Crimewatch helped me catch a murderer
... so I can’t believe that the BBC’s axed it
AS ONE of the police officers involved in the birth of Crimewatch — which went on to help solve one of the major crimes I was investigating — I regret that the BBC has decided to axe it after 33 years (Mail). The BBC floated the idea of the show early in 1984 through the Association of Chief Police officers’ working group on major crime investigation, of which I was the secretary. only three programmes were scheduled, so though some in the police had misgivings, it was thought that even if the show were a failure, there would be little lasting harm. I was also chairman of the North West Regional CID Conference and so knew every CID chief in Great Britain. I introduced the Crimewatch producer Peter Chafer to the regional conferences and helped persuade the diehards to take part. The first programme was transmitted on June 7, 1984, and the reaction was low-key. However, the third (which was planned to be the last) edition resulted in the solving of a murder in the New Forest. The show was then given a cautious go-ahead and became a staple in the TV schedules. Two years later, Crimewatch helped me secure the conviction of a double murderer. In January 1986, Bronwen Nixon, 67, the proprietor of Rothay Manor Hotel in Ambleside, was killed. Inquiries led to the arrest of a North Wales man, David Wynne Roberts, who already had a conviction for murder in March 1969, when he was only 14. Though Roberts was in the frame, there was a problem: did we have sufficient evidence to name him? A new Director of Public Prosecutions representative to the North West Region gave us the go-ahead to make an appeal on Crimewatch. on the night of the broadcast, 25 phones were set up locally as well as the studio call centre, but as we were to discover, 25 phones were not enough. Immediately the number appeared on the TV screen, every one of them rang. We received calls giving information that played a significant part in bringing Mrs Nixon’s killer to justice. At Manchester Crown Court on December 1, 1986, Roberts was found guilty by a majority verdict of 11 to one. Well done, Crimewatch.
R. S. HUDDART, Penrith, Cumbria.