A new Channel 4 documentary, Murder in Suburbia, revisits the 2007 murder of Sharon Birchwood, a 52-year-old woman from Ashtead, Surrey, who was killed in a contract killing orchestrated by her ex-husband. The case remains one of the most chilling in British criminal history.
The Murder and Initial Investigation
On December 4, 2007, Sharon Birchwood was found dead in her home, bound at the wrists and hands and strangled with an electrical cord. She suffered from Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME), also known as chronic fatigue syndrome, a long-term condition causing extreme tiredness. There were no signs of burglary, and police initially had no DNA match, leaving them with a disturbing mystery.
Graham Birchwood, Sharon's ex-husband, discovered her body and called the police. The couple had divorced in 1989, but Graham remained the sole beneficiary of her will. This made him a prime suspect, although he was miles away at the time of the murder.
The Truth Uncovered
Detectives eventually discovered that Graham Birchwood had hired a hitman from Thailand to kill his ex-wife. A phone number found on his mobile, contacted before and after the murder, led to Paul Cryne, a 63-year-old former bodyguard from Manchester. Cryne was paid £30,000 to fly from Thailand to the UK to carry out the killing. Prior to the murder, Cryne stayed with Birchwood's mother for a week. Birchwood's motive was to inherit Sharon's £475,000 assets, as he had debts of £150,000.
Convictions and Deaths
Graham Birchwood was jailed for life with a minimum term of 32 years in 2009 after being found guilty of murder. He died of heart disease at HMP Wayland in 2019. Paul Cryne was convicted of murder in 2010 after being extradited from Thailand and sentenced to 28 years and six months. He died in prison in January 2018.
The Documentary
Murder in Suburbia airs on Thursday, July 16, at 10pm on Channel 4. The two-part series examines the investigation into Sharon's murder, described as "one of the most exacting and chilling contract killings in modern British criminal history." The episode follows the police's long route to the truth, from the initial lack of clues to the eventual uncovering of the conspiracy.
