Wendy Sewell: The Graveyard Murder
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 28 ต.ค. 2023
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Sources:
www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england...
en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steph...
web.archive.org/web/200610220...
www.derbyshire.police.uk/news/...
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/1779555...
web.archive.org/web/200809050...
www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.th...
derbys-wendy-sewell/amp/
www.innocent.org.uk/cases/step...
www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.ma...
wendy-sewell-s-murder-1-6392543/amp
www.theguardian.com/uk/2001/f...
www.derbytelegraph.co.uk/news...
2756570
www.scotsman.com/news/uk-news...
www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england...
www.newspapers.com
Music credit:
S.D.D.C - Cause of Death
CO.AG Music - Father Marcus
CO.AG Music - Abandoned
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The police weren't just incompetent in this case. They were willfully and maliciously incompetent.
I frankly agree with you. This is why I suspect the killer has/had a connection with the police.
@@mirandagoldstine8548 I don't believe the killer was a police officer. I think it was someone deeply influential, well connected and high profile who was in some way involved with Wendy, who then paid someone to kill her, and had the police in their pocket so was able to influence the investigation.
It was probably a high flying businessman, a prominent politician, or perhaps Masonry had something to do with it. Someone who couldn't be 'outed' as having been involved with Wendy, probably because it would destroy his own marriage and likely derail his career due to scandal.
So, business as usual, then.
The whole police station was probably shagging her.
@Y0uTubeCommentPoster such an unpredictable edgy comment. You're so brave.
I'm inclined to believe Wendy's killer was either a cop or had connections to law enforcement. Especially given that Don Hale was almost killed more than once for trying to get to the truth.
Plus, he was warned to drop it.
I agree. The police immediately latched onto him, refused to hear any evidence to the contrary, and put ten times as much effort into putting/keeping him in prison than they did "solving" the crime.
It could have also been because careers were given a massive boost, promotions and retirements jeopardized going back decades like a house of cards.
There's two separate issues here. She was sleeping with a high-ranking cop. The cop doesn't have to be the one who killed her to want the thing hushed up. He didn't care about her or her killer, he just wanted the thing shut down quickly without investigators dragging his affair into it. Framing a man with low IQ and no political connections was the easiest way to silence everything.
@@NoJusticeNoPeaceI think you nailed it. That sounds extremely likely and a logical explanation. Well said! ❤
This was an underage child who was an easy target. I have no words for how despicable and disgusting the police were in this case.
The cigarette box got me !!@ what a woman 🎉
I’ve a few words, but might get banned.
What this lad went throu was absolutely disgusting . Plus he was getting beaten up while in prison absolutely disgusting . The police that were involved in this case should have been up at court for what they did to that poor lad . He lost most of his life because of them its just absolutely disgusting
In court? They should be outside the court, in stocks.
Sad that you can't jail the entire police department for their negligence in this case. My heart goes out to Stephen and his family. RIP Wendy, sorry that the system failed you and many others.
Well, at least the ones who were in on it.
He was completely taken advantage of by the police
Heartbreaking and infuriating. Feel bad for him and his parents. This should never have happened!
I’ve become friends with Stephen Downing on Facebook, really nice down to earth guy who should never have been arrested, he’s been out of jail now for some time as it was realised that after all those years in jail he was totally innocent.
One of the nicest people I’ve ever spoken to.
I hope he is doing well?
The incompetent police honed in on Stephens vulnerability, with learning difficulties he has perfect to pin it on, poor lad, he was 17 years old, gentle and living his life.
Hope he sued the system.
Poor Stephen…
They just took his life that no one can ever refund 💔
As I understand it, this case made precedence towards changing how law enforcement in the UK handle interrogations!
It was an absolutely despicable injustice that happened to that poor guy!
A case similar in the US is also why police interrogations here changed, police were horrible in the old days.
Yet the same nonsense happened with Stefan Kiszko just two years later. Absolutely tragic.
PRECEDENTS
That's one good thing that came out of it, but at this poor boy's expense. 😢
@@ruthsimpson8436Well, some were. They weren't all like that. Many cases were solved properly, too. We just notice the cases where that happened. What a nightmare for those wrongly accused and convicted.
The poor boy and his family were irreparably brutalized. 😢 It seems clear that virtually every official responsible for pursuing the case failed him and the murder victim at every step. Forensic 'expert' bozo alone deserved every case he touched reevaluated for tampering. 🤯💔🤦♀️
As soon as you said he had learning difficulties, I knew how this was going to go down. Poor guy.
A most disgusting miscarriage of justice, corruption exists within 😡
Agreed.
My theory is that the murderer/boyfriend might have had some pull/connections to the police. This coupled with the discrimination of people who are mentally different during the 1970s definitely tells me that the killer wanted to not be connected to Wendy in any way, shape or form likely out of fear of a major scandal blowing up in his face. He probably decided to make Stephen the scapegoat due to the latter being mentally different from the “norm” and thought that no one would believe him. Who this boyfriend is I have no clue due to the lack of names connected to Wendy’s many paramours. Look at the police commissioner (do the British have a police commissioner) and then work downwards and beyond at their families. One of them had a connection to the killer. Hopefully a law will be passed allowing genetic genealogy to be used for this case (I am not sure if this is in effect in Britain) and thus it can be used to construct a genetic profile to compare to members of the police at this time. I frankly agree this was not only a miscarriage of justice it should also be considered a scandal and a mark of shame for the police.
It sounds to me like the police absolutely do know who was behind this (or at least some senior officers do), but the investigation was deliberately stopped by senior officers on account of whom that was and they had to close the case by fitting someone up.
My belief is that it was someone very high profile and influential (at least locally, perhaps not more widely) who had the police in his pocket and was able to make this go away. I don't believe it was a police officer who was actually responsible for the killing.
Perhaps as time passes, that person's influence will wane and a new crop of police officers wil be able to investigate the case anew and name this person, dead or alive.
Exactly@@halfbakedproductions7887. I suspect that, at the very least, the killer has/had connections to the police. Perhaps father dearest was a high ranking police officer? Or perhaps, and I just thought of this theory, his father was from a respected family like say a noble family? A lot of shame would be thrust upon the family if word go out the family had a killer in the family. Do we know if there are any nobles from the area? Like say a baronet or a lord?
Of course the killer didn't want to be connected to her.He would be risking being caught.The police put it on Stephen to close the case and get it over with.What a shame.The police lock people up for doing what they do.Who knows a cop could be involved in the killing and that is who is being protected.The question is will the police ever do their job or will the facts be forever hidden??
It seems much more likely that the cop who was rumored to have had a relationship with her just wanted this case shut down as quickly as possible. There was no need for the killer to have a connection to police.
The police already had a biased opinion of her,so they didn't try very hard on this case and figured the grounds man was good enough to blame,not the first time mentally challenged person was arrested, but was actually innocent.Maybe her fed up husband or a disgruntled man she had a fling with did it.
I suspect it was one of her boyfriends. I have theorized the boyfriend in question is from a well-respected local family that didn’t want a scandal breaking out if word got out one of the sons was dating the “Bakewell Tart”. Perhaps, say, a member of the gentry, like a baronet or a lord? A huge scandal would definitely ruin the reputation of the killer and his family if it got out there was infidelity and it would probably get worse if her death was connected to their family. So yes I agree the killer’s family has/had connections and considerable leverage in the community.
Or an angry wife.
That too is also a possibility @@fishandchipsupper. But that would make it a hit because I don’t recall hearing on the video female DNA not belonging to Wendy being found on the pickaxe. I still think the killer has a connection to a local family connected to the gentry. Question is which one?
This is so disturbing, know what happened with John Christie (murdered 6 women including Evans wife) and poor Timothy Evans. They executed Evans for murder that Christie committed. Evans was mentally challenged as well. This happened in the late 40's, early 50's. How very corrupt the UK police is to keep doing this to men who are basically incapable of defending themselves. Vile and corrupt.
It seems most likely that Stephen was used as a way to get the case closed quickly, possibly due to the alleged relationship the officer had with Wendy. That would make sense. Of course the boyfriend is the obvious suspect.
What an absolute nightmare this boy experienced. I can't even imagine. 💔
The detectives who were on this case should be behind bars.
Seems to me that the real killer - or at least the mastermind behind the killing even if they didn't do it themselves - was either a top level police officer, or someone extremely well connected and perhaps high profile who had access to and influence over top level police officers.
It was likely someone who would have been extremely embarrassed at being outed in connection with knowing Wendy. A dodgy local businessman with the police in his pocket, or maybe a prominent politician. It was interesting that Don Hale was merely repeatedly threatened rather than just being killed outright, however. Nothing appears to have happened to him after Downing was released either.
Ah but have you thought about the other possibility? A member of a noble family perhaps? As to the threats I suspect the killer’s family knew that if another death connected to the case occurred and someone managed to figure out they were behind the escalating death threats then it would be revealed they had a connection to the death of Wendy Sedwell. I did a quick look and it turns out the dukes of Devonshire’s ancestral seat, Chatsworth House, is located in the area as well as the former ancestral seat of the dukes of Rutledge. While I’m not suggesting it was one of those families I am suggesting it could be a local noble family that was behind the shoddy police work. Until I can confidently connect any person to Wendy Sedwell I shall refer to her killer as the honorable X, a member of a noble family that had enough leverage in the community to cause the shoddy police work. Look at one of those families.
@@mirandagoldstine8548 I'm not sure that "noble" families have as much influence as you're suggesting.
This is real life, and not some Poirot mystery that takes place in a bygone era.
It's more than likely someone connected closely with a senior police commissioner of the area. Either a close relative or themselves.
True@@robpalwrites. It was just a theory but still I think it was someone with enough clout to get the investigation bungled up.
Thanks DC. Great narration to this sad incarceration of an innocent man.
It took some damned gall for the prosecution to dismiss an exonerating witness over her being "short-sighted," when this so accurately describes their own conduct in the case! For even if it isn't true, as some here suspect, that the police were "in bed" with the killer in some way (which is easy to believe), then this is one of the worst cases of "tunnel vision" I've ever seen in police work. It's as if either the police were so instinctively convinced that this "demented" young man was a killer, just because of his condition and their bigotry against it, that they literally could not see any evidence to the contrary, or that they honestly didn't care about either the "tart" or who killed her, and so saw this case as an opportunity to easily rid themselves of two supposed undesirables at once.
Police incompetance/laziness, has always been a possible impedance to true justice. Thankfully, DNA science has now been able to counter this, to some extent...
I have never, ever felt more sorry for an wrongfully convicted person. This poor soul, I hope he had/has the ability to talk to someone about all that he was subjected to. Both before prison and during
No amount of money will make up for what he went through😢
It doesn’t matter how many years it’s been the police who did that if they’re still alive, should be going to jail.
The criminality of the police and prosecution are absolutely disgusting.
Where was their punishment? She didn't mention anything.
I’m not sure who’s worse. The person who murdered Wendy or the cops who handled this case. I’m sorry for Steven lost years and what he had to go through during those lost years.
The cops were worse, imo.
Some cases whisper "police cover-up" and others fairly shout "direct police involvement" and I think we can all guess which I think was afoot here.
Shameful and disgraceful. These fellows were acting like they were on the LAPD or something.
So much head shaking while listening to this. So, so sad.
Thanks for another engaging case. I believe that a high ranking member of the police was involved in the murder, either directly or by proxy. It is for this reason that the case was "mishandled". Downing was a convenient victim. This is the reason why, although I support capital punishment, I hesitate to endorse its reintroduction. Everything depends on the proper conduct of a case, from the crime scene to the final instructions to the jury. Any fault in this change could result in a wrongful conviction. As this case so clearly demonstrates, there must be proper oversight whenever an investigation is conducted. Someone high-up in law enforcement screwed Downing. And did so with malice.
So maddening and frustrating
Thanks for telling her story but sorry a conclusion hasn't come yet.
You would wonder why her husband was ok with Wendy seeing that many strange men why would you want to remain in such a faithless marriage
Maybe he just didn't mind an open relationship. It's not unheard of. And it was the sixties after all!
My boyfriend and I have an open marriage. It's fine for us. We don't sleep around as much (lol old and don't have as much time on our hands anymore) but it's perfectly normal. It just requires a lot of trust, understanding and STD testing on the regular.
Yeah, if no longer interested in husband why not just go separate ways and find someone who checks all the boxes.
Something very fishy and it stinks of corruption.
Thank you for covering this case.
6:04 That hedgehog looks guilty! 😅
This poor man. And such a strong character, even through torture in prison.
There's something extra creepy about being murdered at a cemetery
Just unbelievable.
I keep my fingers crossed for Stephen !!!
This happens more often then it should, unfortunately I believe The police zero in on one person and nothing can change their minds.
Agreed. Coupled with the fact Stephen is mentally different from the “norm” made him the best scapegoat in the police’s eyes. I think the killer/boyfriend has or had connections with the police as in his father was a high-ranking police officer. Father dearest probably didn’t want a major scandal to blow up in his face so he had his fellow officers arrest Stephen based on the perception of being disgraced for his son’s actions. Little did the police realize that their actions would blow up in their faces many years later. There is a saying in Wicca, every action returns three-fold. Or in other words, a rebounding of karma. We have gotten two of the folds dealt (the trial that proved the police incompetence/willingness to act on orders and the restitution) but we still need the killer to face justice. Hopefully Forseti, Themis and the Furies will smile upon the armchair detectives who have been studying this case as well as the modern detectives and give them the clue they need to nail the killer and thus cause him to face justice. Plus if he’s already dead whose to say his heart hasn’t been eaten by Amut or his soul cast into Tartarus. Then again I believe Helheim has a section specially set aside for killers.
@@mirandagoldstine8548 it sucks that someone who's proactively compassionate towards an injured person can be pinned for a horrific crime like this. I really think you have a good idea about the killer at least having some powerful connections and that's why they were so committed to never looking at any other evidence related to this case but instead focused solely on keeping this poor guy in jail...
Just your typical "rush to judgement" case, sadly.
😢 and the entire world knows there’s no such thing as a sexually motivated crime. They are all power driven. Has nothing to do with sex, it’s about attacking someone they perceive is weaker than they are.
The way the police conducted themselves is terrible. Back in the 70s it was a case of convict someone to keep the numbers up, regardless, but hiding evidence is what really gets me. It does sound like the boyfriend carried out the attack. Maybe he was a married man. Maybe he was quite prominent. One day, I hope Wendy Sewell gets justice
They stole that boy's life. I think that is nearly as bad as murder. He can't get those years back. They are gone. It breaks my heart. Poor Steven. 💔
Poor Wendy. She had a right to sleep with anyone she wanted to sleep with at any time. If she was a man no one would say anything. I hope some day she gets justice. She was failed. Rip Wendy.
Shades of the 10 Rillington Place murders. Fortunate that the death penalty had been abolished.
RIP! This case has remained unsolved for way too long!
What a shambolic performance by the police. It does strike me as a cover up.
This Screams corruption. Poor guy.
This is a very sad story. I wonder why if this woman enjoyed the company of several guys, why did she agree to be with this one man in a relationship? People who are promiscuous and like to have many lovers, should never commit to one person and certainly never marry anyone.🙁
Sounds a bit like a Policeman might have been the real killer.....
RIP, Wendy 😭💔
Her lifestyle led directly to her demise.
@@ps4455 :(
@@ps4455 Nonsense. Quit victim blaming.
@@godfreypigott I'm victim blaming because it's true. Being a ho guy her killed!
Why were they so adamantly against actual evidence and witnesses? Seems like the police had a good idea of who it was. It almost seems like they covered for someone. I'd say they were incompetent but I think they knew what they were doing. The threats, ignoring everything that was in their faces. They knew.
Why can’t the policeman responsible be identified. And if still alive be prosecuted?
They have the axe that shows unknown blood and prints. Why haven't they tested that
Absolutely a cover up, the cops should be ashamed of themselves.
But without government who would put innocent people in prison?
I hate that they refer to her that way. Police were beyond tunnel vision on this one.
This is the most horrible miscarriage of justice I have ever heard. The Police just wanted to solve the case and didn't care at all who they sent away for it. Unbelievable.
Women enjoying sex isn't a crime or a character flaw. It's repulsive that only women are judged as "promiscuous" whereas men having multiple partners is rarely mentioned negatively, even in 2023.
I have watched many true crime videos on this channel and a fair few others, and have never been as angry as I was watching this
Even considering the rate of inflation, 750 thousand pounds sounds incredibly light for compensation.
This is a disturbing case, obviously it was someone in law enforcement…where were his lawyers in the first go around? Surely they knew he had cognitive issues and laws were broken.
The bloke on the phone. It's always the last person to be with them.
I find it very hard to believe that the mess the police made of the investigation was due to laziness or incompetence, it seems more purposeful than that. I'm guessing poor Wendy was killed by one of them or someone close to them. And then they made poor Stephen a scapegoat. I hope they're punished somehow. RIP Wendy
"Bakewell Tart murder". Wow. Way to respect the dead.
I have heard of an awful lot of incompetently handled cases but this one really takes the biscuit i suspect that the perpetrator belings to a certain occupation which would explain the bungled nature of this case
What should she be ashamed? The *men* she saw clearly weren't.
There is one public figure who claimed not to live in Bakewell at the time but public records show this is false
Stephen deserves a lot more money than that!
The police that questioned Steven just apologized? That’s it? They should be put in prison for life.
Everything points to the either the police or a family member(s) murdering Wendy.
True or perhaps someone who had considerable leverage over the police.
No, the police department apologized on behalf of their predecessors. All the ppl involved back then were long gone by the time, poor Steven was finally aquitted.
I think certain police officers at the time probably knew who it was, poor Steven was their gift of a scapegoat. Wicked *#@+ 🙄
He believed in the legal system? How? Why?
Deliberate lazy police work makes me so angry
One more time: the police are NOT your friend.
wow
It’s a cover up I bet it was one of the police who did it 🇦🇺
The police wanted a quick close, whether it was the killer or not apparently did not matter ... this was a disgrace on the part of the law
This figure was a friend of George Oldfield, who had a home in the area
What an injustice to happen to this young man. Sadly Wendy Sewell was known to be promiscuous and there were probably a number of suspects. Maybe ones they didn't even know about. If it is true one of the Superintendent was one of her lovers then maybe that is why the police were wanting to put Stephen Downing in prison so quickly. It would also explain why the investigation was so poorly done because they may have been protecting their Superintendent. Wendy's lifestyle does not mean she should have been murdered or harmed in any way. Wendy could have had othere police that she was having a relationship with also. Big COVER UP. I feel so sorry for Stephen and his family. Also for the family of Wendy because someone got away with her murder.
It seems there had to be a police officer that either committed the murder or was closely connected. I’m so thankful he was finally released.
trouble police would get away with it no jury convicts them for things like this
So how many police officer have been charged with falsifying government documents and for interfering with a murder investigation
😢
I recommend reading Wikipedia about this case. They say Hale modified testimonies of witnesses in his book, they don't remember saying things as they were published. After Downing release, police made a new inquiry and they investigated 20 suspects presented in Hale's book and they all were eliminated, while Downing still remained a suspect. Even his lawyer admitted the inquiry was done correctly. After release, apparently Downing has confessed three times that he killed that woman, once he even was recorded by an ex-girlfriend.
They say the victim was not meeting a lover. Also, her belongings were not missing because they were returned to the husband a few days after her death.
Just because police messed up the first time, doesn't mean he is not guilty. (Also his father was accused of rape. I guess the son has inherrited some bad genes.)
When the crime against the accused is as bad as the crime against the victim. People will say, oh jail is worse than death? Yes, this young man with limited education was railroaded into prison where his life was ruined, mentally and physically. Awful.
This was awful. Even at the time of the trial I remember thinking this was a police stitch up.
He should have gotten millions for sitting in jail for most of his life, poor man.
This reminds me of the case in Leeds where they convicted a mentally disabled man. When I think it was either Peter Sutcliffe or even Jimmy Saville that did it. The body was found at the park in which Saville and his mother lived. If you haven't seen a channel4, three part film called 'Red Riding' . Maybe one of the best British film's made. Extremely dark but essential veiwing. It reveals how bad the police can be. Based on alot of true event's. And it involves the case of the poor man wrongfully convicted in Leeds. Just thought I'd mention that. Bless
Complete police cover up. Totally disgusting. Poor Steven, he will never get his life back. I wish you gooduck and peace for your future. Thankyou Mr. Hale, for proving what was obvious from the start.
It was a set up from the start, the killer arranged to meet in the cemetery as scapegoat already selected
Damn. Yikes Wendy. I mean- she didn’t deserve what happened to her but it does seem that she was constantly reckless with herself and unfortunately bad people will take advantage of that… man… very sad.
Here before 300 views!
This story just made me so sad and angry. 😔😡
Regarding the comment about the groundskeeper Stephen, I don't see what being introverted has to do with being a hard worker or not. The introverted people I've know have worked harder than extroverts I've worked with, because they aren't constantly talking to everyone and are actually doing their jobs.
Met Stephen. He wouldn't hurt fly. Come from a quiet, lovely, honest family. How can anyone in authorities, live with themselves after totally ruining a Poor young man's life? I'd find it hard to sleep at time's and it would naw and grate. If your a human-being that is. Anyway Takecare y'all. Bless
This is why the US has Miranda Rights.
Miranda rights don't help when the person being read them doesn't understand them.
@@breadpilled2587 True, but it helps the person being interrogated when they ask for a lawyer and can't be denied that request.
✔️
the more you learn of police culture and behaviour theres no way you can trust the system or any officers any more
The finger prints on the weapon was never substantial?
Was he able to sue..
This poor poor man! What hell he had to live through. I have no idea if in Britain you can sue the county or court but I sure would have as $750,000 is hardly enough to cover over 2 decades of false imprisonment. Two crimes were committed here: imprisonment of an innocent person & the murder of this woman. Miscarriage of justice is an understatement!
F’ing chr!st, that’s so messed up. The detectives involved should be named and shamed at minimum.
She was obviously a sex addict, which is a mental health issue, more than a purely moral issue. I would also point out that men who behave this way are not called “tarts” or any other derogatory labels.
Too little too late