'Dead' British woman found alive after 57 years

Yahoo! UK News

10th March 2011

A missing woman who was presumed dead has been tracked down and reunited with her family 57 years after she mysteriously vanished.


Florence McLellan, 74, who is originally from the Cheetham Hill area of Manchester was found alive and well in Islington, London by police detectives following her disappearance in the '50s.

Unbeknownst to her family, 17-year-old Florence escaped from Brockhall mental institution in Lancashire and fled 200 miles to London in 1954, changing her name to Diane Roberts.

She had been sectioned by her parents after giving birth to a son out of wedlock, and was forced to give the baby for adoption.

Her extraordinary discovery was made possible when the missing woman's surviving relatives responded to a media appeal for information after suspecting that a skeleton dug up by builders in a car park in Manchester city centre last year could have been Florence's.

According to Greater Manchester Police, DNA tests ruled her out as the body and were able to crack the case after a year-long missing person's investigation leading them to her astonishing finding in the capital.

Florence, a mother-of-two and a grandmother-of-five told the Manchester Evening News: "I was really worried when I got a phone call from the police because I thought I would be sent back to Brockhall. I'm so relieved I don't have to go back. This has all come as such a shock but it has been a weight off my shoulders."

Son Glyn Roberts, 47, added: "Our worlds have been turned upside down by this. I always thought I was my mum's first born. I feel like I'm just beginning to get to know my mum again. There have been tears and cuddles but she is the victim in all of this."

The Roberts family now want to trace son, Joseph, who was put up for adoption 57-years-ago.
DCI Joanne Rawlinson, who is leading the investigation into the murder, said: "Things like this make the job worthwhile. Out of the sad set of circumstances we are investigating there has been a happy outcome for this family."

A spokesman for Greater Manchester Police told Yahoo! News that they were continuing with their enquiries into the identity of the remains found in the car park.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Major Incident Team on 0161 856 4337 or 0161 872 5050.

Written by Gaby Leslie

Source: Yahoo! UK News 10/03/11

Fresh hope for mother of Ben Needham as British police may investigate 1991 Greek snatching for first time

Daily Mail

By Daily Mail Reporter

Last updated at 4:23 PM on 28th February 2011

The disappearance of toddler Ben Needham may be investigated by British police for the first time, two decades after he was snatched in Greece.

Prime Minister David Cameron gave his mother Kerry, 39, fresh hope when he lent support for a new investigation.

No trace of the 21 month old was ever found after he vanished from Kos on a family holiday in 1991.

Mystery disappearance: Ben Needham was just 21 months when he was seized in Kos, right. Left is a computer generated image of what he might look like now

Mystery disappearance: Ben Needham was just 21 months when he was seized in Kos, right. Left is a computer generated image of what he might look like now

__________________________________________________________________________________

Kerry, 39, believes that her son was abducted and then sold for adoption. Now South Yorkshire Police could be called in to investigate the two decade old bungled probe.

The mother is also calling for Greek police to re-open the investigation as Mr Cameron signaled to her in a letter that British police could investigate.

Kerry told the Sunday Express: 'I have written to every Prime Minister since Ben went missing and have received run of the mill replies.

'Mr Cameron's response seems the most sincere. His letter felt like he really sympathises me.'

Kerry last visited the popular tourist island in 2008 – but has no intention of going back after being rebuffed by the authorities.

Mr Cameron wrote to her: 'I can promise you that South Yorkshire Police will have the support of the government and our embassy in Greece in pressing for whatever information or co-operation they require.'

A new artists impression of what Ben might look like has been released today that shows what he might look like.

Kerry will mark the 20th anniversary of the disappearance on July 24 this year.

Ben and his mother were staying with his maternal grandparents Eddie and Christine Needham in Iraklise, Kos, when he disappeared.

The toddler was seized within moments of him going to play outside a farmhouse, which his grandfather was renovating in the village of Iraklise.

Kerry was working as a waitress on the island at the time.

She has a 17-year-old daughter Leigh-Anna and married Craig Grist in 2006.

Source: Daily Mail 28/02/11

View Ben's thread on the Find Madeleine forum HERE!

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Please sign the following petition:

We, the undersigned, request that the UK and Greek Governments and Police Authorities work together to re-open and re-investigate all previous and current leads regarding Ben's disappearance.
We request that the UK Prime Minister, Mr David Cameron liases with his Greek Counterpart, Mr George Papandreou to co-operate fully together in ensuring investigations are carried out properly and effectively.

http://www.gopetition.com/petition/42827.html.

Inmate Arrested Over Child Killer 'Murder'

Sky News

1:15pm UK, Wednesday February 23, 2011

Jon di Paolo, Sky News Online

A 35-year-old inmate has been arrested on suspicion of murdering child killer Colin Hatch at a maximum-security prison.




Child killer Colin Hatch



Hatch died following an incident at Full Sutton jail near York on Tuesday.

The 38-year-old was jailed for life after being convicted of killing a seven-year-old boy while on parole for a previous child sex attack.

A Humberside Police spokesman said: "Officers from Humberside Police are currently investigating a prisoner death at Full Sutton Prison.

"A 38-year-old male prisoner died in the incident. A 35-year-old male prisoner has been arrested on suspicion of murder."

"Never again must a family have to suffer this experience and never again must Colin Hatch be released back into our community."

Victim's mother Lynn Williams after Hatch was jailed

Jailing Hatch in January 1994, Judge Nina Lowry said he was "highly dangerous" and told him it was not possible to envisage a time when he could be released safely.

Unemployed Hatch, then 21, had smirked when he heard the jury's verdict.

Just over two years earlier, he was jailed for three years for assaulting a boy of eight - and his lawyer warned he could kill when he was released.

Within 11 weeks of being paroled in April 1993, he abducted, sexually assaulted and then choked to death Sean Williams after luring him to his tower block home in Norfolk Close, Finchley, north London.

A postman discovered the youngster's body taped up in bin liners and dumped in a lift.

His conviction prompted a review of parole and probation for those convicted of sex crimes, with Sean's mother and father, Lynn and John Williams, saying others had to take some of the blame for their son's death.

Speaking at the time, Mrs Williams said: "Never again must a child be murdered by a pervert.

"Never again must a family have to suffer this experience and never again must Colin Hatch be released back into our community."

The two-week trial heard fantasies "involving abduction, sexual abuse and the killing of young children" written by Hatch were found in a wardrobe in his mother's bedroom after his arrest.

Hatch had a string of previous convictions from the age of 15 for attacks on six young boys.

At his previous trial for indecently assaulting the eight-year-old boy and choking him until he lost consciousness, psychiatrist Dr Anthony Wilkins recommended that Hatch was a "menace to the public" and should be sent to Broadmoor top security hospital.

But Broadmoor had not considered Hatch dangerous enough at the time, Dr Wilkins said.

Instead he was jailed for three years, as the judge was given no alternative.

Source: Sky News 23/02/11

Mothers United

A Character Study Of Psycopaths

This post focuses in on psycopaths and how they manage to hide amongst us; people like H. Olaf, the murderer of little Mirco Schlitter. He was known by friends and family as a husband and family man with children of his own! Many times psycopaths/pedofiles can blend in well in society and yet maybe not as well over time with their close family and friends. It is important to recognise these predators living amongst us whenever possible and our guest writer, Sarah Tate, has not only her personal experiences to share with us, but has written two books about them, Web of Lies - My Life With A Narcissist and Renaissance - A Journal of Recovery.

"I’m currently reading Dark Souls by Sarah Strudwick, and I’m struck by the blatant and brazen behaviour of her psychopathic ex, as described in the book. There were definite and tangible ‘red flag’ moments for her which she chose, at that time, to ignore for a range of personal reasons (mainly due to her past history of abuse and low self-esteem at the time she was in the relationship).

It struck me how very different our two exes were, yet at the same time so very similar in their thought processes and behaviour patterns. One is ‘in your face’ the other a ‘slow burner’ but both are equally as dangerous.

In my own relationship, there were also a great many red flags, but they were subtle enough for me to overlook at first. It wasn’t until time had passed and they built up that they became more obvious. There were lies and inconsistencies in the stories told to me, particularly relating to his past, but nothing that was so sensational, that it became instantly unbelievable. It was gradual.

There was nothing brash, brazen, or remotely violent about my experience. There was no anger, rarely a raised voice (from him) and at no point did I feel threatened by, or scared of, him.

At the time I knew nothing about passive aggressive behaviour and I’d never heard of gaslighting, so I inevitably believed that many of the problems were my own, and for the most part blamed myself for the persistent misery in which we lived.

When I look back now, I see my marriage to a psychopath like being in a psychological slow cooker. The ingredients for disaster were all there right from the very beginning, but it took time for the heat to really build up and the ensuing chaos to erupt. Even when it did, he remained calm, distant, cold and unassuming. A psychopath doesn’t need to be wielding his fists or a weapon to be dangerous. I feel that is a common misconception.

I knew I was on the ‘burner’ from very early on though. I could feel the heat building in the form of my own disquiet, and his growing distance and ultimate disdain. But the ‘light bulb moment’ only occurred at the very end when the whole world was crumbling around my ears.

The first ‘moment’ (as I describe in Web of Lies) came when he took money set aside to feed the children and booked a five star hotel to entertain his new girlfriend in. When I confronted him about this, he told me he felt entitled to a ‘break’ in a lap of five star luxury, despite the fact he knew we had no money to feed our kids. Upon realizing what he’d done, it occurred to me for the first time that the man had serious psychological issues. I knew no normal parent could do that to their own children, so it had to be that he wasn’t ‘normal’. This was the first time I considered he might be mentally unstable.

The second ‘moment’ came after the split when he seriously suggested we divide the children between us as though they were ornaments or assets of some sort. In that moment, when he made the suggestion, I looked into his eyes and saw there was nothing behind them. There was no ‘light’ there. And that’s when I knew I was dealing with a person without feeling or conscience. A person who could not love, or be loved.

After that, things started to finally fall into place, as I began to arm myself with knowledge and get therapy for the damage created by years on the ‘slow burner’.

As Dr David Holmes recently said to me about my books ;

“It’s so important to realise that these people do not visit the doctors and be diagnosed. They have to be identified and exposed by those close to them, which is hard, and anything that makes it easier will limit the damage done”

This is exactly why sites such as Waking You Up are needed to help men and women in relationships with these people to spot the red flags, and enable them to have their ‘light bulb moments’ before it’s too late. These men and women do not walk around with ‘I am a psychopath’ written across their foreheads. Only by learning how to spot the signs, and sharing our experiences, can we raise awareness of this problem in our society.

In some cases, these ‘light bulb moment’s come when we recognize our own frailties and weak points, and realize that we have become a magnet for a certain type of personality. Only by recognizing this in ourselves can we make the changes required to ensure we never allow another one of these people into our lives.

In other cases (like mine) the devil is literally hidden in the detail, and it can take time on the slow burner before we finally acknowledge and accept what we’re dealing with. As I said, the psychopath does not need to necessarily be a physical threat to pose a formidable danger to our well-being . The slow burners are equally as dangerous.

Wake up."

Safer Internet Day, Tuesday 8 February

7th February 2011

It’s more than a game, it’s your life – that’s the message to youngsters as South Yorkshire Police gives its support to Safer Internet Day.

Most children and young people growing up today experience the Internet in a positive and creative way. With over 500 million active users of Facebook and over 13 million players of online games such as World of Warcraft, the Internet has become a place for learning, playing and socialising.

Unfortunately, the internet can also be used negatively for bullying or threatening behaviour. This is why South Yorkshire Police (SYP) is supporting the '2011 Safer Internet Day’, which will take place on Tuesday 8th February across the country.

The ‘Safer Internet Day’ is organised by INSAFE, who promote safe, responsible use of the Internet and mobile devices to young people and the message this year is ‘it’s more than a game, it’s your life’.

Children and Young People's Officers will be visiting local schools to deliver Internet safety advice to young people to help them stay safe while using the Internet for homework, playing games and staying in touch with friends.

Advice from South Yorkshire Police is:

• Never give out personal details over the Internet such as mobile phone numbers.

• If using chat rooms use a nickname to protect your identity.

• Never arrange to meet anyone you have met online.

• Remember, it is not necessary to put your full details on social networking sites such as Facebook and always alter your privacy settings to allow only your friends to view your profile.

• Most importantly, it is vital to report anything that makes you feel uncomfortable.

Police also advise parents to try to keep the computer in a communal area, where you can easily monitor what your children are viewing.

Source: South Yorkshire Police 07/02/11

R.I.P little Mirco ** may the angels look after you **

You may recall my article on this blog called :

Madeleine vs Mirco - so close, and yet so far away

In this article I explained the story of a little missing boy Mirco, aged 10, and how the investigation was progressing in the search for him. I found it very disturbing, and came to the conclusion then already, that these things happen on my doorstep.

Almost 5 months of non-stop investigating and searching, 146 days after Mirco went missing, the tragic news of his death and the circumstances surrounding his death, has been announced, as well as the arrest of a suspect. During these entire 5 months, I had the feeling this case was not going to end well, but I kept my hopes up. A child doesn´t just disappear; he had to be somewhere ! Even the chief policeman, Ingo Thiel, had promised the boy´s parents, that he would find him, and he did.

Little Mirco´s body was found, after the suspect admitted to the crime and finally told the police where his body lay. The story is quite complex, as to how the investigaters puzzled the case together, having had over 9000 tip-offs from the public, and especially one witness who gave the most important information, having seen the perpetrator stop on the side of the road, wait for Mirco to drive past him, stop him and force him into the car. This witness could describe the car in which Mirco was taken, easily.

From then on, a VW Passat of a particular model was being looked for, and over 1500 of those type cars were searched, to no avail. Not a lot more information was given out to the public, in order not to jeopardize the ongoing case. However, a third piece of clothing was found shortly after the car type was announced, and in December Mirco´s mobile phone was also found.

For a long time after, it was silent, and nothing more was said about the case at all, until this last Wednesday 26^th January 2011.

An arrest was made at 6am on Wednesday morning, and by lunchtime of the same day, Mirco´s body was also found. A 46 year old family man of three children, was arrested. Nobody knew who he was or where he was from at that point; all I knew was that Mirco´s body had been found, and I felt a very strong pang of sadness….. I had so hoped……

This man apparently seemed relieved when the police arrived to take him away; he´d obviously been waiting for it to happen, as the psychologists explained that a person committing such a crime is too coward to own up, although according to neighbours where he lived, he appeared to be well integrated in his family life, just nobody had the slightest idea that he could have been a murderer ! There is even a local policeman who lives next door to him, who had discussed the disappearance of Mirco at a party, and did not have a clue !

After this man ( he has been named Olaf H. ) had been heard and Mirco´s body found, the replay of events of the 3^rd September 2010 came to light,and these are shocking ! Olaf H. claims that occupational stress motivated him to seek someone weaker than himself and give him the feeling of control , after his boss had rattled him that afternoon on the phone. He drove around aimlessly for a long while, until at around 10pm he came across Mirco riding alongside the road on his bicycle. He overtook the bicycle and stopped ahead and waited until Mirco rode by. This is the point the bicycle was found, and where the important witness noticed the car.

Olaf H. drove approx. 12 kilometers until he came to a forest; undressed the boy and sexually abused him. Realizing he could not just let the boy go, he strangled him and left the naked body lying in the undergrowth. He then drove off and on his way dumped some of the clothing in one place and more elsewhere, and threw the mobile phone out the car window again elsewhere. He then drove home in the early hours of the morning of the 4^th September. His wife and children at home did not have a clue; they had been told he was doing important work that had to do with his job.

It has also now come to light , as to how the police “found” the VW passat they were looking for. It was a leased company car, driven by Olaf H. until the end of October 2010, and was then replaced when the lease expired. The car was then to be sold and taken off the German registration system, and was traced as being on it´s way to Russia. That deal however never went through, and it was bought up by someone in Luxemburg. When it was registered there, the reg details popped up on the German system, and was tracked down at Frankfurt airport. It´s new owner had gone off to Bali on holiday and parked it there.

It is understood, that the car was searched and DNA was found which corresponded to Mirco´s DNA, but that it was not the only piece of evidence, causing the arrest to be made last Wednesday. I don´t think we will find out how Olaf H. was found, because some parts of the investigation have to remain secret. Ingo Thiel, chief of the police department, has said that sadly Mirco will not be the last child to go missing and murdered under the same circumstances ! He also went on to say that he doesn´t care how much all this has cost to unravel; he made a promise to Mirco´s parents that he would bring their little boy home and he has held to that; unfortunately not alive, but they can at least now have closure and grieve for their child.

The biggest shock for me, came on Thursday 27^th, when the public were told where Olaf H. lived: pictures of his house were shown on TV and a shiver ran down my spine when I recognized the street on the video…. It´s just a few roads down from my doorstep…… my worst nightmare came true, and before I became actively involved in missing children, I never would have dreamt it were possible so close to home ! And no matter how vigilant I have become, this goes to show it is still possible to have a murderer in one´s own vicinity without knowing at all !

View Mirco's thread on the Find Madeleine forum HERE!