Latest news with #AprilJones
Daily Mail
07-07-2025
- Daily Mail
April Jones's evil killer is attacked in jail AGAIN - as five-year-old's family declare 'he deserves it'
The evil killer of five-year-old April Jones has been attacked in prison for a second time - as her sister says 'he deserves it'. Mark Bridger was targeted by another inmate at HMP Wakefield last week which left him with grazes to his hand, according to The Sun. While on the first attack, which occurred shortly after he was jailed, he was slashed with a knife made out of a razor and needed stitches on his face. The Prison Service said his assailant was on report ahead of a hearing to decide his punishment. Last night, April's half-sister, Hazel, told The Sun: 'He deserves everything he's getting. He literally deserves it all. 'I've got kids myself now and it's scary to know there are people like that living on your doorstep. 'I am glad he's in prison for life. He's going to carry on getting hurt.' She added that her father died never knowing where April's body was. The young girl was killed by paedophile Bridger in October 2012 after he abducted her in his car in Machynlleth, Powys, Wales. Her disappearance led to the largest missing person search in UK police history. Bridger was interviewed by police following April's disappearance, and initially claimed he had run the child over while she was riding her bicycle with a friend, and that he did not remember disposing of her body because he was drunk. But police doubted Bridger's version, due to the fact his car showed no sign of having experienced a collision, and the absence of blood in the car. Crucially, Bridger's version differed from April's seven year old friend, who had been out playing with her, and saw the five-year-old girl willingly hop into a car. Search of Bridger's house also found April's blood in his bathroom and living room. They also found a cache of child porn on his computer, including Facebook pictures of April and other local girls. Bridger was charged with child abduction, murder, and attempting to pervert the course of justice on October 6 2012, five days after her disappearance. After a five-week trial it took the jury just four hours to decide he was a fantasist, obsessed with child murder and child pornography, who had lured disabled April into his car, before killing her. He has always refused to reveal what he did with her body, but it is believed he burned her in his fire and dumped some of her remains in a river close to his home. Bridger was sentenced on 30 May 2013 to life imprisonment with a recommendation that he should never be released.
The Sun
06-07-2025
- The Sun
April Jones' evil killer Mark Bridger attacked in jail as little girl's family warn sicko ‘deserves everything he gets'
THE killer of five-year-old April Jones has been targeted in jail for a second time. Mark Bridger was set upon by another lag at HMP Wakefield last week. 2 In the first attack, soon after he was jailed, Bridger needed stitches for facial injuries from being slashed with a knife fashioned out of a razor. The latest attack left Bridger with grazes to his hands. The Prison Service said his assailant was on report ahead of a hearing to decide his punishment. Last night, April's half-sister, Hazel, said: 'He deserves everything he's getting. 'He literally deserves it all.' April was snatched while playing near her home in Machynlleth, Powys, in October 2012. Despite one of the largest police searches in British history, her body has never been found. Bridger, who rented a flat nearby, was given a whole-life term in 2013 for child abduction, murder, perverting justice and the unlawful concealment and disposal of a body. Hazel said: 'I've got kids myself now and it's scary to know there are people like that living on your doorstep. 'I am glad he's in prison for life. 'He's going to carry on getting hurt.' April and Hazel's father, Paul Jones, died last month from a brain disease. 'He died not knowing where my sister was,' Hazel added.
Daily Mirror
11-06-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mirror
'My little girl's body was desecrated by twisted murderer – the law must change'
Honoured campaigner Marie McCourt is being backed by families of horrific murders all calling for a law change to go after killers who desecrate and hide bodies Murder victims' families - including the mum of April Jones - are calling for new legislation for killers who desecrate and hide bodies. Campaigning mum Marie McCourt, whose daughter Helen was murdered aged 22 in 1988, is being backed by the parents of Sarah Everard and April Jones. Their loved ones were 'desecrated' by their killers in an attempt to hide evidence. Marie's 'Stop the Desecration campaign' was mentioned in PMQs on Wednesday, with leader Keir Starmer, referring to the families of such "horrific" crimes and agreeing: 'We all need to listen to what they have to say'. Only tiny fragments of five year old April's body were recovered following her murder in September 2012 by Mark Bridger. April Jones, who would have turned 18 this spring, was just five when she was kidnapped and murdered by Mark Bridger in 2012. She vanished after being seen getting into a vehicle near her home in Powys. Bridger is serving a whole life sentence for her abduction, murder and perverting the course of justice. Only tiny fragments of her body have ever been recovered. Her mother Coral says: 'The offences he was charged with, and convicted of, don't reflect the true horror of what he did. The law needs to be changed.' While Sarah's body was burned and dumped by killer Wayne Couzens after she was abducted, raped and murdered in March 2021. In a statement of support, the Everard family said: 'Sarah died in horrendous circumstances. But what Couzens did afterwards – burning and dumping her body in a bid to destroy evidence has only deepened our pain, grief and torture.' Despite buying petrol, burning her body and dumping her remains inside rubble bags, no charges relating to preventing a burial or obstructing a coroner were ever brought. In a separate victim impact statement read to the Old Bailey her mother, Susan, described the impact Couzens' cruel actions had on them. 'Burning her body was the final insult. It meant we could never again see her sweet face and never say goodbye.' Marie McCourt, whose successful Helen's Law has seen parole denied to killers who hide bodies, wants to see further change. Her 'Stop the Desecration campaign' was raised in Prime Minister's Question Time on Wednesday by Ann Davies, MP. The MP represents the family of murder victim Michael O'Leary, 55, who was shot and burned in January 2020. Only a tiny fragment of his remains was ever recovered. The Caerfyrddin MP told the Commons: "My constituent Mr Michael O'Leary was brutally murdered five years ago and his body was desecrated... I've made a number of requests to discuss his and other victims' cases with ministers and to explore introducing legislation making the desecration of a body a criminal offence. "Will the Prime Minister meet with Mr O'Leary's family along with other victims' families including April Jones and Sarah Everard and Helen McCourt to hear why they are calling for a new criminal offence of desecrating a body to be introduced." Mr Starmer responded: "Can I thank her for raising this horrific case and the other similar cases. My thoughts and I'm sure the thoughts of the whole house are with Michael's family and all those affected by such vile crimes. I think we all need to listen to what they have to say." He continued: "I'm sure the Justice Minister will be in touch at the first opportunity to take this forward." In March 2022, the Ministry of Justice said it would wait until the completion of a public inquiry into the offences of murderer and necrophiliac David Fuller, who abused more than 100 bodies in hospital mortuaries, before considering Marie's proposal. Marie, now 81, said: 'But three years on, the inquiry is still ongoing and we are no further forward. Meanwhile, the number of desecrations has soared - causing untold distress to families.' A local pub landlord, Ian Simms was jailed for Helen's murder despite her body never being found. He was released in 2020 and died two years later. Other supporters of her campaign include the families of Sasha Marsden, 16, who was stabbed, raped and set on fire after being lured to a fake job interview in January 2013; Jayden Parkinson, 17, who was pregnant when she was murdered and hidden in a grave belonging to the killer's uncle; Jan Mustafa 38, who was murdered and hidden in a chest freezer for a year and Lorraine Cox, 32, who was murdered and dismembered in September 2020 on her way home from a night out. Ancient common law offences for obstructing a coroner and preventing a burial do exist – but are rarely and randomly applied, says Marie. Marie says: 'I fought tooth and nail to have my daughter's killer charged with them only to be told it wasn't in the public interest. I was told her killer had been convicted of her murder and that's what mattered. But these cruel acts, committed after death do matter - both to the victim, their loved ones and to society.' Marie, from Billinge in Merseyside, whose successful Helen's Law has seen parole denied to killers who hide bodies, was shocked to discover that a statutory offence of burning a body other than in a crematorium, does exist. But the CPS has confirmed that only three charges have ever been brought – with just one conviction resulting. She added: 'Four of our families have suffered the distress of knowing their loved ones were set alight after being murdered. So why weren't the killers charged with these offences?' She continues: 'Back when Helen first went missing, such cases were rare. But barely a week goes by without another 'human remains discovered' story hitting the news. 'So many families are living with the horror of knowing their loved one has not only been murdered – but been set alight, dismembered and scattered, stored inside a freezer, or, in my daughter's case, hidden so well they will never be found. 'Bereavement experts say it triggers a grief so complex and pathological that it's impossible to come to terms with. All of our families are living with this torture - day in, day out. Advances in forensic science and detection methods means killers are going to ever-desperate lengths to hide or destroy the bodies of their victims – and thanks to the 'dark side of the internet' and true crime programmes, there is no shortage of horrific ideas out there.' Criminologists, forensic psychologists, police officers and bereavement experts are also supporting Marie. Leading forensic pathologist Dr Richard Shepherd says: 'As a leading forensic pathologist in more than 23,000 autopsies, I have been a first-hand witness of man's inhumanity to man. I have also learned, over the years, that there is almost nothing a person will not do to avoid a murder charge. 'Bodies 'speak' to the pathologist. What the deceased 'says' can help bring a perpetrator to justice. In a civilised society, surely any attempt to prevent that from happening should be accountable?'
The Sun
22-05-2025
- The Sun
My daughter April Jones was killed by paedophile – forget chemical castration, predators like him should have it cut off
The mum of murdered schoolgirl April Jones has backed the government's bid to chemically castrate paedophiles and rapists. Coral Jones, whose five-year-old daughter was kidnapped and murdered by sick paedophile Mark Bridger, said he and all other sex offenders should lose their right to a sexual urge. 5 5 5 Bridger was given a whole-life term for abducting and murdering April on October 1, 2012, in Machynlleth, mid Wales. The Judge said he sexually abused the schoolgirl before disposing of her body. But the paedophile has never confessed to his crime and the location of April's remains is still unknown. Here mum Coral gives her view on the government's latest proposals. By Coral Jones When April vanished almost 13 years ago my whole world was thrown upside down. I will never get over the heartache of losing my beautiful girl that day and when I later learned that sick paedophile Mark Bridger had kidnapped and murdered her, I was sick to my stomach. I cannot begin to describe the hatred I still have for him to this day. During sentencing trial judge Mr Justice Griffith-Williams told Bridger that there was no doubt in his mind that he was 'a paedophile, who has, for some time harboured sexual and morbid fantasies about young girls'. Police also found Bridger's laptop containing a library of vile sexual images of children. Chilling moment April Jones' 'fantasist' killer Mark Bridger lied to police during interrogation And for me vile paedophiles like him will never change. They will always fantasise about young children and harbour sickening sexual thoughts. The government's proposal to chemically castrate paedophiles and rapists like him, is something that has been on my mind for over a decade. I've said from word go that this should happen and I'm surprised it has taken so long. I would welcome any steps to chemically castrate offenders like Mark Bridger. To be honest, if I had it my way he should have it chopped off completely, but I can't see the justice secretary agreeing to that. Putting a paedophile or rapist's name on the sex offenders register is no longer enough of a deterrent - for too long we've turned a blind eye to it. Many sex offenders continue to reoffend, sometimes over and over again. Bridger won't ever see the light of day for what he did, but it keeps me awake at night that he still has sexual fantasties about my daughter and other children. It makes my body shiver, it makes me feel sick. All prisoners who have sexually abused children should have this sexual urge removed - that goes for men and women. If they've done the deed they should pay the price. They don't deserve to enjoy the same sexual urges as everyone else. The only question is how long does the procedure last? Is it permanent? Can its be reversed. All these things need to be addressed. In my book sex offenders should also be sterilised so they can't have their own children and continue the cycle of abuse. There will always be people who are against strong measures like this. They will cite human rights as the reason not to act - but until they have lost a child or seen a family member sexually abused, they will never truly understand why this is so important. Ever since April was taken from us I have campaigned for changes in the law. I have fought to introduce April's Law which would rid the internet of child abuse images. Easily accessibly vile online pictures are fuelling paedophiles' evil crimes and myself and others have demanded search engine firms should do much more to prevent people posting and accessing the shocking content. I'll never stop pushing for change and I welcome the latest proposals by the government. It's time we all took a stand. 5
The Sun
15-05-2025
- The Sun
April Jones' dad to be buried alongside remains of his daughter after he died without knowing what happened to her body
THE TRAGIC father of murdered schoolgirl April Jones will be buried in the same grave as his five-year-old daughter, a relative has revealed. Paul Jones, 56, died suddenly after contracting a virus eight years after being diagnosed with the brain condition encephalitis. 10 10 The former pub doorman died without ever discovering what April's killer Mark Bridger did with her body after kidnapping her from a street where she was playing in 2012. But some of April's remains were found in Bridger's cottage and they were buried in a grave in the little girl's hometown of Machynlleth, North Wales. Paul's stepfather Dai Smith, 72, said: 'The funeral arrangements are still being made but they'll put him in April's grave. That would be the fitting thing to do'. Paul and April's mum Coral Jones split up after the horrific murder and he was later diagnosed with encephalitis. He went into a care home in Swansea because he could not look after himself. 'Paul was devastated by what happened to April and it's fair to say he never got over it. 'People have said that he became ill because of the tragedy of losing his little girl but that's not the case. 'It was more or less dementia; he had been in hospital for eight years and couldn't remember anything about April. 'But he had long term memory - he could remember things from 30 years ago. Family's heartbreaking final words to murdered April Jones are revealed 10 years after five-year-old was abducted ''He was a fantastic man, very strong, he'd walk 15 miles with the dogs and think nothing of it. He was fit and loved the outdoors. "He went down from 13st to 8st and when he was first in hospital he would wander around the wards but didn't know where he was.' Mr Smith said the family believe his stepson contracted encephalitis from visiting a local swimming pool. Paul's mother Linda died of cancer in July last year and was bitter over the way Coral had treated her eldest son. Linda and her husband, who live in New Quay, Cardiganshire, felt Coral abandoned their son when he became ill. 10 10 10 Before she died Linda said: 'In my book, if you marry someone it's in sickness and in health. I know Paul would have been there for Coral if it had been the other way around.' The couple had a huge bust up with Coral over the way she treated Paul, and they never spoke to her again. Mr Smith, who is still grieving for his wife, said: 'She used to say it was a blessing that he couldn't remember anything and I think she was right.' Paul's daughter, Jazz Jones, announced his tragic passing on Tuesday. She said: "It is with broken hearts that my brother and I wish to let people know our dad (Paul Jones) passed away early hours this morning. It was very unexpected and we are all in shock. "Harley and myself will update people with further information as we know more but please give us our privacy to mourn our loss." The 29-year-old told The Sun she is 'heartbroken' over his death and the family still processing his loss. 'It was very unexpected and we are all in shock,' she said. 'It's only been 24 hours, it's a lot to get our head around. 'As a family we're heartbroken, but we're still trying to process the fact that dad has passed away, so we're not sharing any information on his death out of respect for him. 'Dad didn't want any media attention towards the end, he wanted his privacy, and as a family we need time to grieve.' Who is Mark Bridger? Mark Bridger abducted and murdered five-year-old April Jones in 2012. The former abattoir worker went to prison for his horrific crimes and is serving a life sentence. He was born in Carshalton, Surrey on November 6, 1965 and was just 19 when he had his first run-in with the law. He pleaded guilty to firearms offences, theft, attempted theft, and deception. That was to be the first of many convictions throughout his life. He was convicted of driving offences and assaults before he moved from England to Wales. He fathered six children by four different women. One woman he dated was Elaine Griffiths and they had two children together. Elaine's sister Karen dated Paul Jones and they had two children before Paul met Coral and had April. April's disappearance and murder April disappeared near her home in Machynlleth on October 1, 2012. She was seen getting into a vehicle in the area on the day of her disappearance. Eyewitnesses saw April talking with a man before climbing into a Land Rover Discovery with him and driving off. After fitting the description of the man seen talking with April, Mark Bridger was arrested for her abduction. After his initial arrest, the police found a large collection of child abuse images on Bridger's personal computer. A large search operation was then conducted by the police and search teams in the hope of finding April. After an extensive search for April provided no insight into her whereabouts, police officially turned the case into a murder inquiry on October 5, 2012. Just a day later, on October 6, Bridger was charged with child abduction, murder, and attempting to pervert the course of justice. He was additionally charged with the unlawful concealment and disposal of a body on October 8. On January 14, 2013, at Mold Crown Court, Bridger pleaded not guilty to the charge of murdering April Jones but accepted that he was "probably responsible" for her death. Mold Crown Court heard from a forensic expert that human bones and blood matching April's DNA were found in areas of Bridger's home. He claimed that he had accidentally run April over with his car and could not remember disposing of her body due to heavy drinking and panicking about what he had done. His trial began on April 29, 2013, and on 30 May 2013, Bridger was found guilty of abduction, murder, and perverting the course of justice. He was sentenced to life in prison with a recommendation that he should never be released by the Judge. Despite his conviction, the whereabouts of April's body remain unknown. Bridger was last reported to have been moved to HMP Wakefield in Yorkshire, where he is defined as a Category A prisoner - the most dangerous in the country. 10 10 10
