Alex Hanscombe, the son of murdered Rachel Nickell, has revealed that he blamed his father for her death, despite André Hanscombe's efforts to protect him. Alex was nearly three years old when he witnessed his mother's brutal killing on Wimbledon Common in 1992.
In a new documentary, Alex, now 36, said he was angry about the repeated questioning by psychologists and police in the weeks after the murder. 'The thing that was most distressing for me was to be taken back to that day repeatedly,' he said. 'I don't think I had the same trust and respect for my father as I once had. He was the protector of the family and unfortunately had allowed this to happen to us.'
André, now 62, accepted his son's anger, saying he felt guilty for not protecting his family. 'There was an anger and that anger was, quite rightly, directed towards me,' he said. 'I had a huge sense of guilt that I hadn't protected my family.'
The pair's relationship was strained for years, but they have since become close. Alex now expresses gratitude for his father's sacrifices. 'My father sacrificed everything for me and for what he believed in,' he said. 'He was brave enough to do what he felt was right in his heart and I'm forever indebted to him for that.'
The documentary also highlights police failings in the investigation. Robert Napper was eventually convicted of Rachel's murder in 2008, after Colin Stagg was wrongly arrested and spent 13 months in custody.
