DNA Sample to Be Taken from Bellfield
A DNA sample will be taken from serial killer Levi Bellfield after he claimed responsibility for the murders of a mother and her daughter three decades ago. The 58-year-old, who is serving life imprisonment, reportedly admitted to killing Lin Russell, 45, and her daughter Megan, six. They were found dead in Kent on July 9, 1996, months after moving from Wales.
Michael Stone's Conviction and Innocence Claims
Michael Stone, who was convicted of the murders, is currently serving three life sentences. He has always protested his innocence. The Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) is now re-examining evidence following Bellfield's confession, with a sample to be taken from him. A fresh DNA sample was also due to be taken from Stone.
A CCRC spokesperson said: "We intend to obtain a sample from Mr Bellfield. No date has been set for this."
Details of the 1996 Murders
The murders took place on July 9, 1996, after six-year-old Megan and her sister Josie, nine, attended a swimming gala. Their mother Lin, 45, and the family's white terrier Lucy picked them up from school in the Kent village of Goodnestone. They had recently moved from Gwynedd. The family took a shortcut through cornfields and a small wood towards Nonington, where they lived with the girls' father Shaun.
At about 4:25 pm, a man passed them in a car, got out, and approached carrying a hammer. He forced them into a small clearing, tied them up, and subjected them to a "sustained, severe, repeated and vicious assault." The terrier Lucy was also beaten to death. Lin and Megan were left lying on their backs a few feet apart. Josie was blindfolded and tied to a tree. No money or belongings were stolen, and forensic experts found no evidence of a sexual motive.
Discovery and Survival
Father Shaun raised the alarm when he returned home from work and found the house empty. Police officers discovered the shocking scene later that night. Initially, they thought Josie was dead, but an hour later she was seen to move and was rushed to hospital. Miraculously, she survived nine hours after the attack.
