IN CONCLUSION
It is clear that Roy Trent and Louise Burton have conspired for many years:
1. to suppress any connection between Cill Trevelyan's disappearance and the murder of Grace Jefferies;
2. to protect Trent, Hurst and Hopkinson from accusations of rape;
3. to maintain the fiction that Cill Trevelyan ran away and vanished;
4. to throw blame for that onto David and Jean Trevelyan;
5.
The remit of this investigation was to 'find the present whereabouts of Priscilla 'Cill' Trevelyan.' As demonstrated, we believe her body is buried in or around the Colliton Way industrial estate. However, questions have been raised about the murder of Grace Jefferies and the conviction of her grandson, Howard Stamp. While we have no evidence to dispute the jury's verdict, we believe the following facts should be considered:
1. At Stamp's trial the prosecution convinced the court that Grace Jefferies's murder happened on Wednesday, June 3.
2. The time of death was disputed by the defense.
3. Louise Burton claims to have visited Grace's house on Tuesday, June 2, 1970, and seen blood on the windows.
4. Robert Burton, Eileen Burton, William Burton and Louise herself all testify that she had a fit on the morning of Wednesday, June 3, and refused to go to school. William Burton has testified that his sister threw fits, curled into the fetal position or became catatonic whenever she was frightened. Her GP was called and she was prescribed sedatives. This record, giving the date, may have survived.
5. Grace Jefferies was fond of Cill Trevelyan, and regularly harbored her and Louise Burton. If either of them came to her door late at night, she would have admitted them. Roy Trent, Nicholas Hurst and Michael Hopkinson knew this, and might have used one or both girls as a means of entry to Grace's house.
6. Councillor George Gardener has a signed and notarized statement from Grace Jefferies's neighbor (now deceased) that Howard Stamp did not arrive at Grace's house on Wednesday, June 3, 1970, until 2:00 p.m.-allowing only half an hour for him to commit a vicious murder
It is the contention of WCH Investigations that Stamp's conviction was unsafe and should be re-examined.
At Stamp's trial he failed to give a convincing explanation for why he chose to visit his grandmother on Wednesday, June 3, 1970, instead of following up on a job at the local dairy (Jannerway & Co.). There was a suggestion that he became angry when she took him to task for shirking work. We believe a more likely explanation is that he made a detour via Grace Jefferies's house on his way to Jannerways in order to ask her if she knew what had happened to Cill Trevelyan.
The transcript of Roy Trent's interview makes much of the fact that Stamp did not cite his friendship with Cill Trevelyan in his defense. Yet, despite their questioning by the police, Trent, Hurst, Hopkinson and Burton never mentioned it either. Stamp's excuse is that he was never asked about the missing girl.
There is no such excuse for Trent, Hurst, Hopkinson and Burton, whose questioning related
Bournemouth Evening News, Friday, June 27, 2003
NEW EVIDENCE IN 33-YEAR-OLD MYSTERIES
Police announced today that they have reopened the investigation into the disappearance of Priscilla Trevelyan who vanished from her parents' home in Highdown in 1970. 'New evidence has come to light,' said Deputy Sergeant Wyatt, the officer in charge of the case, 'and we now believe Priscilla was murdered.'
No one has been arrested for the crime but three Bournemouth residents who were teenagers in 1970 are thought to be implicated. 'We've been given a possible site where Priscilla's body was buried,' said DS Wyatt, 'and we hope to excavate it within the next few weeks.' He refused to say where the site was, although he agreed it was somewhere in the Highdown area.
Mr. David Trevelyan, father of the missing girl, said, 'My wife and I have lived with this tragedy for over 30 years. It will be a relief to have closure at last.' He thanked Councillor George Gardener of Highdown for her efforts in bringing the case to public attention. 'Without her persistence, Priscilla would have remained a statistic.'
Councillor Gardener came across the story while she was researching a book on Howard Stamp. Stamp was charged with the murder of his grandmother nine days after Priscilla Trevelyan went missing, and the police now believe the two cases may have been linked.
Councillor Gardener described Stamp's conviction as a terrible miscarriage of justice which couldn't happen with today's DNA testing. 'I am optimistic of clearing his name,' she said, 'even though he isn't alive to see it happen.' Tragically, Howard Stamp committed suicide in prison in 1973.
The police are asking for witnesses from the time to come forward. 'We are keen to talk to anyone who was living in Colliton Way during the first half of 1970,' said Deputy Sergeant Wyatt. 'They may have information that will lead to an arrest.
From: Dr. Jonathan Hughes [[email protected]]
Sent: Tues. 7/15/03 19:23
Subject: George
Dear A, This is a P.S. to the previous email which I'm not copying to George. The bad news is she's developed secondary cancer of the bone-in the ribs. The good news is it doesn't seem to have spread anywhere else. She's on some hefty hormone therapy and starts a course of radiation next week to deal with the pain. I've invited myself to stay with her for the duration of the summer vacation in order to act as chauffeur and get the book written. She seems happy about it. There shouldn't be a problem with the meeting next week as her radiation appointments are in the mornings, but she'll certainly be tired. She's a remarkable lady, refuses to give in to anything, although I've finally managed to persuade her to take some sick leave from the nursing home. I shall tell her I've told you, but I suggest you don't dwell on the sympathy too much. She's willing to talk about it, but won't tolerate pity!
