Murder of Penny Bell

Penny Bell lived with her husband, Alistair Bell, in Baker's Wood, near Denham, Buckinghamshire. Alistair was an estate agent, and Bell was a partner in Coverstaff Ltd, a successful catering employment agency based in Kilburn.[1]

Previously friends, the couple had married in April 1981.[3] They lived with her son Matthew, from a prior marriage of hers, and the couple's daughter Lauren.[3]

Alistair had an eleven-year homosexual relationship before he met Penny.[4] Alistair Bell was completely open about this, but when police revealed this information to the press, public sympathy for the family declined, as the public assumed that a former lover was the murderer.[2]

The family home was undergoing extensive renovations from November 1990, valued at £100,000.[5] Bell had withdrawn £8,500 from her and her husband's joint bank account, presumably to pay the builders, on 3 June 1991.[6][7] She had never previously withdrawn such a large sum of cash.[7]

On 6 June 1991, Alistair left the house as usual at 8:30 BST.[7] He described Bell's demeanour as "bright and chirpy".[8] He noted that Bell did not wave him off as he left in his car, as was her usual custom, but believed that this was due to the disruption caused by their kitchen renovation.[7]

Bell left her home in her powder blue Jaguar XJS at around 9:40 BST, which was her usual leaving time.[9] She informed the builders, who were renovating the kitchen, that she was running late for a 9:50 BST appointment.[10] No record of this appointment was found in her diary, and it has never been established who, if anyone, she was meeting. An electrician, who was the last known person to speak to Penny, described her demeanour as "normal and casual".[11]

Witnesses recalled a blue Jaguar XJS driving along Greenford Road at about 10:00 BST at 10-15 mph with its hazard lights flashing. A witness came forward six months after the murder and claimed he saw her driving into the car park with a passenger, and mouthing an appeal for help, which he ignored.[12]

It is believed that Bell was murdered around 10:30 BST.[13] Bell was seen motionless in the driver's seat of her car in the Gurnell Leisure Centre car park at 1100 GMT, but passersby assumed she was sleeping.[1] It wasn't until 12:15 BST that the police were alerted and her death was discovered.[12] She had been stabbed fifty times in the chest and arms with a three to four inch blade, in what police were to describe as a "frenzied" attack.[8] A forensic investigation determined that the killer had stabbed Bell from the passenger seat, before exiting the car and frantically stabbing her from the driver's window.[12]

At the time, the leisure centre had been crowded, and the car park almost full.[14] Poor visibility and audibility aided the killer; the car was parked in front of a high hedge perimeter, which blocked the view from the front; the Jaguar had a tiny rear window and was effectively sound-proof, which muffled any cries for assistance.[14] Wallpaper samples were found laid out in the rear of the car, although the reason for this is unclear.[2]

Police believed the killer would have been heavily bloodstained following the murder.[8]

The police investigation determined that Bell was a happily married and successful businesswoman, and could find no reason why anyone would want to kill her.[7] Police believed that it was very likely that Bell knew her killer, but have struggled to ascertain a motive.[15] The police do not believe that robbery was the motive, and Penny's handbag remained in the car untouched.[7]

The £8,500 that Bell had withdrawn from the bank remains unaccounted for.[6]

• List of unsolved murders in the United Kingdom

• The day I lost mum and my memory Daughter's memories
• Gone but not forgotten Possibility of DNA from bloodstains.