The witness (The Witnessin English) dominates the trends in Netflix Latin America today. With only three episodes, the series based on a true crime and starring Jordan Bolger and Max Fincham addresses a topic that is as serious as it is in the media in the United Kingdom, but that did not become as well known on the American continent.
The production adapted the memoirs of Alex Hanscombe“Letting Go«, and had the participation of the survivors of the case as consultants. In turn, it came accompanied by a documentary, «The Murder of Rachel Nickell«which delves into other nuances of the case.
Now, what is the event that served as the basis for all these works? What happened on July 15, 1992?
The Wimbledon Common crime
The tragedy occurred on the morning of July 15, 1992 in an isolated area of Wimbledon Common, London. Rachel Nickell23 years old, was walking his dog with his son Alexonly two years old, when she was suddenly attacked.
Rachel was stabbed 49 times and sexually assaulted in front of little Alex. The boy was found shortly after by a person, clinging to his mother’s body and trying to «wake her up» by placing a piece of paper on her forehead as if it were a Band-Aid.
A failed investigation
Under immense media pressure, the Metropolitan Police quickly focused their suspicions on Colin Stagga local man who used to walk his dog in the park.
Lacking forensic evidence, the police resorted to a controversial undercover operation called «Operation Edzell». An undercover officer, under the alias «Lizzie James», attempted to seduce Stagg through letters and dates to obtain a confession, following a criminal psychological profile.
However, despite the officer’s insinuations, Stagg never admitted to the crime.
In 1994, the case against him collapsed at the Old Bailey court, where the judge condemned the police tactics as «deceitful conduct of the lowest kind». Stagg was acquitted, but spent the next 14 years as a social pariah, until in 2008 he received an official apology and £706,000 compensation.
The real murderer
While the police chased Stagg, the real person responsible, Robert Napperremained free. Napper was a serial rapist and murderer which was already on the radar of other police units for so-called «Green Chain violations.»
In November 1993, Napper brutally murdered Samantha Bisset and his four-year-old daughter Jazmine. Despite the similarities between the cases, detectives in the Nickell investigation hostilely rejected any link suggested by other officers.
Critical mistakes allowed Napper to remain on the streets, such as the fact that police ruled him out in previous investigations for being taller than 6 feet, when the initial profile looked for someone shorter.
Finally, thanks to advances in DNA techniques in 2004, a definitive match was found between Napper and the Rachel Nickell crime scene.
Justice and aftermath
In December 2008, Robert Napper pleaded guilty to homicide due to diminished responsibility (due to his paranoid schizophrenia and Asperger’s) and was sentenced to indefinite detention at Broadmoor High Security Hospital.
For André and Alex Hanscombe, life in the United Kingdom it became impossible due to the siege of the press, which led them to move to France and then to Spain in search of anonymity and peace.
Over the years, they both found solace in their faith and the close bond that unites them. With the release of new projects on Netflix, Alex hopes that his testimony will serve to show that, even after the deepest pain, there is always a way forward.
