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Murder of Penny Bell

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Penny Bell
Born
Ruth Penelope Bell[1]

(1948-02-28)28 February 1948[2]
Burnham on Sea, Somerset, England[2]
Died6 June 1991(1991-06-06) (aged 43)
Perivale, Greenford, London, England
Cause of deathKnife wounds

Ruth Penelope "Penny" Bell (28 February 1948 – 6 June 1991) was an English businesswoman who was discovered murdered on 6 June 1991 in the car park of Gurnell Leisure Centre, West Ealing, London, close to Perivale Park, Greenford. She was stabbed fifty times as she sat behind the wheel of her car in the car park of the public leisure centre. Her murder remains unsolved.

Background

Penny Bell lived with her husband, Alistair Bell, in Baker's Wood, near Denham, Buckinghamshire. Alistair was an estate agent, and Bell was a partner in Coverstaff Ltd, a successful catering employment agency based in Kilburn.[1]

Previously friends, the couple had married in April 1981.[3] They lived with her son Matthew, from a prior marriage of hers, and the couple's daughter Lauren.[3]

Alistair had an eleven-year homosexual relationship before he met Penny.[4] Alistair Bell was completely open about this, but when police revealed this information to the press, public sympathy for the family declined, as the public assumed that a former lover was the murderer.[2]

The family home was undergoing extensive renovations from November 1990, valued at £100,000.[5] Bell had withdrawn £8,500 from her and her husband's joint bank account, presumably to pay the builders, on 3 June 1991.[6][7] She had never previously withdrawn such a large sum of cash.[7]

Murder

On 6 June 1991, Alistair left the house as usual at 8:30 BST.[7] He described Bell's demeanour as "bright and chirpy".[8] He noted that Bell did not wave him off as he left in his car, as was her usual custom, but believed that this was due to the disruption caused by their kitchen renovation.[7]

Bell left her home in her powder blue Jaguar XJS at around 9:40 BST, which was her usual leaving time.[9] She informed the builders, who were renovating the kitchen, that she was running late for a 9:50 BST appointment.[10] No record of this appointment was found in her diary, and it has never been established who, if anyone, she was meeting. An electrician, who was the last known person to speak to Penny, described her demeanour as "normal and casual".[11]

Witnesses recalled a blue Jaguar XJS driving along Greenford Road at about 10:00 BST at 10-15 mph with its hazard lights flashing. A witness came forward six months after the murder and claimed he saw her driving into the car park with a passenger, and mouthing an appeal for help, which he ignored.[12]

It is believed that Bell was murdered around 10:30 BST.[13] Bell was seen motionless in the driver's seat of her car in the Gurnell Leisure Centre car park at 1100 GMT, but passersby assumed she was sleeping.[1] It wasn't until 12:15 BST that the police were alerted and her death was discovered.[12] She had been stabbed fifty times in the chest and arms with a three to four inch blade, in what police were to describe as a "frenzied" attack.[8] A forensic investigation determined that the killer had stabbed Bell from the passenger seat, before exiting the car and frantically stabbing her from the driver's window.[12]

Investigation

At the time, the leisure centre had been crowded, and the car park almost full.[14] Poor visibility and audibility aided the killer; the car was parked in front of a high hedge perimeter, which blocked the view from the front; the Jaguar had a tiny rear window and was effectively sound-proof, which muffled any cries for assistance.[14] Wallpaper samples were found laid out in the rear of the car, although the reason for this is unclear.[2]

Police believed the killer would have been heavily bloodstained following the murder.[8]

The police investigation determined that Bell was a happily married and successful businesswoman, and could find no reason why anyone would want to kill her.[7] Police believed that it was very likely that Bell knew her killer, but have struggled to ascertain a motive.[15] The police do not believe that robbery was the motive, and Penny's handbag remained in the car untouched.[7]

The £8,500 that Bell had withdrawn from the bank remains unaccounted for.[6]

Potential suspects

Due to the frenzied nature of the attack, police believed that Penny knew her killer. Police examined Alistair as a suspect, as he inherited the bulk of his wife's estate as well as a £200,000 life insurance payout.[4] However they found nothing to link him to the murder.[16]

A family friend, John Richmond, was described by police as "completely in the clear".[17]

Bell worked as a Samaritan until around 1982, and police explored the idea that the killer was someone she had counselled.[11] Alistair posited that it was a random murder by a stranger, and police did not rule this out.[5][1]

Lauren Bell believes that her mother knew her killer, as "the ferocity of the attack suggests a crime of passion ... I think it was someone who wanted her but couldn't have her."[12]

Alistair and Bell's business partner offered a £20,000 reward for evidence leading to a conviction.[18]

No one has been charged with Bell's murder. 4,000 people had been questioned by May 1992.[19]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d Tendler, Stewart (8 June 1991). "Police seek motive for knife murder of businesswoman". The Times.
  2. ^ a b c d McMahon, James (15 November 2018). "The Inside Story of Britain's Most Notorious Cold Case Murder". Vice. Retrieved 10 January 2019.
  3. ^ a b Harrison, David (16 June 1991). "Jaguar murder: Bearded man sought". The Observer.
  4. ^ a b Mullin, John (3 April 1993). "Things Like This Don't Happen Here". The Guardian. {{cite news}}: Check |first1= value (help)
  5. ^ a b De Courcy, Anne (18 February 1992). "I never realised I was Number One suspect in my wife's murder". Evening Standard. {{cite news}}: Check |first1= value (help)
  6. ^ a b Barlass, Tim (11 February 1992). "Murdered Penny's home is ransacked". Evening Standard.
  7. ^ a b c d e f Crimewatch UK, (BBC), 12 September 1991
  8. ^ a b c Holden, Wendy. "Mystery of murdered wife's appointment." Daily Telegraph, 10 June 1991, p. 3. The Telegraph Historical Archive, http://tinyurl.galegroup.com/tinyurl/8Cbip1. Accessed 30 Oct. 2018.
  9. ^ Clancy, Ray, and Mr Bell. "Husband appeals for witnesses to his wife's murder." Times, 10 June 1991, p. 3. The Times Digital Archive, http://tinyurl.galegroup.com/tinyurl/8Cbir3. Accessed 30 Oct. 2018.
  10. ^ Wilson, Jamie (11 January 2000). "Unsolved: woman knifed in Jaguar". The Guardian. Retrieved 16 April 2018.
  11. ^ a b Dalrymple, James. "Murder agony haunts the village of the stars." Sunday Times, 16 June 1991, p. 7. The Sunday Times Digital Archive, http://tinyurl.galegroup.com/tinyurl/8Cb7n0. Accessed 30 Oct. 2018.
  12. ^ a b c d Neil, Beth. "Murdered Mum I Can't Remember". Mirror. Archived from the original on 6 June 2011. Retrieved 16 April 2018.
  13. ^ "Reward in mother murder mystery". BBC. BBC News. 6 September 2005. Retrieved 31 October 2018.
  14. ^ a b Dalrymple, James. "Crowd passed murder woman." Sunday Times, 9 June 1991, p. 3. The Sunday Times Digital Archive, http://tinyurl.galegroup.com/tinyurl/8CcLW3. Accessed 30 Oct. 2018.
  15. ^ Nettleton, Peter (9 March 2001). "Why the killers fear scientific discovery". Evening Standard.
  16. ^ "Penny: insurers withhold payouts". Harrow Leader. 6 February 1992.
  17. ^ "Police disband Penny Bell murder team." Daily Telegraph, 2 July 1992, p. 3. The Telegraph Historical Archive, http://tinyurl.galegroup.com/tinyurl/8Cb7k4. Accessed 30 Oct. 2018.
  18. ^ "£20,000 reward in murder hunt." Daily Telegraph, 13 Sept. 1991, p. 3. The Telegraph Historical Archive, http://tinyurl.galegroup.com/tinyurl/8Cbi31. Accessed 30 Oct. 2018.
  19. ^ "Penny: Man quizzed". Evening Standard. 8 May 1992.
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