No evidence linking killer Halliwell to other murders, leading police chief says
CONVICTED double killer Christopher Halliwell may be responsible for the murders of other women, but there is no evidence linking the taxi driver to more deaths, a police chief has said.
Christopher Halliwell was found guilty of Becky Godden's murder
Defending his force's handling of the killer, Wiltshire Chief Constable Mike Veale said he was “sure” other women may have been murdered, but a national effort to try to tie Halliwell to further crimes had proved fruitless.
Asked if he thought it was unlikely Halliwell had murdered other women, Mr Veale told the Radio 4 Today programme: “I am absolutely sure, actually, that he probably has committed other offences, and I'm sure that there may well be other women that have been murdered, but, on the record, there is no evidence, no evidence whatsoever, to link him to any other murder in this country.”
The taxi driver Halliwell led police to Miss Godden's body
When asked if he believed it was possible Halliwell killed more people, but that no evidence was available, Mr Veale said: “Absolutely.”
I'm sure that there may well be other women that have been murdered, but, on the record, there is no evidence
Halliwell, 52, formerly of Swindon, Wiltshire, murdered Becky Godden, 20, in January 2003 and Sian O'Callaghan, 22, in March 2011.
He was handed a rare whole life order – meaning he will never be released – at Bristol Crown Court last month after being convicted of Miss Godden's murder.
Following his trial, reports linked Halliwell to other murders including missing chef Claudia Lawrence, who failed to turn up for a shift at work at the University of York in 2009.
Christopher Halliwell discusses potential charges
Halliwell is serving a life sentence for the murder of Sian O'Callaghan
Mr Veale accused the press of engaging in “pure speculation” as he said Wiltshire Police had worked closely with other forces regarding the killer.
“Despite that information being shared with every other force across the country, there is no evidence, there are no links, that we can substantiate, and these claims within the press are absolutely pure speculation,” he said.