A new two-part documentary series on Paramount+, titled The Jigsaw Puzzle Murder, examines the 2024 murder and dismemberment of Stuart Everett in Salford, offering a behind-the-scenes look at the police investigation that led to Marcin Majerkiewicz being jailed for life.
Detective Chief Superintendent Lewis Hughes, who led the case for Greater Manchester Police (GMP), said the documentary offers audiences a unique opportunity to understand the inner workings of the investigation. Cameras were with officers during key moments in the probe.
Investigation details revealed
Mr Everett, 67, also known as Roman Ziemacki, was killed in his own home on Worsley Road, Winton. Majerkiewicz, 42, repeatedly hit him over the head with a weapon, then used a hacksaw to cut up the body in his bedroom. Body parts were placed in bags for life and dumped in wooded areas across Salford and north Manchester.
Majerkiewicz was arrested about a month after the killing, after police scouring CCTV footage recognised him getting on a bus. He was seen on CCTV near five locations where remains were found: Kersal Dale in Salford, Linnyshaw Colliery Woods and Blackleach Country Park in Walkden, land off Chesterfield Close in Winton, and Boggart Hole Clough in Blackley.
Documentary offers real-time insight
Speaking to the Manchester Evening News, Det Chf Supt Hughes said: "There are loads of police and law enforcement and investigation and crime programmes... fiction and non-fiction. The beauty of this is you see what really happened - how truly complicated it was. The procedures and the decisions and things are true to life. Those are things that really happened."
He added: "It's far more immersive and realistic than some of the stories you might see. You couldn't make this up, could you? So it's why we think it's such a good production."
Det Chf Supt Hughes noted the distinction from fictional dramas: "Unlike other productions, this one followed us at the time. So from the very early days, when everybody realised it was a standout case, the film crew were there actually seeing things in real time."
Balancing filming with the investigation
Having cameras around during an active murder investigation was new for the team. Det Chf Supt Hughes admitted it had challenges but said the production team worked around the investigation without interfering.
"It's an extra consideration, isn't it, when you're being followed in real time?," he said. "The skill of a good production company is they don't slow you down because you're doing a job. It's not like acting where you can do multiple takes, is it? You've got to do it once, do it right, and it must not detract from the investigation and keep it moving forward."
He added: "Somehow, we struck that balance. They found a way to seamlessly slot in around us at the parts they were filming."
Family involvement and public support
Mr Everett's family were involved in discussions about the documentary from an early stage. Det Chf Supt Hughes said: "Very early on, we spoke with Stuart's family about this, most notably his brother Richard. He was keen that, when you remember the reporting on this and how harrowing and sort of gruesome it was, that that isn't all that's told. That Stuart's story is told about what it was like in life."
He added: "He wasn't simply remembered as how he was found in the bunker, so to speak. So the family were really supportive of that from a very early stage."
Det Chf Supt Hughes hopes viewers gain a better understanding of the public's role in solving complex investigations, noting the cooperation received during the case. He said: "Obviously, we're very grateful for all the support and cooperation received from the public during the investigation. A massive amount of statements, CCTV seized. Everybody was so understanding that we had to search country parks – people's dog walks and family trips and things. Better that we find evidence of body parts in there than they do."
He added: "It's important [it is] documented like this, so the public understands what we do – the challenges we face, the lengths we go to and how even in the most complicated circumstances, nothing's beyond what we can achieve with the public's cooperation and our police response. For trust and confidence, the public put their trust in us, even in the most difficult of circumstances. And we deliver."
On Majerkiewicz's crime, he said: "You don't often see cases where somebody leaves you a body part on display in a bunker, a giant big clue, and says 'come and have a go' - so to speak - and then Googles the police response and where they're up to periodically. The lengths he's gone to, to frustrate the investigation, to hide the identity, to ensure it never leads back to him - that's one of the things that makes it unique."
Trial judge Mr Justice Cavanagh handed Majerkiewicz a life sentence in March last year, ordering a minimum term of 34 years. Majerkiewicz was found guilty of murder by a jury. The Jigsaw Puzzle Murder is exclusively on Paramount+ from November 12.
