25-year-old Gemma Adams.
00:13:40
There was no sign
of a sexual assault,
00:13:43
but her naked body had been
dumped in flowing water,
00:13:47
so finding any DNA evidence
was going to be difficult.
00:13:52
-When someone dies,
00:13:54
then there will be all sorts
of evidence on the body,
00:13:58
in the body, that tells you
all sorts of information.
00:14:01
If you leave a body
in running water,
00:14:03
then the water will quite
literally wash away evidence.
00:14:08
Equally, the water will bring
other things onto the body
00:14:11
that can contaminate it,
00:14:14
so you've got a double problem,
really,
00:14:16
of things being lost and things
being brought to the body,
00:14:20
which make interpretation
more difficult.
00:14:23
-Unsurprisingly, the media
was starting to take notice,
00:14:27
including Paul Harrison
of Sky News.
00:14:31
-My boss said to me
00:14:32
that I should go to Ipswich
at the weekend.
00:14:36
One body had been discovered.
00:14:38
To him, something didn't seem
quite right.
00:14:41
He wanted me to get
under the surface
00:14:43
of what was happening
in the red-light district
00:14:45
because we knew that two
prostitutes had gone missing,
00:14:49
so what was this all about?
00:14:51
Was this going to be
something bigger?
00:14:54
-For a week, forensic teams
00:14:56
scoured nearby woodlands
for clues,
00:14:59
and divers explored the brook.
00:15:01
Then just when they were about
to call off the search,
00:15:05
divers found another body.
00:15:08
This time, it<i> was</i> Tania Nicol.
00:15:12
-Well, when I got
the actual news,
00:15:14
I can't remember my reaction
'cause it was something like,
00:15:17
"Well, that's..." you know...
00:15:19
I knew in me heart.
I knew already.
00:15:22
-Just like Gemma Adams,
00:15:25
there was no sign
of sexual assault,
00:15:27
and the rushing water
had stripped Tania's body
00:15:30
of any DNA evidence.
00:15:33
Suffolk Police called
on Commander David Johnston
00:15:36
from Scotland Yard,
a homicide expert.
00:15:40
-So I joined the investigation
around the time
00:15:43
the second victim's body
had been discovered,
00:15:46
and that initially meant
I went to Suffolk
00:15:49
to speak
to the Chief Officer team
00:15:51
to assess the situation.
00:15:53
I'm not sure I would say
they were overwhelmed,
00:15:55
and I think they recognized
the need
00:15:57
to bring additional resources
in to avoid that situation,
00:16:01
and that's what they did,
and Suffolk, I know,
00:16:03
had probably 100 to 200 people
00:16:07
initially engaged
in this inquiry,
00:16:10
but that number quickly grew,
00:16:12
and Suffolk suddenly
found themself, of course,
00:16:14
at the center of a huge incident
00:16:17
with significant media interest,
globally.
00:16:23
-So by the time they discovered
the body of Tania Nicol,
00:16:27
we had already begun
to spend a bit of time
00:16:31
in the red-light district
late in the evening
00:16:34
and early in the morning,
00:16:37
just to see how prevalent
prostitution was in Ipswich,
00:16:41
and it wasn't difficult
to find girls
00:16:46
on the streets
very late at night.
00:16:48
We spoke to a number of them.
00:16:50
They were aware that two girls
had gone missing.
00:16:54
We were almost delivering them
the news
00:16:56
that a second body
had been found.
00:16:58
We were almost telling many
of these girls,
00:17:02
for the very first time,
00:17:03
that the body of a second woman,
almost certainly a prostitute
00:17:08
and almost certainly
Tania Nicol,
00:17:10
had been discovered in Copdock.
00:17:12
Their reaction -- They weren't
fazed by it, it seemed.
00:17:17
-It's scary every night,
going out on the streets.
00:17:18
It's scary every night.
00:17:20
You could get attacked
every night, you know?
00:17:22
To be honest, it doesn't matter
how scary anything is, really.
00:17:25
You've still got to go out there
and do it.
00:17:27
That tears at your heart,
and you think,
00:17:28
"Oh, God," you know,
"what's happening?
00:17:30
Who's next?" You know?
00:17:32
But even though you're
discussing,
00:17:34
"What if it could be me,"
00:17:35
you're still out there
on the the streets,
00:17:36
and you're still
selling yourself
00:17:38
because you still have
a drug addiction to feed.
00:17:40
You've got to put all
them worries to the
back of your mind.
00:17:43
-Police were at a dead end.
00:17:45
They had no clues and nothing
to link the two murders.
00:17:49
They watched hours
of CCTV footage
00:17:51
from Ipswich's
red-light district
00:17:54
and finally found
something of significance.
00:17:57
Tania had been caught
getting into a dark car
00:18:00
on the night
of her disappearance.
00:18:02
Could the driver of the car
be the killer?
00:18:07
-Handford Road, Burlington Road,
that was her place.
00:18:10
She would stand there
00:18:12
when she went out at night,
on that corner,
00:18:14
and they found footage of her --
just a brief glimpse.
00:18:20
-The CCTV was captured outside
of a supermarket on London Road,
00:18:25
the same street
where Steve Wright was living.
00:18:29
Unfortunately, the footage
wasn't clear enough
00:18:32
to reveal the number plate
or identify the driver.
00:18:37
-From my point of view, it's
professionally very frustrating.
00:18:40
The whole emphasis of our role
is to protect the public,
00:18:44
and we take that very seriously.
00:18:45
And so, each day, when we're
carrying out the investigation
00:18:50
and trying to identify
this offender,
00:18:52
it's very concerning to us
00:18:54
when we still don't have
an identification made.
00:18:58
-It had been eight days
00:18:59
since Gemma Adams
had been found murdered.
00:19:03
As the police continued
with their investigation,
00:19:06
they receive
some more shocking news.
00:19:09
On December the 10th,
00:19:10
just two days after
the discovery of Tania Nicol,
00:19:14
the body of a third woman
was found
00:19:16
in a woodland in nearby Nacton.
00:19:21
-The 10th was a huge day,
really.
00:19:24
I had literally driven out
of Ipswich for about 10 miles
00:19:29
when I got a phone call
from the news desk,
00:19:32
and the blood really felt
like it drained from my face,
00:19:36
from my body because...
00:19:38
Shivers down the spine.
00:19:40
We were now into
serial-killer territory.
00:19:43
-I think it'd be fair to say
yes,
00:19:45
there was extreme concern
being expressed in Ipswich
00:19:48
and not just amongst sex workers
00:19:51
or the women involved
in that line of work
00:19:54
but across the whole
of the community.
00:19:57
This was a significant event,
completely unparalleled,
00:20:01
as far as I know,
in the history of Ipswich
00:20:03
and that area, which is normally
a very quiet, rural town.
00:20:06
-We were now dealing with
a serial killer almost certainly
00:20:10
and also
was the national media --
00:20:13
the U.K. media
were all over it by now.
00:20:16
This was when you began to see
the beginnings
00:20:18
of the international interest
in it, as well.
00:20:21
-Distinctive tattoos
on the third body
00:20:24
led the police to identify her
as Anneli Alderton,
00:20:28
who'd not been reported missing.
00:20:30
She'd also been working
as a prostitute in Ipswich.
00:20:34
She was a 24-year-old
mother of one.
00:20:37
-She was a mad,
00:20:38
kind of happy-go-lucky, crazy
chick, you know?
00:20:41
I lived in my first squat
with Anneli, really nice girl.
00:20:46
I would say she's like
a free spirit, you know?
00:20:48
She's like, mm, you know,
"Great," like,
00:20:50
"I'm Annie," you know?
"This is me," you know?
00:20:52
So, she's kind of cool and liked
to hang around with, you know?
00:20:56
-The media's focus on Ipswich
intensified even further.
00:21:01
-I'd raced back to the scene
in Nacton
00:21:05
where the body of
Anneli Alderton was discovered.
00:21:09
We knew very little
at that stage about
00:21:11
in what position it lay,
00:21:13
but what we did know
was that it was on dry land,
00:21:16
and this was a twist
in the story
00:21:19
because the two previous victims
had been deposited in water.
00:21:24
So the police, for them,
it was very exciting
00:21:26
that, in terms of DNA,
00:21:28
this could be something
that they could work with.
00:21:32
-The autopsy showed that Anneli
had been strangled
00:21:35
and tragically revealed
she'd been 3 months pregnant.
00:21:40
-So, the evidence that you'd see
in a strangulation,
00:21:44
you'd see bruising
on and in the neck,
00:21:46
you'd often see fine pinpoint
hemorrhages in the eyes.
00:21:49
These things really point you
very directly
00:21:51
towards that cause of death.
00:21:54
-She'd been left in
the crucifix position
00:21:56
with her arms outstretched.
00:21:58
-There is a tendency to want
00:22:00
to attach
a lot of meaning to that.
00:22:02
Many people were looking
at this, as it unfolded, saying,
00:22:05
"Well, there's some
religious motivation here,"
00:22:08
but I don't think
it was about that at all.
00:22:11
It was about, essentially,
getting attention.
00:22:15
Even serial killers get bored.
00:22:17
They want to mix
things up a bit.
00:22:18
They want to try something new.
00:22:20
-The police still have no DNA,
no clues, and no leads.
00:22:26
The pressure to catch
the killer was mounting.
00:22:29
-There's always pressure
because you have the media
00:22:32
who are consistency
requiring information
00:22:35
because it's 24-hour media,
00:22:37
and they want to know
what's happening.
00:22:39
There's anxiety being expressed
in the community,
00:22:42
and, of course, the police
themself want to catch this man
00:22:44
as quickly as possible.
00:22:45
-"I'm losing my friends.
Well, I don't want
00:22:47
to keep losing my
friends. I don't want
to lose my own life."
00:22:49
You do think about stuff
like that.
00:22:50
It's not something
that you don't think about.
00:22:53
-The world's media descended
on Ipswich,
00:22:56
and the cameras were
all pointed at the police.
00:22:59
-I think this case was one
that attracted so much attention
00:23:02
because it was unfolding
in front of our eyes.
00:23:05
This was the era
of reality television,
00:23:08
when that started
to become very popular.
00:23:10
We were seeing it as it unfolded
on 24-hour rolling news,
00:23:14
and you never knew
what was gonna happen
00:23:16
from one day to the next.
00:23:18
-Detectives told prostitutes
to stay off the streets,
00:23:21
but their warnings
were largely ignored.
00:23:24
A local news crew interviewed
one of the girls anonymously.
00:23:29
-Why -- Why have you decided
to come out tonight?
00:23:31
-Well, 'cause I need the money.
00:23:33
I need the money, you know?
00:23:36
-Despite the dangers?
00:23:37
-Well, that has made me
00:23:40
a bit wary about
getting into cars, you know?
00:23:44
It has.
-But you will do that tonight.
00:23:46
-Well, probably.
00:23:49
-The woman interviewed
was Paula Clennell.
00:23:52
-Paula Clennell,
she had children,
00:23:55
and she was always
trying quite hard
00:23:58
to change her life, you know?
00:23:59
-She was happy when you
saw her, you know, a nice girl,
00:24:02
but, yeah, she tried quite hard,
you know, to get out of it,
00:24:05
you know, 'cause it's a very
hard thing to get out of--
00:24:07
the addiction --
if you still live,
00:24:09
generally, in the same town.
00:24:11
But, yeah, she was trying,
00:24:13
you know, to get away from it
and change her life, bless her.
00:24:17
-Just six days after
that news report aired,
00:24:20
Paula Clennell was missing.
00:24:24
In December 2006,
the police in Ipswich
00:24:28
were under mounting pressure to
catch a prolific serial killer.
00:24:33
The bodies of three dead
prostitutes had been found
00:24:37
in just 10 days.
00:24:39
They had no clues
or potential suspects,
00:24:42
and the killing
wasn't about to stop.
00:24:45
Two more young women
had gone missing --
00:24:48
24-year-old Paula Clennell,
00:24:50
who'd been interviewed
on the news just days before.
00:24:54
And now, police receive reports
of a fifth missing woman --
00:24:58
29-year-old Annette Nicholls,
00:25:01
the best friend of fellow
prostitute Jade Reynolds.
00:25:06
-Annette was a girl, for me,
00:25:09
that I was so humbled
to know, you know?
00:25:11
She always took time for me.
00:25:13
She'd want to know
if I was all right,
00:25:14
if there was anything
she could do,
00:25:16
she'd do anything
for anybody else,
00:25:17
she was always well-kept,
00:25:19
she'd greet you with a smile
and a happiness, you know?
00:25:22
You felt all right
when you was with Annette.
00:25:23
I did. I could think,
"Aw, yeah, wicked.
00:25:26
There she is," you know?
00:25:27
It was a relief 'cause I know
that I could talk to her,
00:25:30
she'd understand my problems.
00:25:32
So when she went missing,
00:25:34
that's kind of like tearing out
a piece of my heart.
00:25:36
-As the police search
for Paula and Annette,
00:25:39
there was a macabre
inevitability in the air
00:25:42
amongst the massive
international journalists
00:25:44
who'd gathered in Ipswich.
00:25:47
-There was almost certainly
going to be another discovery.
00:25:51
Where was it gonna be?
00:25:52
Who was it going to be?
00:25:54
It was nail-biting,
00:25:56
and it can't be described
as fear.
00:26:00
It was really palpable.
00:26:02
You sensed that from
the people in the town.
00:26:04
You sensed it
from your colleagues
00:26:07
but also from other colleagues,
from other media organizations,
00:26:10
and the police, as well.
00:26:12
-On December the 12th,
00:26:13
another body was found
in Levington,
00:26:16
just a mile away from Nacton,
in the same woods
00:26:20
where Anneli Alderton
had been discovered days before.
00:26:24
-While somebody was out
walking their dog,
00:26:27
they stumbled upon the body
of a fourth victim
00:26:32
just a few meters away
from the main road in Levington,
00:26:37
in the undergrowth,
also, this time, not in water.
00:26:41
Again, the DNA was important
in this case.
00:26:46
But what seemed quite strange
about this one
00:26:49
is that it almost had an
appearance of a rushed approach,
00:26:54
that this body was deposited
by the ride of the road,
00:26:58
albeit, a few meters
off the main road.
00:27:02
It had the appearance,
00:27:03
or it seemed as it
had been done quickly.
00:27:06
-The police sent a helicopter
00:27:08
up to survey
the woodland for evidence.
00:27:11
As it circled the area,
00:27:13
they made a further
gruesome discovery.
00:27:15
Another body was lying in
the woods only 100 yards away.
00:27:20
The naked bodies were those
of the missing women --
00:27:24
24-year-old Paula Clennell and
29-year-old Annette Nicholls.
00:27:29
-I don't think I'll ever
get back
00:27:31
what I had with Annette
with another girl, you know?
00:27:34
This is the most beautiful woman
that I'd ever known
00:27:36
that had quite important to me
that I could trust, you know?
00:27:40
And now, it's not there?
I didn't go out after that.
00:27:44
I was quite sensible because,
like, I couldn't --
00:27:47
I emotionally couldn't go out
and work on the streets
00:27:50
after Annette was found.
00:27:52
-Five women had been murdered
in Ipswich in just 6 weeks.
00:27:57
The press had named the killer
the Suffolk Strangler.
00:28:02
-Alderton and Clennell,
they were both asphyxiated.
00:28:06
That was the cause
of their death.
00:28:08
In the other cases,
the changes after death
00:28:12
really prevented pathology
giving a definitive answer,
00:28:15
although I think it's reasonable
to assume
00:28:18
that someone who's killing five
people in a short space of time
00:28:22
probably used similar methods.
00:28:24
-Interestingly, none of the
five victims showed any sign
00:28:27
of sexual assault,
so it isn't a rape-murder.
00:28:32
It's not, "Oh,
I've satisfied myself.
00:28:35
Now I'm gonna kill you,"
murder.
00:28:38
It is a targeted murder
without a sexual element.
00:28:43
-He is very much feeding off
the media frenzy
00:28:47
that's being created
around his crimes,
00:28:50
and he's increasingly feeling
even more in control
00:28:53
of what's going on,
00:28:55
so he's changing the way
that he's doing things,
00:28:57
and he's looking at the reaction
from the media
00:28:59
when he does that,
and he's absolutely loving it.
00:29:02
-He believes he's fulfilling
something.
00:29:05
Maybe he's convinced himself
00:29:07
that he's clearing
the world of prostitutes.
00:29:12
They were all dumped very --
00:29:13
really,
quite close to each other.
00:29:15
It demonstrates that he thinks
he's doing something
00:29:18
in his own fantasy world
00:29:20
that is cleansing
the world of evil
00:29:24
or cleansing the world of dirt
00:29:25
or cleansing the world of
inappropriate sexual appetite.
00:29:30
We'll never know.
00:29:31
I don't think Wright
probably knows, now.
00:29:34
All I do know is that he had
to be caught
00:29:37
because he wouldn't stop
until he was.
00:29:39
-On December the 15th,
Tania Nicol's dad, Jim Duell,
00:29:44
made an emotional plea for
he killer to turn himself in.
00:29:50
-Tania has been taken by
someone who needs to be found.
00:29:55
We ask for anyone who knows
this person or persons
00:30:01
to come forward
and contact the police.
00:30:05
-With increasing pressure
to make an arrest,
00:30:08
police decided to question
a local 37-year-old man.
00:30:12
-Well, he was identified
because he had spent
00:30:15
considerable time on a radio car
00:30:17
talking to a radio journalist
and other TV journalists.
00:30:22
-I spent a bit of time with him
00:30:24
to try and get to know
his relationship with the girls.
00:30:28
There was kind of an
understanding between them that,
00:30:32
"You scratch my back,
and I'll scratch yours."
00:30:34
-So he was loosely associated
as a friend of one or more
00:30:39
of the girls who were murdered,
and at that stage,
00:30:41
he became of significant
interest to the inquiry.
00:30:44
There was a very strong feeling
00:30:46
from some of the media
people present
00:30:47
that this man was the right man
00:30:50
and should be looked
at more seriously.
00:30:52
-With a suspect in custody,
00:30:54
detectives received a lead
from the forensics lab.
00:30:58
The three bodies that were found
on dry land
00:31:01
did have DNA evidence on them.
00:31:03
In a one-in-a-billion chance,
00:31:06
the DNA found on all three women
was the same, but whose was it?
00:31:11
The DNA was run through
the National Database,
00:31:14
and police got a match,
00:31:16
but to their surprise, it wasn't
the man they had in custody.
00:31:20
-At that time,
and as it still stands today,
00:31:22
if a person is arrested
00:31:24
or convicted of an indictable
offense or a serious offense,
00:31:27
they can have their DNA taken
and held on the database.
00:31:30
-The DNA matched that of a
local man
00:31:33
who'd been convicted of stealing
80 pounds from a pub till
00:31:37
in 2002 --
48-year-old Steve Wright.
00:31:42
-And it was that match which led
to significant additional work,
00:31:46
including, then,
the CCTV evidence,
00:31:49
which showed a vehicle
being used by Wright moving
00:31:52
between some of the locations
around the relevant times,
00:31:54
so he became a major suspect
in the inquiry.
00:32:00
-Over just six weeks,
00:32:02
five prostitutes
had been murdered in Ipswich.
00:32:05
The police finally believe
they'd found the killer,
00:32:08
48-year-old Steve Wright,
00:32:10
whose DNA had been found
on three of the bodies.
00:32:14
Wright had not been a suspect
at any point
00:32:17
during the police investigation,
even though he had been stopped
00:32:21
during routine checks
of the red-light district.
00:32:25
Whilst the world's media
was focusing on a local man
00:32:28
who police currently
had in custody,
00:32:31
Wright was put
under surveillance.
00:32:36
-Once the police had discovered
the DNA,
00:32:39
it matched Steve Wright.
00:32:41
Immediately,
although from a distance,
00:32:44
making quite a brave move,
actually,
00:32:47
not by arresting him
straightaway
00:32:49
but watching him,
seeing his movements...
00:32:51
"What was he doing?
Where was he going?"
00:32:53
...just for a 24-hour period,
and ultimately,
00:32:57
as we were all elsewhere
looking at somebody else,
00:33:01
another suspect, bang,
they had made an arrest.
00:33:05
They'd arrested Steve Wright.
00:33:07
-It was a huge shock
to Wright's father, Conrad.
00:33:11
-Well, I didn't believe it,
as simple as that.
00:33:14
Two people come to my door
to say,
00:33:17
"Your son has been arrested,"
and I didn't believe it.
00:33:20
-I think the only emotion
that Steve Wright would've felt
00:33:23
upon getting arrested
was annoyance.
00:33:27
"This has stopped
the media circus
00:33:29
that I've been
at the center of,"
00:33:30
and I think also self-pity.
00:33:33
Yeah, "Oh, terrible.
I'm now gonna be in prison,"
00:33:37
or, "I'm gonna be
in a police station.
00:33:39
I'm gonna be able
to do the things I want."
00:33:41
He would never have had
any kind of expressed empathy
00:33:44
for his victims
or their families
00:33:46
'cause they just
didn't matter to him.
00:33:48
-At the time, I split up
with my partner,
00:33:50
moved into my mom's house,
00:33:52
and I woke up one morning with
the world media on my doorstep,
00:33:56
to put it bluntly,
and they said,
00:33:58
"Did you know Steve Wright was,
like, a client to your door?"
00:34:01
Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah,
and I didn't even know.
00:34:04
My mom didn't even know,
you know?
00:34:06
But then it all came out,
you know,
00:34:08
that it turned out he's
actually my first partner,
00:34:11
which was shocking, you know?
00:34:13
And I thought, "Oh, my God.
I was right with him
00:34:14
right there, right then,"
you know?
00:34:16
And, yeah, I was kind of
shocked, really --
00:34:20
really shocked, to be honest,
00:34:22
thinking that I was
that close to him.
00:34:23
Made me feel sick.
00:34:25
-During eight hours
of interrogation,
00:34:28
Wright made no comment.
00:34:30
The no-comment police interviews
is indicative
00:34:34
of that power
and that control,
00:34:35
"So, I have
all of this knowledge
00:34:37
and all of this information.
00:34:38
I know everything
about these crimes,
00:34:40
and you want that knowledge,
00:34:41
so I'm gonna use this
to my advantage."
00:34:44
He knows everything that
the police want to know,
00:34:47
and is he gonna tell them?
Is he not gonna tell them?
00:34:49
That gives him a massive
sense of control.
00:34:51
-Although Wright didn't confess
to the killings,
00:34:54
on the 21st of December, 2006,
00:34:57
the police charged him
with all five murders
00:35:00
based on the forensic evidence
they'd so far found.
00:35:04
The other suspect was released
from custody without charge.
00:35:08
Prosecutors now began
the arduous task
00:35:11
of building a solid case
against Wright
00:35:13
for the upcoming trial.
00:35:16
Michael Crimp was
part of the legal team.
00:35:19
-Of the five bodies
that were recovered,
00:35:22
two of them had been immersed
for some time in water,
00:35:26
and if there had been any DNA
on their bodies,
00:35:28
it had long since gone,
and so in terms of DNA evidence,
00:35:32
there was nothing to link
Steve Wright with them.
00:35:35
-Detectives impounded
Wright's car.
00:35:38
In it, they found fibers
from a fake-fur jacket
00:35:41
owned by Annette Nicholls
00:35:42
and, more significantly, traces
of Paula Clennell's blood.
00:35:47
-Wright really didn't do very
much to conceal his movements.
00:35:52
He drove his own car.
00:35:54
He dumped the bodies
from his own car.
00:35:57
He wasn't very
forensically aware
00:35:59
as so many determined killers
are these days.
00:36:03
He didn't know about DNA
and fiber analysis, trace,
00:36:07
and all the other things we've
all become so familiar with
00:36:10
as the result of
television series and the rest.
00:36:13
Wright pretty much did
as he pleased
00:36:16
and thought
he could get away with it,
00:36:18
and he thought he could get away
with it because he thought
00:36:20
that no one
was gonna miss a prostitute.
00:36:22
-Forensic experts also examine
Wright's home.
00:36:26
They found the blood
of Paula Clennell
00:36:28
and Annette Nicholls
on a Hi Vis jacket,
00:36:32
more conclusive proof that
his encounter with the women
00:36:35
had taken a sinister turn,
00:36:37
but there was no link
between Wright
00:36:39
and the deaths of Tania Nicol
and Gemma Adams,
00:36:42
the two women whose bodies
had been found
00:36:44
immersed in running water.
00:36:48
Investigators rewatch the CCTV
00:36:51
from the night
Tania Nicol went missing,
00:36:54
and they were now certain the
car that she got into
00:36:56
was Wright's blue Ford Mondeo.
00:37:02
Forensic teams
painstakingly analyzed
00:37:04
microscopic debris found
in the women's hair.
00:37:09
Remarkably, they found fibers
from Wright's tracksuit bottoms,
00:37:13
sofa, and carpet fiber
from his Mondeo.
00:37:17
-Both fibers in their hair
and fibers on gloves
00:37:23
and other items that belonged
to Steve Wright
00:37:26
clearly linked him
to those two, as well.
00:37:29
-The game was up.
00:37:31
-This was a case that involved
00:37:33
a lot of experts
and a lot of expertise.
00:37:37
And what it came down to
was that they were able to place
00:37:41
fibers from the bodies
at Wright's property.
00:37:47
They were able to trace,
place blood
00:37:49
on the articles of clothing
and in his car.
00:37:52
We call it Locard's
exchange principle.
00:37:54
You go and interact
with somebody,
00:37:56
you leave of yourself there,
00:37:59
and you take
something away from it,
00:38:01
and as clever as you
may try and be,
00:38:04
you're always going to leave
evidence of that interaction.
00:38:07
-Steve Wright was now linked
to all five women.
00:38:11
His trial began
at Ipswich Grand Court
00:38:14
on the 16th of January, 2008.
00:38:17
Wright pleaded not guilty.
00:38:19
-To me, he looked pretty cool
about it all.
00:38:22
He didn't seem
particularly emotive
00:38:24
about the evidence
as it was being put to him.
00:38:28
Well, he had to explain
00:38:30
the scientific evidence
in this case,
00:38:33
which linked him very closely
with all five of the victims,
00:38:37
and so his explanation was that
he'd been in close association
00:38:41
with all five of them
00:38:43
and, obviously, not long before
they disappeared off the street.
00:38:47
-Wright argued he'd picked up
the women for sex,
00:38:50
and that was why there was
evidence of them in his car.
00:38:53
-The defense were arguing
00:38:55
that it might've been
a coincidence, but no more.
00:38:58
-But his case began to fall
apart under intense questioning.
00:39:02
-It was an odd picture
that he portrayed
00:39:05
because there was just too
much coincidence in this case
00:39:10
that the evidence provided
more than just coincidences,
00:39:13
that it provided
the evidence that damned him.
00:39:16
-We put to him various bits
of evidence and said,
00:39:20
"Well, was that just
a coincidence?"
00:39:22
And to each question like that,
00:39:24
all that Steve Wright said
was something like,
00:39:27
"Well, so it would seem,"
or, "It appears so,"
00:39:29
and he just couldn't deal
with the questions
00:39:31
that he was being asked about --
00:39:33
how all of these
apparent coincidences existed.
00:39:36
-On February the 21st, 2008,
00:39:40
after only six hours
of deliberation,
00:39:42
the jury found Wright guilty
of all five murders,
00:39:46
and he was sentenced
to a whole life term.
00:39:48
He was immediately sent
to Belmarsh Prison.
00:39:52
He will never be released.
00:39:55
-I think the thing that's
striking about this case
00:39:57
is the speed with which
Wright moved
00:39:58
from being a relatively
unknown and minor offender
00:40:01
involved in a minor theft
00:40:03
to killing five women
in a very short period of time.
00:40:08
And I am strongly of the belief
that had he not been arrested,
00:40:12
he would've continued to kill.
00:40:13
-This was a man
who was desperate to be known,
00:40:16
desperate to be someone,
00:40:18
and by killing those five women,
00:40:21
the notoriety that he achieved
00:40:24
effectively made him
into someone.
00:40:27
We talked about
the Suffolk Strangler,
00:40:29
this man who nobody really knew.
00:40:32
Suddenly, everyone knew him.
00:40:34
He was world-famous for being
the Suffolk Strangler.
00:40:38
-I found it very difficult to
call Wright a truly evil man --
00:40:41
deeply wicked, deeply,
00:40:44
with no sense of remorse.
00:40:48
-To this day, he has maintained
his innocence.
00:40:52
He says he did not kill
those five women.
00:40:56
He goes even further to write
to his father who,
00:41:00
in his father's eyes,
he did what he did,
00:41:04
and it hurts
Steve Wright, actually,
00:41:06
that his father
doesn't believe him
00:41:09
when Steve Wright says,
"I didn't do it."
00:41:12
His father looked in his eyes,
00:41:14
turned, and walked out of prison
when he said,
00:41:18
"Look into my eyes.
Do you think I did it?"
00:41:22
-And it wouldn't make me feel
any different
00:41:24
whether I forgive him or not.
00:41:25
I mean, the deed is done,
and I'm, in a way,
00:41:29
responsible for him
being out there, you know?
00:41:33
I brought him into the world.
00:41:35
-Life will never be the same
for the friends and families
00:41:38
of those who were killed.
00:41:42
-You know,
I got to her resting place
00:41:45
and stand and have
a little conversation,
00:41:48
like you would, you know,
00:41:50
and say, "I've come up
to see you, dear," you know,
00:41:54
and have a little bit of emotion
going there, you know?
00:41:57
But there you are.
It's love, isn't it?
00:41:59
'Cause she's always
in our memory.
00:42:00
Of course she is.
00:42:03
-Even now, 10 years later,
I can still...
00:42:05
I'm sitting here,
and I'm trying to be clean,
00:42:07
and I'm trying not to
let my emotions get
the better of me,
00:42:09
but there's so many things
that I've seen,
00:42:11
I think, "Oh, yeah.
Annette would love that."
00:42:14
I still --
I'll find it hard now,
00:42:15
and I'll find it hard,
like, 20 years' time, you know,
00:42:18
that she's not here anymore.
00:42:20
It tore a piece of me out
that I won't get back.
00:42:24
-Some positive has happened
in Ipswich
00:42:26
when we have such a tragic
turn of events,
00:42:29
and that is, for me,
is that there's no longer
00:42:31
any street prostitution
occurring in Ipswich.
00:42:35
If I wanted a legacy
for the five women,
00:42:37
that would be it --
that no other women
00:42:38
are putting themselves
in such perilous
00:42:41
and stark
and dangerous situations.
00:42:44
-I think Ipswich
will never forget
00:42:48
those terrible times,
those few weeks in December 2006
00:42:52
where the world's eyes were on
them for all the wrong reasons,
00:42:56
and they will take
the vital lessons learned
00:42:59
during that period forward.
00:43:02
They won't forget the woman,
00:43:03
they won't forget the girls
who were killed,
00:43:06
but they will move forward
and try to not allow that period
00:43:11
to effectively
dictate their future.
00:43:15
-We may never know why Wright
carried out
00:43:17
these frenzied attacks
or if there are other victims
00:43:21
that have perished
at this hands.
00:43:23
He remains one of the U.K.'s
most prolific serial killers.
00:43:28
For six weeks, the whole world
watched in shock
00:43:31
as the body count in Ipswich
continued to grow,
00:43:36
but eventually, the forensic
evidence brought justice
00:43:40
for the families
of all five victims
00:43:42
and put pay to the killing spree
of Steve Wright,
00:43:46
the Suffolk Strangler.
