Britain’s Biggest Search: The Case Of April Jones

 

April 4th 2007 april jones is born to parents coral and paul she was a bright and happy little girl who was the apple of her family’s eye it was discovered she had cerebral palsy when she was very young and required daily medication but in spite of this she lived her life to the absolute fullest bringing joy to everyone she met her family said she ruled the roost with a cheeky nature whilst also being kind and loving she loved the outdoors and would often be out riding her bike with her friends she was also a hard worker in school and

was popular amongst her classmates and teachers on september 30th 2012 april received a glowing report about how well she was progressing in primary school   due to having such a fantastic school report the previous day april was allowed to have some extra time to play outside april was out playing with her friends near her home on the brinagog estate  at 7 20 a land rover is seen driving away from midlands at speed just nine minutes later a frantic 999 call is made this emergency [Laughter] hello and what makes you think um the

doctor apparently um she’s gone off in a car with somebody somebody’s picked up in a car or something okay what’s the name of the child that’s gone missing april jones how old is she five the 999 dispatcher wasted no time by deploying police straight away and within eight minutes the first officer had arrived on scene she spoke to a witness april’s seven-year-old friend who she had been out with she was able to provide a brief description the man who had taken april had brown hair a beard blue or green eyes and was

wearing a green jacket or jumper jeans and trainers she also described the vehicle and one thing immediately stood out to investigators her friend said that april had got into the driver’s side door meaning the car steering wheel must have been on the left hand side of the car when most cars in the united kingdom will have the steering wheel on the right following this information a critical incident was launched by the police as it was an alleged abduction the police needed to pursue as many lines of inquiry as possible to try and ascertain

exactly where april was knowing time was of the essence that day had started like any other april’s older sister described it as being a normal day april had gone to her swimming lesson as usual and then skipped out of the changing rooms to head home despite it being october the sun was out and it was a nice warm evening april’s older sister had gone to the youth club when in around 7 30 p.

m she received a frantic phone call from her mother screaming down the phone that april was gone as the sun started to set panic began to escalate the response from the community was massive and immediate as news started to spread on social media that april was missing people began to come out of their homes to try and assist in any way they could and show support to the jones family but this made door-to-door enquiries for the police incredibly difficult as so many weren’t at their addresses and officers were only able to ask them questions once they returned

when her older sister arrived home from the youth club she was hoping that april would be home by now instead her distraught mother was out looking for her and police were combing the area as the search efforts continued to mount the media became aware that a five-year-old girl had allegedly been abducted the eyes of the country were fixated on the small little welsh community as it had been rocked by something so out of the ordinary by 10 30 pm the police have put out an update saying they were increasingly concerned for april and

were appealing for any information that could help find her hundreds of local volunteers gathered to join in the search after the news started to spread on twitter and facebook also high on the priority for the police was helping to support her devastated family police revealed more information about the circumstances of april’s disappearance and said she was last seen wearing a purple coat and her school polo top refuse collection was suspended as workers joined in the hunt too hour-by-hour more people came out to

help with the search culminating in more than 100 local residents the town with a population of just over 2 000 was inundated with volunteers with some traveling from south wales and the north of england police said they wanted to make sure that search volunteers were used in a coordinated and effective way april’s family weren’t allowed to take part in the searches in case they came across something so the local community stepped up to help one problem the search teams immediately ran into was the terrain the extensive countryside mountains

gorges streams waterfalls and uneven ground made it an incredibly difficult place to search there were slate mines in the area too and all of these factors mixed with the rain presented a huge challenge for those trying to find april an area of more than 60 square kilometers was searched and there were more than 300 specific search areas the police knew that if april had been abducted by a stranger every second was vital to try and find her safe and well eight hours on from the initial 999 call being made the police and community were

still out searching trying to find april jones 120 search officers were out and searched through the night the morning after she had gone missing they decided to activate the child rescue alert which puts on notice all police forces up and down the united kingdom to be on the lookout for any unusual sightings of individuals who fit the description of april jones and the person who had allegedly abducted her information was being distributed to other forces including descriptions of both april and the alleged abductor as

well as the car her friends saw her getting into this was the first time the child rescue alert had been triggered nationwide april within minutes of april’s disappearance okay people let’s go forward the people of mchunter had turned out in their hundreds to help in the search right alongside professional volunteers they carried on through the night there’s a large number of people here this morning and we are very grateful indeed for all of your help and assistance and into the following day it had now been 14 hours since she had

last been seen and there was still no sighting of the missing five-year-old missing posters started to go up around the area and police began to set up roadblocks to stop vehicles as the investigation continued escalating the police force found themselves under mounting pressure from the media to release more information press conferences were being held every few hours and sometimes journalists were given very little notice that they were about to take place as the search continued it was the task of andy john the detective

superintendent to try and find april’s alleged abductor after the friend of april had been allowed to rest the police went back to try and get a more detailed description of exactly what she had seen when april went missing it became clear that april had got into the vehicle with the assistance of the person driving but it wasn’t clear whether or not she knew them due to april having cerebral palsy she wouldn’t have been able to get into the car unaided during the morning of the 2nd of october just one day after april had gone

missing the information continued to come through and it all started to point to one individual a local man named mark bridger he wasn’t someone who was known to local police they received information that mark bridger and his vehicle had been in the area around the time the abduction was thought to have taken place what immediately caught their eye about his vehicle was that it was a left-hand drive just like april’s friend had described there had been information to suggest that mark bridger had actually been part of the search party that was

out looking for april more units were deployed and the police helicopter was also used to try and find him they had also received information about four potential addresses where he could have been staying officers went to the property simultaneously 20 hours after she had been reported missing but could find no trace of april jones or mark bridger when they pulled up outside one of the properties a cottage called mount pleasant at three minutes past three in the afternoon there were no vehicles at the house an investigator went inside and called

out april’s name there was no response bridger had only moved into mount pleasant five weeks before at 4 30 pm the police made an announcement mark bridger had been arrested police gave details of the arrest saying he was detained while walking his dog along the side of the road after being spotted by the police helicopter at 10 42 a couple of miles away from where april had lived not once did he lift his gaze to look up at the police helicopter that was circling above him he had also attempted to alter his appearance by cutting his hair and

shaving off his beard it was about 30 minutes later the bridger was spotted by a patrol car after confirming his name to the officer bridger turned and said i know what this is all about the police constable asked him where is she bridger replied it was an accident i crushed her with my car i don’t know where she is he was immediately arrested officers described him as being an emotional wreck despite being told he didn’t have to say anything bridger said he needed to talk i’ve been looking for her all night and

today on foot because my vehicle is in the garage it is a left-hand drive land rover discovery i didn’t abduct her i did my best to revive her i panicked i didn’t even know until this morning who she was until i saw the television i just wish i knew what i’d done to her where i put her i want to say sorry to the family there was no life in her no response no breath no response in her eyes she was just on the seat i tried to revive her i would not have dumped her she is a human being he was transferred to aberystwyth police

headquarters the station was shut down to all of the prisoners to ensure that the teams could be properly housed there and focus completely on the investigation following his arrest coral made an emotional plea to the public for their help to try and find april alongside detective superintendent reg bevan there must be someone out there who knows where she is and can help the police find her we are desperate for any news april is only five years old please please help fighters in relation to this specific investigation

as i said earlier we’re pursuing a number of lines of inquiry and mark bridger is one of them and in relation to the images that i circulated to you earlier today which was the land rover discovery and mark bridges photograph can i again ask did you see this vehicle between monday evening and tuesday afternoon and do you know mark bridger and did you see him during that time period monday evening and tuesday afternoon and if you have any information please contact us on the child’s rescue alert line police said the overnight search

involving 40 trained police officers dog handlers and mountain rescue teams yielded no news on april’s whereabouts they thanked the public for their efforts but warned of the challenging conditions police later revealed the operation had been unprecedented in the uk in terms of scale and terrain neighbouring forces and specialist teams were helping with a focus on over 20 scenes around the area the operation led to 600 messages from the public to the police until about three o’clock they’ve gone home to bed for a couple of hours and

they’ve come back for half a six for daylight ready to go again and a search involved 100 mountain rescue volunteers 100 police specialist searchers as well as coast guards and the rnli i’ve got two people who don’t have transport so i’m going to take them with me okay and i’ll meet you at this juncture lovely police are going to tell the locals to stop i don’t think they’re going to stop anyway because it’s so such a close con not had said upon being available he told the officer that april was dead he said he had run her over knocking her

off her bike causing her significant injuries he said in a state of panic he had put her into the car and then tried to administer cpr which had failed he then said he drove off with april in the vehicle bridges stated he then lost his memory and wasn’t able to tell investigators where april now was he claimed he was drunk and could not recall what he had done with april’s body but he was sure he had put her somewhere safe the police made the decision to not release this information immediately as they needed to verify exactly what was

true and whether or not mark bridger was being completely honest now that mark bridger had been arrested police and crime scene examiners were able to secure his home and conduct a thorough search of the premises to try and uncover any clues as to exactly what had happened to april upon going into his home the stench of detergents and cleaning products was immediately apparent and it was unusually hot indicating there had been a roaring fire in the living room fireplace very recently on the footage taken of bridger by the

police helicopter a plume of smoke could be seen rising through the chimney from the fireplace of his home but despite the best efforts of investigators there was no sign of april either in the property or any of the surrounding areas andy john made the decision to meet with the family of april jones on the evening of the 2nd of october to disclose the new information that had come to light they were absolutely devastated by the news that their beloved april was now most likely never coming home throughout his interviews when

challenged with the evidence that had been gathered he would be emotional and unpredictable officers believe these emotions were not genuine and pointed to him being both a fantasist and a liar mark bridge’s confession that she was now dead left those on the force devastated they’d worked through the night through increasingly difficult conditions clinging on to any small chance that she might still be alive april’s older sister said that while the name mark bridger meant nothing to her as soon as she saw his face on the news

she recognized him she often saw him out and about and he used to live not far from them as the investigation into the disappearance of april jones moved into its third day the police still needed to prove that mark bridger had murdered her the investigating officers needed to establish any contact he might have had with april during the abduction and obtain any forensic evidence they could when the police seized his vehicle they could find no evidence of a road traffic collision and no evidence that the vehicle had struck anybody contrary to

bridge’s account of april being seriously injured when he put her into the car forensics could find no blood or traces of blood inside the vehicle this solidified investigator’s thoughts further that mark bridge’s story of accidentally knocking her off her bike was nothing more than a calculated cover-up of a far more sinister turn of events as the forensic examination of the car turned up nothing they turned their attention back to the house where they believed april had been attacked they were able to find traces of april’s

blood inside the home indicating she had suffered significant injuries at the property they removed what was left in the fire pit in the living room and were able to find 17 fragments of her skull and one fragment in the bathroom plughole confirming the worst fears of everyone police did not believe that april’s whole body was burned but believed the fragments of bone got into the fire and bath during the cleanup searches of his house and laptop indicated that bridger was a highly dangerous and predatory offender this

helped piece together why he had taken april to satisfy his sinister desires his internet search history showed that he had an extremely unhealthy interest in children he had computer folders filled with images of child sexual abuse graphic depictions of rape and pictures of previous young murder victims including hollywells and jessica chapman two ten-year-old girls who were murdered in soham and thirteen-year-old caroline dickinson who was raped and murdered in a french hostel during a school trip there were some pictures available on

his computer which officers believed had been taken from facebook and other social media of children in the local area including april and her older sister following this discovery jasmine remembered that mark bridger had actually approached her on social media several months before april was abducted she was in her living room on her laptop when she got a facebook notification a new friend request to come through it was mark bridger she didn’t know him and showed it to her father paul knew him from the early 1990s when

they had dated sisters but he couldn’t understand why he was adding his daughter coral also warned her not to accept the request jasmine deleted him and that was seemingly the end of it when the news started to spread that the case was now moving from a missing child case to a murder inquiry around 150 people attended a church vigil for april led by the bishop of banga andy john and reverend rogers the despair and disappointment was evident reverend rogers said there was over 150 people there including the police and we’re

very very grateful to them for all that they are doing it was very silent in there and it was a very powerful and very moving service the town was covered in pink ribbons in response to april’s mother’s appeal for people to wear her daughter’s favorite color police renewed their appeal for information over suspect mark bridges movements following this investigators revealed that they had received more than 2 500 calls in response to their latest appeal for information prime minister david cameron said it was every family’s nightmare and urged

anyone with information to come forward and speak to the police the time that officers had to question bridger was rapidly running out police had until 5 pm to charge or release him although they could apply for a further 24 hours warrant of detention bridger appeared in court in aberystwyth at 3 30 where police were given another 24 hours to question him once again the community came out in full force around 450 responded to a call for people with good local knowledge to search the villages around where april

had lived have you got a car is it four wheel drive and the area which you know best volunteers were told to keep away from the river the forest and places such as mine shafts which were being searched by the specialist teams  on saturday the 6th of october 5 days after april had disappeared mark bridger was charged with abduction murder and perverting the course of justice in relation to the attempt to conceal any trace of her body the district crown prosecutor from the crown prosecution service said that

following a review of everything that had been gathered he believed they had sufficient evidence to charge mark bridger with the murder of april jones and that it is in the public interest to do so i’ve also concluded that there is sufficient evidence to charge the defendant with attempting to pervert the course of justice and child abduction  this announcement led to mixed emotions on the one hand there was relief that the perpetrator had been caught but also heartbreak not only for the jones family but for april whose life had been taken

in the most appalling way imaginable but who exactly was mark bridger he was born on the 6th of november in 1965 in sutton surrey he was the second of three children and his father had worked as a city of london police constable after attending secondary school he went to croydon college where he failed to complete a diploma in engineering bridger grew into a strong man a very big build and over six foot tall accounts from people he worked with described him as sociable hardworking and charismatic others remarked on his apparent

obsession with the military and how he had claimed to be a former army bomb disposal expert who had changed his identity to protect himself from any retaliation from the irish republican army he also said he had been a serving member of the sas when interviewed by police over april’s disappearance he told them how he had excelled during his military service but this was nothing more than an utter fantasy mark bridger had never joined the army or served in the armed forces far from being a distinguished veteran

as a teenager he had been in trouble with the police for example in the early 1990s he was convicted of criminal damage a fray and driving with no insurance in 1984 he became a firefighter in london but within six months he acquits due to what he called personal problems it was around this time he allegedly split with his partner soon after the birth of their son the split meant his parents could not get access to their new grandchild causing a rift from which the family would never recover bridger would tell people in later years

that his parents were dead it was at this point the bridger turned his attention to wales he knew south wales because his grandmother had lived there he had lived in several places where he had a variety of jobs including bar work being a chef a waiter a car recovery mechanic and a forestry worker after moving repeatedly he finally settled in with plenty once there he had worked a variety of jobs kitchen assistance as a local hotel a welder helping renovate a local guest house a lifeguard and a slaughterman in an abattoir

he had six children with a number of women and just days before april was abducted he had split with his latest girlfriend and was deeply upset about it he claimed he turned to drink after relationship breakups and had been on antidepressants on and off for 12 years the attention of women was clearly important to him hours before he took april he contacted three women via facebook asking if they wanted to meet no strings attached they also found in his search history more disturbingly at 12 11 pm mark bridger had looked at a cartoon

image from his collection of pictures showing young girls being sexually abused one showed a girl bound with gaffer tape being raped by an adult when his vehicle was recovered later there was a roll of gaffer tape on his dashboard the police now had a much more complete picture of what they believed had happened to april when he abducted her he wasn’t aware that another child had witnessed it at 8 30 pm that night his land rover was spotted arriving at his home in a village three miles from where april had lived

police did not know if this was the first time he’d been home since abducting april or if he’d driven there directly after abducting her killed her there and then went out again to dispose of her body this sighting may have not been the first time he returned home that day the next day shortly before 9am bridger was spotted close to a riverbank carrying a black bin bag a witness would later tell police she thought there was something in the bag later he took his land rover into a garage to be repaired and pretended to

help look for april before being arrested soon after fast-tracked dna testing established that april’s blood had been found at mount pleasant most significantly on the underside of the carpet in the living room and in front of the wood burner police believe he probably sexually assaulted april before brutally murdering her and dismembering her body disposing of her at various locations as mark bridger had worked as a slaughter man in an abattoir one theory was that he had used the skills he had gained there to dismember april’s body

after killing her bridger was due before the magistrates in aberystwyth on the following monday the police said they remained focused and committed to finding april adding that 10 specialist teams had been conducting a systematic and methodical search from daybreak on saturday  mark bridger appeared at aberystwyth magistrates court a small crowd waited outside and one man threw a bottle at the van that had transported him to court while others shouted abuse bridger was later driven away to hmp manchester formerly known as strangeways

there have been many expressions of hope over the last seven days this time they lit lanterns it marked the point exactly a week ago when april was last seen playing on this estate since then many emotions have been released six months after april went missing her family marked what would have been her sixth birthday by releasing pink balloons from the brynagog green where she used to play on monday the 14th of january 2013 it was time for mark bridger to enter his plea he pled not guilty to abduction murder and concealing disposing of or

destroying april’s body but it emerged that his case was that he was probably responsible for her death april’s parents saw bridger in person for the first time since he had abducted their daughter coral and paul would go to every day of the trial determined to see this awful ordeal through to its conclusion in march 2013 it was reported by the bbc that the search for april’s body was set to end in the coming weeks although they hadn’t recovered her body the police and crown prosecution service worked together to push on and prepare

their case for trial the trial was initially arranged for two months after the point of charge giving officers and prosecutors an incredibly tight timeline to try and pull together all their arguments and evidence when his trial began on april 29th mark bridger continued the same story he had tried to spin in his interviews he was in denial about his actions and tried to present himself as a caring individual who had tried to help april after the tragic accident he was adamant had occurred the testimony of april’s friend who had

witnessed the abduction was to be crucial in countering his story she said that april had got into the front and then clambered into the back it just drove off i didn’t know she was going to go in the van the girl fiddled with her hair and sometimes hugged her bear as she was questioned by bridges barrister brendan kelly qc kelly who like all court officials was not wearing a wig or gown asked if she had a good view of the land rover yes i did she replied are you sure that you saw april talking to the man yes i’m sure she answered

it also emerged that bridger had taken his land rover to a garage at 9am the day after april disappeared saying he had been in an accident a member of staff told the court that while everybody locally had been upset about april’s disappearance they found it odd that he was so upset by it all and that he looked on the verge of crying as he spoke about it the mechanic said he kept asking how much his vehicle would cost to repair and when he could have it back he said he appeared nervous and edgy another person who had joined the search

for april travelled through the village where bridger was living she said she had seen him in a lay-by carrying what looked like a black bin liner in his hand the label was close to the river and less than half a mile from his house and the evidence just continued to mount when he spoke to a postman about april he feigned shock and asked what sort of vehicle the police were looking for but he managed to contradict himself later when he joined a search party at about 2pm first telling one volunteer he had found

out at 9 30 that morning then telling another he had been searching throughout the night april’s head teacher provided an insight into the relationships he had formed when she gave evidence at his trial she told the court how he had a history of relationships with young mothers and there were complex relationships between a number of these families she had spoken to bridger in her parents evening just a couple of hours before he had taken april when she had seen him talking to a former pupil now in secondary school

which she found strange april’s father also gave evidence as he had known bridges since the early 1990s when the pair had dated sisters he remembered bridger as being a risk taker who drove like a maniac he spoke of how he had loaned bridger a book on sas survival skills which he would not return claiming to have lost it paul said he later found it during a visit to bridge’s house and took it back as bridge’s behavior in the hours before april’s abduction had become more predatory the court heard how he had made an approach to a ten-year-old girl

playing near to where april had last been seen he invited her to a sleepover with his daughter but no arrangements were finalized during the police interviews bridger maintained that april had not been to his house but when confronted in court by the overwhelming forensic evidence he told the jury that images of her laying down in front of the fire had come to him in his dreams after all the evidence had been presented it was time for the jury to retire to consider their verdict and on the 30th of may they had come to

a conclusion mark bridger was found unanimously guilty on all three counts he was sentenced to life in prison with a whole life order he looked down at the floor as his sentence was handed out and said nothing today her parents paul and coral watched in court as mark bridger was found guilty of abduction and murder we only got mark bridger has today been found guilty of the murder of our beautiful daughter april april be forever in our hearts and we are so moved by the overwhelming support we have had from so many people from all

over the world  despite knowing he will never be a free man again he has refused to disclose exactly what happened to april that night or where her body is and no more remains of april jones have ever been found many believe that this is the last piece of control he is not willing to relinquish at the conclusion of his trial mark bridger was described as a pathological and glib liar a pedophile who harbored sexual and morbid fantasies about young girls he chose to put witnesses through the ordeal of giving evidence over a lengthy

trial that had lasted four and a half weeks he could have avoided all of it by pleading guilty in the first instance to the charges that had been leveled against him detective superintendent andrew john who had led the investigation said mark bridger is an evil and manipulative individual who clearly likes to be in control he has committed the most horrific of crimes the abduction and murder of a young vulnerable girl he appears to be somebody who is a fantasist  in july 2013 it was reported by the bbc that mark bridger had been attacked

while in prison the 47 year old was attacked with a makeshift blade as he walked along the gangway at wakefield prison in west yorkshire he was treated in hospital where he required stitches his injuries were not life-threatening and he was returned to prison the same day in september 2013 the family had a burial funeral with many turning up to pay their respects as they didn’t have a body the family buried an empty casket pulled on a horse-drawn carriage with the burial site being the graveyard just yards away from where she had

disappeared they were given ash and bone fragments from the police to bury and the family also buried personal items alongside this gave the family a spot they could visit to remember april and be together as a family april’s coffin made the one mile journey from the house to the church through the middle of town passing pink ribbons along the route last october the ribbons were the symbol of the search today they are a tribute to her and hundreds of people who had joined that search joined the solemn procession

parents here holding their children close too many mourners to fit inside the church in december 2013 the judicial office said that mark bridger had lodged an application for permission to appeal but the following month they confirmed that he had abandoned his attempt just 11 days before the hearing was due to take place in november 2018 leading search engine companies announced they were going to make it harder to find child abuse images online as many as a hundred thousand search terms would now return no results that find illegal material

following the horrors that had occurred at mount pleasant the property was later demolished april’s family were there to watch the demolition for the both of you what did this house come to represent the pick murder of my daughter and a five-year-old life just taken away and it’s just nightmares ever since she was taken yeah to have this house knocked down today is it’s just a relief for us it’s something that isn’t going to be bothering us isn’t going to be plaguing us for the rest like it sits on the back of your mind

all the time like the main road is just there we drive past that main road but every couple of three days like and it’s it’s there so there’s no worries the bar is going past and it’s a relief and perhaps we can move on a little tragically april’s father paul developed a rare brain disease the family revealed in february 2018 that the diagnosis had left him unable to remember the murder his wife coral told the mirror that paul could not understand why april hadn’t visited him in hospital her family are adamant that she will be

remembered for the joy and happiness she brought to so many people and not for the tragic way that she left this earth  you