Lawyer links killing of PCSO and Chillenden murders of 1996
Police urged to re-examine attack on Lin and Megan Russell after death of special constable in Kent
POLICE must investigate a possible link between the killing of a Kent PCSO this week and the notorious Chillenden murders of 25 years ago, a leading barrister has said.
Steven Kamlish QC said detectives investigating the death of 53-year-old Julia James should not rule out a connection with the brutal killings of Dr Lin Russell and her daughter Megan, along with the attempted murder of nine-year-old Josie Russell, in 1996.
Mrs James was found on a path at the edge of a field behind her house at 4pm on Tuesday afternoon with her Jack Russell dog by her side. She is believed to have suffered severe head injuries.
Kent Police are now investigating whether Mrs James, who had worked for the police for 15 years and had a commendation for bravery, was the victim of a random attack by a stranger. Officers advised residents to remain “vigilant” as it emerged another female dogwalker had been accosted by a man in a nearby village two weeks earlier.
The body was found less than three miles from the country lane near Chillenden, where on July 9 1996, the Russell family had been tied up, blindfolded and attacked with a hammer while walking the family dog. Josie miraculously survived the attack.
Four years ago a BBC documentary cast doubt on the conviction of Michael Stone, who was sentenced to life in 2001 for their murders and the attempted murder. He continues to protest his innocence. One legal expert featured in the documentary now working on Stone’s behalf to have the case reexamined last night urged Kent Police to investigate a potential link with Mrs James’s murder. Mr Kamlish said: “There are features of Chillenden which are present in the murder of Julia James and this should therefore create reasonable lines of inquiry into the similarities between the two cases.
“Kent police should not fail to look at these even though they think they have a conviction for the former. If they do, then they will be letting the public down.
“Police found bloody fingerprints and DNA from Chillenden which did not belong to Michael Stone. To this day they have not been able to identify them. It would make sense to see if there are any matches to the Julia James murder.”
Wayne Davis, Mrs James’s partner for 13 years before their split in 2009, also drew the comparison. “It immediately reminded me of what happened with Lin and Megan Russell in Chillenden,” he said, adding that it was also possible that Mrs James had been targeted due to her work on domestic violence cases.
Kent Police said they were pursuing multiple lines of inquiry but had made no arrests.
Ms James, whose body was found near woodland in Snowdown, near Aylesham, Kent, was last seen by Sean Simmonds, a neighbour, leaving her house for a walk with her Jack Russell.
Dozens of police officers and a specialised dog unit scoured the crime
‘This is also Julia’s home force, so her colleagues and friends in the force will need much support’
scene for clues yesterday. Officers were said to be “shattered” after the loss of one of their own.
Meanwhile, it emerged that a female dog walker had been accosted by a man in a van in Nonington, just a mile from where Ms James was murdered, two weeks earlier. The woman managed to call out for help and flee after the man became distracted.
One villager in Nonington said: “The victim was shocked, but she didn’t take it further.”
Villagers spoke of their fears at the prospect of Mrs James’s killer still roaming the area, with several women admitting they were now too scared to walk along isolated paths with their dogs.
Charles Woodgate, who represents Aylesham, Eythorne and Shepherdswell on Dover council, said: “People in the village are scared there’s some crazy nutter in the woods who is now on the loose. They fear it was a stranger who killed Julia but hopefully the police will catch them quickly.”
A police spokesman told The Daily Telegraph: “We are following all lines of inquiry and keeping an open mind. She was a serving police officer at the time she was killed.”
In November 2017, BBC Wales reported that Levi Bellfield, Milly Dowler’s killer, had allegedly confessed to the Chillenden murders to a fellow prisoner, giving details that “would only be known by the killer”. Bellfield denied committing the murders and denied making the confession.
Priti Patel, the Home Secretary said yesterday: “I was debriefed from the chief constable’s call last night on this awful, awful murder.
“We’ve got to let Kent Police have the time and space to get on with their investigation. This is also Julia’s home force, so her colleagues and friends in the force will need much support.”