Hannah Williams (murder victim)

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Hannah Williams.
Hannah Williams.

Hannah Williams (died c.21 April 2001) was a 14-year-old British schoolgirl who was murdered after going missing during a shopping trip on 21 April 2001. Her body was discovered on 15 March 2002[1] in an industrial area of Northfleet, Kent, beside the Thames estuary.

The body was initially speculated to be that of Danielle Jones, a missing 15-year-old from neighbouring Essex, but was soon identified by Williams's distinctive clothing.[2]

The discovery of Williams's body overlapped with the investigation into the disappearance, and later murder, of Amanda "Milly" Dowler, a 13-year-old girl from Surrey. There was a stark contrast between the two girls' backgrounds: Williams, a girl from a single-parent home who had spent time in care and had a history of running away, attracted barely any coverage from the media, unlike Dowler, a middle-class girl from a stable family background who had never previously gone missing, and whose image was splashed on the front pages of national newspapers as her disappearance attracted national attention.[2] [3] [4]

An anonymous Kent police officer was quoted in the Guardian, "There are serious questions to be raised about the original missing persons investigation. This is very sensitive, but if Hannah Williams had been a Milly Dowler, she may not be dead now."[2]

Robert Howard, a convicted sex offender who had known Williams since 1999, was arrested on 23 March 2002, eight days after her body was found. At his trial at Maidstone Crown Court in October 2003, Howard was found guilty of raping and murdering Williams, and was sentenced to life imprisonment.[1] [5] [4]

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b Mum relives moment she met her daughter's killer. Trinity Mirror (September 23, 2005). Retrieved on 2006-11-30.
  2. ^ a b c The vanishing. The Observer (September 15, 2002). Retrieved on 2006-09-28.
  3. ^ Why is this the first we've heard of Hannah Williams?. The Guardian (March 28, 2002). Retrieved on 2006-11-20.
  4. ^ a b Predator in the badlands. The Guardian (March 25, 2006). Retrieved on 2007-01-16.
  5. ^ Girl's killer serves life in jail. BBC News Online (Sep 23, 2005). Retrieved on 2006-11-30.
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