In 2002, the town of Soham in Cambridgeshire was changed forever after the abduction and murder of two innocent 10-year-old girls. On Sunday, the 4th of August, best friends Jessica Chapman and Holly Wells were attending a barbecue at Holly’s home. At 6.
15pm, the two left the house to get some sweets as their parents believed the two were playing together in Holly's bedroom. But, when Holly’s and Jessica’s parents went to check on them at 8pm, they were left panicked when they could not find the pair. Police were immediately notified of the missing girls and the town of Soham came together to find them.
Jessica Chapman and Holly Wells. (Image: PA) It was at this time police spoke to Ian Huntley who worked at the girls' school as a caretaker and was the boyfriend of Maxine Carr, who was a support assistant at the school. Huntley told police that he had seen Jessica and Holly on his doorstep and mentioned that they appeared happy during their brief interaction.
Two weeks after Holly and Jessica went missing on August 17, their bodies were found in a ditch near the perimeter fence of RAF Lakenheath in Suffolk, around 10 miles east of Soham. The coroner later ruled the girls died from asphyxiation. The search then turned to who could do such a thing.
Locals from Huntley’s hometown of Grimsby revealed he had previously been linked to sex attacks on a woman. It was later found that he had been investigated for the alleged rape in 1998, along with his alleged sexual relation.
