Kevin Parle has spent more than two decades evading authorities following the murder of Lucy Hargreaves. The 45-year-old remains the prime suspect in the killing of the young mother, who was shot and killed in her Walton home in August 2005.
The Murder of Lucy Hargreaves
In the early hours of August 3, 2005, 22-year-old Lucy Hargreaves was asleep on her sofa when three men forced their way into her home. The attackers shot her three times with a sawn-off shotgun before dousing her duvet in petrol and setting the house on fire. The flames quickly engulfed the property, forcing her partner, who had been sleeping upstairs, and their two-year-old daughter to escape through an upstairs window.
Over the years, 21 people have been arrested in connection with the case, but no one has been convicted. The suspected gunman, Kevin Parle, remains at large despite extensive efforts by investigators to bring him back to Merseyside to face charges for both Lucy's murder and the killing of a teenage boy the previous year.
Parle's Criminal History
Privately-educated Parle, known by the nickname 'Hemp', is also wanted for the murder of 16-year-old Liam Kelly in 2004. Liam was shot dead on Grantham Street in Dingle over an alleged £200 debt. Parle has not been seen in over 20 years and is believed to have links to southern Spain.
There have been reported sightings of the 6'5" fugitive in Spain, Australia, and Dubai, but no confirmed sightings or substantial leads have emerged, according to Crimestoppers. In August 2025, 20 years after Parle went on the run, Crimestoppers offered a £10,000 reward for information leading to his arrest.
Operation Captura and National Crime Agency
Parle is one of 12 men on a new list issued by the National Crime Agency (NCA) of the UK's most-wanted fugitives believed to be hiding in Spain or with links to the country. The list was published on May 14 at an event in Alicante marking 20 years of Operation Captura, a joint initiative by British and Spanish forces to bring UK criminals hiding in the country to justice. The campaign has seen 98 fugitives apprehended out of 111 publicised.
In August, Crimestoppers issued an "enhanced" appeal for information about Parle's whereabouts, offering a £10,000 reward. A spokesperson for Crimestoppers said: "We believe that members of the public may have crucial information that could finally bring closure to the victims' families."
Previous Trials and Acquittals
Parle's older brother Tony and another man, Kirk Bradley, went on trial for Lucy's murder in 2007 but were acquitted midway through the case after a judge ruled there was insufficient evidence to proceed. The pair later received life sentences for their roles in a violent gang war.
New Documentary Revisits the Case
The case will be revisited in a powerful programme airing on TV. Rob Rinder: The Crime I Can't Forget airs tonight (Monday, June 8) at 9pm on Crime+Investigation. TV star Rob Rinder was part of the defence team at the time. The documentary follows Rob as he revisits key moments from the case, including a reunion with his former lead defence counsel, Rod Johnson KC, to explore the legal arguments that led to the case being stopped. Rob returns to Liverpool, meeting those who knew Lucy and, for the first time, speaking with her family, who have never publicly discussed her murder.
