Overview

The definitive account of the hunt for serial killer Levi Bellfield, who murdered Milly Dowler, by the criminal psychologist whose profiling methods led to his conviction. The disappearance of 13-year-old Milly Dowler gripped the nation in 2002. For six agonising months her family waited for news. Finally, human remains were found which were identified as Milly. Yet the case remained unsolved for eight long years until finally, in 2010, a man already convicted of two other murders was arrested. This man was Levi Bellfield. Laura Richards was the Criminal Behaviour Psychologist working on Milly's case, as well as several other murders of young women. It was her theory that these murders were linked, and her profiling methods and groundbreaking theories that led directly to new evidence which was used to convict Bellfield. In this book Richards uses the case of Levi Bellfield to ask searching questions about what it is that can make a person kill. Bellfield is one of Britain's worst serial killers, but how did he become like this? As she says 'serial killers must also learn their craft -- they do not emerge fully formed'. Importantly, are there lessons we can learn from the tragic story of Milly Dowler that can be used to prevent such awful acts being committed in the future? People aren't born monsters -- rapists and serial murderers don't start out that way. If we can understand what it is that makes someone capable of becoming a serial killer, if we can recognise the warning signs, then it should be possible to prevent such terrible crimes in the future. More than just a compelling reconstruction of one of the most significant and high-profile police investigation of recent years, this book is also a searing examination of the criminal mind, of what makes a serial killer -- and what the police should be doing to stop such terrible tragedies from happening again.

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9780593069684

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Laura Richards is a criminal behavioural analyst who, for over a decade, worked in intelligence and serious crime at New Scotland Yard. Laura also trained in the FBI and has profiled many cases including the murders of Clare Bernal and Sally-Ann Bowman. Laura set up the first Homicide Prevention Unit in the UK, as well as heading up the Violent Crime Intelligence and Analysis Unit in the Metropolitan Police Service. She advises the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO), police services across the UK and the Home Office on violent crime and public protection. Laura was responsible for developing DASH, the Domestic Abuse, Stalking and Honour-based Violence Risk Assessment and Management Model, which is used by most police services in the UK. Laura spearheaded the successful all-party parliamentary stalking law reform inquiry, which led to a new stalking law being passed in 2012. In 2013, Laura launched Paladin, the National Stalking Advocacy Service, which supports high-risk victims of stalking and has been at the forefront of the successful campaign to criminalise domestic abuse, 2014-15.

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