Serial killer Levi Bellfield returned to his cell on Thursday just as he was about to give a DNA sample to investigators looking at the murders of Dr Lin Russell and her six-year-old daughter Megan.
The experts from the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) had travelled to HM Prison Frankland to take a swab from the notorious killer of schoolgirl Milly Dowler.
They had already taken mouth swabs from Michael Stone, who has spent 29 years behind bars after being convicted of the Kent double murder, but had travelled back to the same high security prison to take a sample from Bellfield.
Bellfield's confession and refusal
They made the trip after Bellfield confessed to the killings of the mum and her youngest daughter. The eldest daughter Josie Russell, then aged nine, survived the deadly attack despite suffering devastating head injuries.
But on Thursday Bellfield returned to his cell without giving a sample after his solicitor was refused entry. The inmate was said to be left "furious" and claimed he was being 'treated like a dog'.
Solicitor Theresa Clark had arrived at the prison to witness her client giving fresh DNA samples in a bid to prove he was behind the Chillenden murders.
The profile was to be used by the CCRC, who investigate miscarriages of justice, to compare with any DNA they may discover on exhibits linked to the crime scene, including a swimming string bag full of bloodied towelling strips used to bind and gag the family.
Solicitor's account of the incident
Bellfield's solicitor said she had travelled from Leeds on a pro bono basis for the meeting with investigators and told The Mirror: "I'm very disappointed. It's a situation that could be resolved. The CCRC have confirmed they won't be going back, which is disappointing but understandable. It's just a massive miscommunication which could have been dealt with better."
She says her client had been keen to give a DNA sample, adding: "He wants to do this. He's made admissions and is trying to assist. He's absolutely furious and rang me six times in the last hour. He's so upset by it."
The solicitor explained how a visit had been arranged by the CCRC for this week and she had been included in that meeting: "They asked me to send a letter of introduction which we did on August 6th."
But when she arrived at the prison today (Thursday), she said she was told they needed photographic ID despite Ms Clark having been there several times.
"My details are on their system, my finger prints and my photograph. I've been advised by the CCRC that the visit had been confirmed. I did my best to resolve the situation when I was there but they would not facilitate a visit. I waited for the CCRC and explained the situation to them I attended at their request."
"He (Levi Bellfield) is angry and he has spoken to me and he would refute any suggestion he had refused to give a sample," she added.
In a statement given to The Mirror, Bellfield said: "I was told my solicitor had not turned up so it would not be going ahead, so I went back to the wing and phoned her immediately. I feel like they have treated me like a dog. I remain willing to provide a DNA sample and if the CCRC do not want to travel to see me I can provide a sample to police liaison who are based at the prison."
Impact on the investigation
The news was greeted with "dismay" from Stone's solicitor but he told us: "This does not stop the forensic team continuing with the investigation to identify DNA from the exhibits and hopefully if they recognise the DNA is likely to be Levi Bellfield's then a further attempt can be made to obtain a sample from him."
They were hoping Bellfield's DNA could be compared with any found on crime scene exhibits, including a white string swimming bag dumped by the killer. Other items to be tested again include a bootlace left at the scene by the killer and clothes worn that day by the victims.
The Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) is looking at the murders again after Bellfield, now 58, signed a detailed confession. Bellfield, who is in the same jail as Michael Stone, murdered 13-year-old Milly, 19-year-old Marsha McDonnell, and 22-year-old Amelie Delagrange. He also tried to kill 18-year-old Kate Sheedy, who survived.
It is believed he has since confessed to several murders including missing Elizabeth Chau, whom he claims to have buried in woodland, giving the location to police who have yet to search it. They insist his confession was false.
It is hoped new state-of-the-art DNA tests on a swimming bag containing the strips of towels used to tie the family up and gag them would provide new evidence. The bag was found by a gardener who had watched a man acting "jittery" near some woods a mile from the crime scene. The witness later returned to investigate and found a string bag stashed in some bushes at the top of a bank.
He left the bag there until the next day when he heard about the attack and contacted the police, leading them to the spot. They showed it to Megan Russell's father, Dr Shaun Russell, who identified it as his wife's. Blood, which matched the blood groups of Dr Russell and her two daughters, was found on the strips of the stained blue towel.
It is believed state-of-the-art forensic tests will be used, which can isolate a mix of male and female DNA. It's this same advance in testing that saw wrongly convicted Andrew Malkinson exonerated after serving 17 years for a brutal rape he did not commit.
Stone is now serving three life prison sentences after exhausting his legal options with two trials, two appeals and two rejected applications to the CCRC.
Michael Stone's solicitor Paul Bacon said his client is 'moderately hopeful' the tests could lead to him being cleared and are hoping either Levi Bellfield's DNA or another unidentified male's profile could be on the items.
Recently it emerged there may be a third suspect, Raymond Buck, who committed suicide in 2000 at the age of 45. A member of his family is to give a DNA sample too. Buck was reportedly heard to confess to a family member on the day of the attacks: "I've done something unforgivable. I've killed three people."
Stone's solicitor Mr Bacon said: "It could be Bellfield, it could be anybody - but it is important we get a result. The answer is in the DNA, that's what will eventually lead to the real culprit being found."
Mr Bacon told The Mirror: "I am sure the CCRC investigators will go back if appears likely the DNA identified is from Bellfield."
The experienced lawyer, who has represented Mr Stone for 20 years, says he is confident his client's DNA will still not be found on the exhibit. Instead he believes the forensic tests could uncover either Bellfield's profile or an entirely new suspect. This, he said, will then allow them to return the case to the Court of Appeal to clear him.
He said Michael Stone was "moderately hopeful" the real killer may now be found.
Mr Bacon explained: "We had a Zoom meeting with the CCRC a few weeks ago and forensic people to talk about the order in which they should start looking at exhibits. We've picked out what we think should be the first two or three items, exhibits from the scene.
"The string bag which had fallen into the hedge with towelling strips in it. The assailant tore up one of the towels because they had come from swimming, then used the strips to tie them all up. They were taken off them when they were dead and injured and put into the string bag.
"Later a man was seen throwing a bag into the hedge with the bloodied strips of towelling. In my opinion the bag is the most likely source of any result we might get."
His client gave his DNA six weeks ago after a mouth swab and Bellfield was booked for today. Forensic tests are also soon to be carried out on a swimming bag made of net, which had strips of towel inside used to bind and gag Dr Russell and her two daughters.
About E-fits issued after the 1996 Chillenden murders, which remarkably resembled serial killer Levi Bellfield, he said: "This is all speculative. No matter, whatever people say they saw, it has got to be a DNA find and with all the advanced techniques it should happen I think."
Mr Bacon said his encounters with Levi Bellfield began in January 2020. "He contacted me to say 'I have evidence and information that may assist your client Michael Stone'. So I went to see him for an hour and a half five times. On the fifth interview he'd written out for me his confession to the murders."
He told The Mirror Levi Bellfield later withdrew that confession before writing another one, reigniting the CCRC's interest in the case.
"I thought his confessions were detailed enough to be true but everything was in the public domain. On balance, I think it's more likely than not that he is telling the truth. There's a reasonable chance they are true but equally because he has two full life sentences he might see it as a bit of a distraction, me going to visit him for an hour-and-a-half at a time."
About the murders he said Bellfield told him he'd seen "this family walking along in to Cherry Garden Lane and suddenly had the idea to attack them. He said he was just cruising around when he saw the family and followed them in there, attacking them.
"You do wonder what was in his head. Look at his other murders and he sneaks up on people. It is extraordinary."
Asked if he believed Bellfield was behind the murders, he said: "It was his body language, sometimes in his responses to me that made me think sometimes: 'I think you could have done it'. It is quite likely because of his record attacking females.
"But it is difficult to know and we will only know when we get the DNA results. And whatever I think, the Court of Appeal is not going to look at anything other than a DNA result.
"If they can get a DNA hit they can find a match with a person on the police database and that will be excellent."
A CCRC spokesperson has previously confirmed its review was ongoing, adding it was the fourth time it had investigated Stone's case.
The fresh review commenced in November 2023 "exploring the possibilities the application raises to determine whether Mr Stone may have suffered a miscarriage of justice".
Their test for referring a case is that there is a real possibility that the Court of Appeal would overturn his conviction, a test which was not met in any of the earlier applications, they have said.
On Thursday when contacted by The Mirror, the spokesperson said: "CCRC staff made a pre-arranged visit to HMP Frankland today (Thursday 3 September) to obtain a DNA sample from Levi Bellfield. Once there, our staff were informed that Mr Bellfield refused to provide a sample in the absence of his solicitor, and our staff left the prison. A review of an application from Michael Stone continues."
