Legacy and Family Aftermath

We'll get back to your true crime story in just a moment This podcast is part of the always True Cime netwk home of thousands of episodes exploring gripping true crime cases If you're looking for somewhere to start, check out our recent investigative series, Project Mind Control It uncovers a chilling chapter in history, examining the disturbing experiments carried out on vulnerable people in an attempt to erase and reprogram the human mind featuring testimony from one of the last known survivors of a notorious Canadian psychiatric institution powerful story that's as shocking as it is important. Check out the show and more at alwaysTrue crime. com He Greg Richard, it is hot outside and now it's time to cool down. At PC Richard and Sun, we have the largest selection of air conditioners all at the guaranteed lowest prices. Come see our knowledgeable salespeople to help get you the right air conditioner today Here's a tip for you. There's a podcast out there with fans waiting to be your next customer They tune in every week, they trust the host, and that host wants to talk about brands like yours in their own words to their audience. The problem is, you just haven't been introduced yet. We're a cast where that introduction happens as the world's largest podcast marketplace. We let you browse shows, see who' listening and book host reed sponsorships or run your own ads all from one platform. Transparent pricing, real time data, complete control. Start advertising on podcasts by visiting acast. com slash advertise In july two thousand, an eight year old girl was playing outside near a grandparents' home in a quiet west Sussex village Enjoying the summer holidays like any other child her age would It was the kind of place where nothing untoard ever happened played out, families relaxed and people felt safe But within the space of a single afternoon, that sense of safety was shattered. Sarah Payne disappeared while playing in a field with her siblings, just a short distance from where her family was staying One moment she was there, the next, she was gone What followed as one of the largest missing person searches the UK had ever seen drawing in hundreds of officers, volunteers, and the attention of the entire nation. In this episode of British Murders withith Stuke Blues, we're heading to Little Hampton explore the heartbreaking case of Sarah Payne It's a story that not only gripped the country but led to major changes in UK law and the way information about sex offenders is shared This is a case that still resonates today. and one that began with the summer's day that should have been completely ordinary Before we start, just a quick reminder to follow the podcast or subscribe on YouTube It's completely free and one of the best and easiest ways to help the show's growth and support it If you're able to leave a rate in our review, those are always greatly appreciated And if you want ad free listening, early access and exclusive episodes not available on the main feed, join my community patreon. com forward slash British Murders This story is one I'm sure the vast majority of you listening will be familiar with Just hear in the name Sarah Payne No no doubt sends an image to your mind of her smiling as she pused for a school photo in a red jumper Sarah's story is one I've wanted to cover for years. and as a father of a daughter who turns eight this year, the same age Sarah was when she was killed, it resonates just that bit more with me on a personal level begin to fathom the level of her and her family have gone through and still does all these years later I hope I do Sarah and her family justice with my retelling of her story And despite me discussing aspects of her killer's background throughout the episode, the focus will remain on her as much as possible With that, let me now introduce the little girl whose face is known by millions of people throughout the nation. for all the wrong reasons Sarah Evelyn Isabelle Payne was born on october thirteenth, nineteen ninety one at St. Peter's Hospital in Chursee which is a town located in the southeast England county of Surrey. She was the third child of Sara and Michael Payne and arrived a little later than her due date, ten days to be precise But that was typical But her older siblings had also arrived late. When she did finally relent from keeping everybody waiting She was already spotting a tuft of dark hair and a front tooth ret rare Only one in two or three thousand babies are born with natal teeth Dad nicknamed her princess Which makes sense because she was the first girl And that unique father daughter bond is so special So the name Princess Stuck is sort of a pet one Another daughter, Charlotte would then come along a few years later, completing the family. Sarah was a pupil at Burhill Primary School in Hersham, Surre And during the story's main timeline, she was finishing year three and about to head in a year four after the six week school holidays were over Big brown eyes which were really striking And while she could be strapy when she didn't get her own way, what kid isn't She never bought a grudge after a row wouldould always offer a cuddle to make up So relatable Her mum, Sara, described her as being a bubbly and happy character. addding how, she was extra special due to being the first girl born into the family for a long time. With nothing but boys before her, the family were not quite used to the girly imagination of Sarah into one full of fairies, dolls and trolls was new territory for everyone Her interests were vastly different to that of her older brothers Lee and Luke, and she were very much described as being a girly girl Her mum and dad recalled how loud she could be at times and how she was often told to keep it down for fear of the neighbors hearing the racket and wondering what on earth were going on As a family, tensions did rise from time to time. That's inevitable when you have kids But they were equally as vocal when playing games together Such was their strong bond as a family Sarah being loud wasn't just an attitude thing th 'cause she actually struggled to hear at times That was because she had an inherited condition called glue ear According to the NHS website, that condition relates to a buildup of fluid in the middle ear, which is sometimes due to the eustachian tube which connects the middle ear and the back of the nose. That wasn't working properly. As a result of that condition, Sarah was partially deaf So that was more so the reason why she tended to shout She basically struggled to hear herself if she didn't Yet, despite her condition, she didn't let it dampen her love for music She loved nothing more than turning the stereo up to full volume and dancing her heart's full content around the living room She' listen to popular bands of the late nineties such as Steps and S Club S seven The parents often joined in, no doubt questioning their own fitness after the fact. The main timeline of our story began on Saturday july first, two thousand And that month was a pretty average one, weather wise, if not slightly cooler than you'd expect for a midsummer The temperatures were averaging around fifteen degrees Celsius throughout that month, or fifty nine Fahrenheit Sarah headed off to work at our local pub that morning with both Charlotte and Sarah, while Michael stayed at home in bed, catching up on his sleep because he'd just come off working a night shift That arrangement was pretty normal for a Saturday morning because the two girls both loved to play in the pub's beer garden with a friend of theirs while Mum was busy working By the afternoon, Cyus's shift was over Three of them headed to a property in the small seaside village of Kingston Gorse in Little Hampton, West Sussex It was there where the girl's granddad Terence Payainne, known more commonly as Terry and his second wife, Leslie lived Kingston Gorse is a lovely and quaint seaside area with fields overlooking the sea So we're talking about some truly stunning views all around. and is' the last place she you'd expect what happened to Sarah to occur. Arriving without a hitch, the family of six were greeted with open arms as always They'd often head over there for the odd Sunday lunch or just to pop in for a visit And even then on that Saturday, dinner was practically on the table as soon as they arrived With the initial buzz over, the children soon wanted to head to the beach, as Sara had promised them they could earlier on in the day There, Terry said he wanted to show Sarah and Michael a house along the beach because his friend had been doing it up And it was at that point the parents agreed to let the children play alone on the beach while they looked at the house To them, there was no danger of allowing such a thing because the two older boys of the family had been allowed to play on their run in that area for the last few years, with nothing bad ever happening. and they knew the area well The two lads in question, age thirteen and eleven, Leon Luke parents to allow the girls to play with them And they agreed, but only under the condition that the girls do exactly what Lee said, given he was the eldest and therefore the most responsible Should they get tired, they were told to head back to their grandparents' house With the terms of play agreed by all parties, off the children went The last memory Sarah has of Sarah was of her playing with her siblings and screaming her head off, running all over the beach having the time of her life As the hours ticked by and early evening drew near, the siblings moved away from the beach and to the cornfields off Kingston Lane To them, it was an extra cool place to mess around in, given how high the corn stretched towards the sky Plenty of places to hide from one another. That as you'd expect, they played hide and seek. But things took a turn when Sarah suddenly banged ahead afterfter a subsequent row with her eldest brother She ran off crying towards a grandparents home Lee, being the one who was responsible for everyone, was in hot pursuit, literally thirty seconds behind her He then turned around to check on five year old Chharla after she fell over. And once satisfied that she was okay, he turned back around to continue chasing down Sarah to his bewilderment, she was nowhere to be seen Lee would later speak candidly about his regret over this incident, and it broke my heart to hear that he spent so long blaming himself for not being able to save Sarah He described how, during his teenage years, he repeatedly relivive the events of that day I did for a few years beat myself up about it, he said If I'd maybe run faster or not run through the corn, I might have caught up with her It's something he said you'll never get over Luke has also been haunted by the last words he ever spoke to his sister. When she fell during their game and wanted to go home after He remembers getting angry with her He revealed this publicly in a twenty nineteen interview with Susanna Reid for the Mail on Sunday recalling I said Cough, go home Those were the last words I ever said to her While being only five at the time, Charlotte said she too was felt guilt about her sister's death asking Why was it her And why not me She added When something bad like that has happened to someone you love You almost feel guilty for being alive As we head back to the timeline, Lee led his siblings back to his grandparents' home, no doubt running as fast as they could. My understanding is that when they arrived, only Leslie was in the house. So it was to her that Lee broke the news about them not knowing where Sarah was When Terry, Michael, and Sara returned to the house, Leslie was waiting outside for them, tightly holding Charlotte's hand Instantly set alarm bells off in Sara's mind, and her parental instincts were no doubt going into overdrive Leslie asked desperately if the three adults had Sarah with them A last ditch attempt at hoping she'd somehow wandered off into the arms of her parents But alas, she was nowhere to be seen The realization that Sarah was missing suddenly became a stomach drop in reality Sarah later recalled how the thought of her daughter being missing was like an echo going through her head The fear was uncontrollable The family quickly split up in the hope of finding their eldest daughter shouting her name even louder than usual in the hope she'd hear their beckoning calls Sarah and Charlotte walked up the main lane where cars tended to drive while Terry headed to the beach and Michael to the cornfields Leslie's role was to stay at the house just in case Sarah suddenly turned up To disappear without a trace was so far removed from what you'd expect from Sarah Because she was a rather timid girl who would not have strayed far from her siblings She barely lasted more than a couple of minutes playing hide and seek. So for there to be no sign of her Devastating She were nowhere to be found after the family searched the area which led them to think she may have walked across the field and either got lost or injured herself further Sara then phoned nine hundred and ninety nine and informed the police that her daughter was missing ll play a brief clip of that harrowing phone call for you now Emergency exivers P go a per emergency,'s problem. I've lost my littlellow old daughter. missing about now is three quarters now It's so hard ear in that, isn't it? Sara later described that call as being understandably difficult to do as it made the whole situation real A huge search was launched in an attempt to find Sarah after that, with helicopters and over one hundred and fifty police officers scouring the surrounding areas with the support of locals looking for her Possibly in an attempt to dispel everyone's worst fears, the police initially said publicly that there was no reason to believe Sarah had been abducted Even so, every house on the estate was searched by officers But there was still no sign of her They also searched many other places, including all of the nearby ditches They believe she may have wandered off and got lost because she didn't know the area well, evenven though it was familiar to a degree This wasn't where she lived Former chief suuperintendent of Sussex Police Phil Clark noted there were no signs of Sarah's belongings adddding it was as if she'd suddenly been whisked away As the search was brought to an end for the night, a moment everyone was dreading Sarah and Michael finally put the other kids to bed And when they did, Lee said something to his mum, which likely made her heart skip a beat He pulled her to one side and told her that he knew something but wasn't sure if he should say or not urging him to tell her Sara was shocked to hear that Lee had seen a man in a white van while they were out playing, who smiled and waved back at him The driver was a scruffy looking man, he said and he'd spotted the van heading away from the area where Sarah was last seen But even after hearing that, the idea that Sarah may have been abducted did not enter Sarah's mind. couldould it Nobody expects such an horrible thing to happen Instead, she lay awake, worried sick. Wondering if Sarah had broken a leg and fallen over somewhere and was out there all alone in the dark We're going to take a quick break here. when we return, we'll briefly touch upon what the police believe may have happened to Sarah before discussing the person at the top of their suspect list See soon. Hi, I'm Greg Richard. It's hot out there. Chill out with a new air conditioner from PC Richard and Sun. Thousands in stock, every size, every BTU. pllus, we guarantee the lowest prices. PC Richard and Son, the company you can trust You've got social dial in Search is doing its thing. So why do your marketing results look the same as six months ago? That's because you're fishing in the same pond as everyone else. Podcast listeners are a different audience entirely. more engaged, harder to reach through traditional channels, and ready to act when someone they trust makes a recommendation. We're a cast, and we put them right in front of you Browse thousands of the world's leading podcasts, book host reads or run your own ads, and track every conversion in real time. Same skills you already have, brand new results. Acast Acast d. com slash advertise Welcome back Let's now continue by discussing what Sara and the police did next The following morning, Sarah left the house early doors on her own and headed straight for the cornfield in which her daughter were last seen Finding nothing, she collapsed to the floor, overcome by emotion until a police officer found her and escorted her back to t it in Leslie's house The police needed to take some more serious action at this stage. And as far as they were concerned, there were two options regarding what had happened to Sarah The first was the best case scenario that she'd fallen down a ditch, become lost or something similar The second was far more sinister that she was alive but had been abducted Either way, time was of the essence. Regarding that second potential outcome Officers began mapping the area for known sex offenders. And once they were finished, they had twelve names in total From that number, they narrowed it down to three primary ones And at the very top of the list was a known pedophile called Roy William Whiting Now it begrudges me to do so, but for context purposes, we must now discuss Whiting's background and criminal history He was forty one during Aain timeline, having been born on january twenty sixth, nineteen fifty nine, and he originally came from Horsham as a market town in West Sussex One of six children, he grew up with his family in Langley Green, a neighborhood in the West Sussex town of Crawley Whiton attended Jordan's Junior and Infant School and then Ifield or IField Community College but left school early as he struggled with his education premature departure from the school system led to him taking on a variety of manual labor jobs with several employers In the nineteen seventies, his parents separated So a teenage Whiting ended up staying with his dad, going on a train as a mechanic in the nineteen eighties It was when he was seventeen that his mum and dad separated, with the former leaving the family home and going on a remarry Whiton then secured a role as a mechanic and spent his free time at weekends stock car racing His previous training had prompted him to work for a firm based in Crawley but eventually went on to start his own business And his interest in banger or stock car racing continued to grow And it saw him building his own cars and driving for the Gatwick flyers under the name Flying Fish. He had few female friends until he met a woman called Linda Booker. She was five years his junior when he was filling his car at the petrol station where she worked Chan's encounter led to the Pair Marion in june nineteen eighty six But it was not a marriage made in Heaven but only lasted a few years Whiting went on to be evicted from the garage where he worked because he didn't pay the rent Money was a common argument topic for Linda and him, it seems In nineteen eighty seven, Linda gave birth to the couple's son But Whiting had already left her And he's had very little contact with the child since then. He had relationships with several women after his marriage ended, including one with someone much younger than him, who, according to his ex wife, looked like a gangster's moll. But they never lasted. Gangster's Ma is an early nineteen hundred slang term for the female companion of a mobster, by the way Inevitably, Whiting would blame the women for the breakups, and he was also known for telling pointless lies and dreaming up plans which had no chance of coming to fruition. Many relatives and acquaintances saw him as a Walter Mitty type character as well as a loner When it comes to his criminal record, it makes for shocking reading On march fourth, nineteen ninety five, Whiton abducted and sexually assaulted an eight or nine year old girl in the Langley Green area of Crawley He was identified after a man who knew him came forward when he heard the abductor's car was a red Ford Sierra which was a vehicle Why and had just sold That vehicle was traced and a knife was found hidden inside it Wyin went on to be convicted of abduction and indeccent assault, offeners which saw him receive a four year prison sentence Yet despite the horrific ordeal that little girl went through Whiten hadn't killed her So for Sarah's family, when they became aware of who Whiting was They saw that as a very slight glimmer of hope There wasn't much to go on and was obviously a horrendous situation if that was the case But it was something It's interesting to note here that a psychiatrist who assessed Whiteon after his conviction said he was likely to reoffend And sadly, he did He ended up being released from prison in november nineteen ninety seven after serving only two years and five months of his four year sentence But what's even more concerning is that while in prison, he refused to take part in a sex offender rehabilitation program It was for that reason alone he was forced to serve an extra five months before being released on license. othertherwise it' been out after two years. Once out of prison, Whiton was placed on the sex offender's register He was one of the first people to be named on that He moved away from his native Crawley after that and ended up settling in Little Hampton the very place Sarah's granddad and his wife lived. the very placeers from which she went missing So the reason Whiton's name was at the top of the police's list of people to speak to was due to his previous offense on a child Sarah's age and the fact he lived around five miles away from Terry and Leslie's house Police paid him a visit as early as july second, two thousand the day after Sarah disappeared but he wasn't at his flat when they arrived that afternoon. They returned that evening at which point he was in and spoke with him for about an hour Officers did return for a third time. Something clearly fell off with this man Upon seeing him, he fled in his van which was a nineteen eighty eight white fiat Duato that he'd purchased in june two thousand, just over a week before Sarah disappeared Whiton ended up being stopped by officers and was taken into custody to be questioned He spent two days there. But ultimately, due to a lack of evidence, he wasn't charged with anything and was released on bail. Now I wondered why he was released on bail if he wasn't charged with anything, but rememember he'd just been released from prison. so he was, I guess, technically on license for the next two years out of the four that he had left. I assume that's why But anyway, when they asked him where he was at the time Sarah disappeared He said he was at a fun fair in Brighton, around twenty four miles east of Little Lampton, also on the south coast The inference a police officer at the time gathered was that Whiton was cruising the areas young people might have been in his newly acquired van It was on july third, two thousand when the nation was made aware of what had happened down in Little Lampton That photo we all know showing Sarah's smiling face was displayed everywhere apers on the news. Parents made daily appeals via both mediums, pleading for their daughter's safe return They even appealed directly to her. saying We've got lots of people, hundreds, Sarah You couldn't believe how many people are coming and it won't be long Police and numerous volunteers continually scoured the areas around Little Lampton. Specialist units including military personnel joining the search effort People who specialized in seeing if areas had recently been burnt or areas of ground disturbed were also drafted in Another officer came forward with further information on whiting, which only cemented his place at the top of the polic' suspects list. The search quickly turned into a huge nationwide one ten thousand phone calls offering information were made by members of the public. Lee even took part in an identity parade in Brighton which involved Whiting and another man who'd been arrested Yet he was unable to identify the former Sarah's parents were told to make a too bag full of clothes just in case the police found her and needed to check the clothes she was found in for forensic evidence contained many of her clothes including fresh nighties and summer dresses, along with a book she was reading just before she went missing is the one she'd been reading in the car on the journey to Kingston Gorse. Sarah's last known movements were reenacted by four local kids, each one portraying one of the pain siblings, and it led to over eight hundred calls being made on the back of it Some of those leads included a potential sighting of a little girl spotted crying in the toilets at Nutsford Services on the M six in Cheshire. She had introduced herself to a concerned member of the public as simply Sarah And with that, Sara knew instantly it wasn't a daughter because she always introduced herself using her full name of Sarah Payne Police soon after released an E fit of the man seen with that girl at Kutsford Services which led to officers receiving calls from Greece, Spain, France, even as far afield as Israel Sussex pololice ended up confirming that the girl was not Sarah after reviewing CCTV footage As the investigation continued, the family were asked directly by officers if the name Roy Whiting meant anything to them didnn't. Meanwhile, Sarah's three siblings were struggling to cope with it all. Lee could often be found punching and kicking a tree in an attempt to alleviate his anger And in his head he kept seeing the image of that van driver waving at him as he drove away Charlotte became so anxious that she metaphorically glued herself to a mum, never leaving aside She asked if someone had taken Sarah and when they would give her back, crown and now bailed Whiting did not return to his flat, instead opting to go and live with his father back in Crawleay By that point, police had found a receipt for fuel purchased at Buckbarn Garage on the A twenty four near Pulborough. That receipt, which was tied to Whiting directly contradicted his alibi that he'd been at a fun fair at five thirty PM and was home by nine thirty PM then the news everyone have been dreading finally came in On Monday, july seventeenth, two thousand. A discovery was made in a field in the aforementioned village of Pulborough in West Sussex That morning, a farm worker who was walking in the fields near Brinsbury Agricultural College at Pulborough found a body. No more than ten yards from the Air twenty nine H body, found approximately fifteen to eighteen miles from Kingston Gorse, was that of a young girl matching Sarah's description She was naked and a subsequent postmortem showed she had suffered a violent death, with most of her hair having been pulled out during the attack. The news was delivered to the Payne family that afternoon, with the suggestion being that they believe the body was Sarah's DNA testing was soon carried out and confirmed that the body was indeed that of Sarah Payne Sara and Detective Sergeant Sean Scott, who'd grown close to the family during the investigation. argued back and forth about her seeing Sarah's body Dir Scott urged Sarah not to see it. while she had the opposite opinion He ended up agreeing to describe what she looked like to Sara But I won't be going into such detail within this episode. It's simply too heartbreaking to read, let alone say out loud. Sarah ended up agreeing not to see her daughter's body after that and it had a massive impact on DS Scott. It changed him, seeing her body Due to the condition of it, having been left out in the open for so long difficult to establish a precise cause of death though it was suggested as likely being asphyxiation, probably strangulation or suffocation combination of both Sarah's family took some semblance of comfort from being told she was confirmed to not have been raped However, it could not be ruled out that Sarah had been interfered with in other ways A few days later, on july twentieth, Sarah's shoe was recovered from the side of the road in the village of Couum, roughly three miles from Pulborough The motorist had driven past the black sandal with a Velcro strap for several days before finally stopping And when she eventually did, she made the correct decision by not picking it up. Instead, she phoned the police And that shoe would go on to become one of the most important parts of the case It's also worth noting that a group of campers said they heard a little girl's scream three miles from where Sarah's body was eventually found on the night she were abducted Two young couples said they were concerned about the screams, but did not attach sufficient importance to them they still came forward after realizing their campsite at Fitleworth was so close to Pulborough Regarding the shoe, Sara positively identified it as belonging to her daughter and the hopes of finding some kind of fiber or DNA sample from her killer gave the investigation a new lease al We're going to take one final break here. When we return, we'll discuss the arrest of Whiting, the evidence held against him, the trial and the aftermath soon I'm Greg Richard. It is hot outside and now it's time to cool down. At PC Richard and Sun, we have the largest selection of air conditioners all at the guaranteed lowest prices. Come see our knowledgeable salespeople to help get you the right air conditioner today. While every other channel is fighting for your customers' attention, podcasts are where they've already given it No one accidentally listens to a podcast for forty five minutes. They choose to be here. They trust the voice in their ears, and when that voice talks about your brand, it doesn't sound like advertising. It sounds like a recommendation from a friend. ACast gives you that trust at scale. Digital precision, host read authenticity, and performance data that proves it worked Don't fight for attention. buuy it with ACast. Learn more by visiting Acast dot com slash advertise. Welcome back. Okay, let's now continue with the final section of this episode. On july twenty third, Whiting, who was under surveillance Stol a voux on Nova in Crawler a crime which was caught on a dash account He ended up in a high speed cat and mouse chase with officers who were in hot pursuit But it ended abruptly when Whiting crashed into a parked police car while trying to escape I'll talk more on that incident shortly Forensic ecologist Professor Patricia Wilson, a name I'm sure many of you are familiar with, was also brought in around that time to help After the police contacted her for advice She ended up visiting the cornfield where Sarah was last seen and began to piece together an ecological profile of the area using her expert knowledge of plants, pollen and soil Once Sarah's body had been found, Patricia was able to compare her results with information she collected of the body That led to her determining that Sarah had been killed where she was found, rather than being killed elsewhere and dumped there Professor Wilcher said years later That's an important thing because sometimes murderers move bodies But that was her primary resting place Then on august twelfth, two thousand, Sarah's funeral took place at St Peter's Church in a ceremony consisting of only family, close friends and a few invited guests. Before the Reverend took his address, teacher June Whittittle, who was close to Sarah, gave a personal reflection on her life and death The Sarah we knew was always smiling, she said Chirpe Her smile was a great big sparkling one Sarah added We are grateful to all those who worked so hard to find her. police and their stuff public who offered to help and the media who supported the effort with such care and dignity Now about that car crash I discussed a short while ago Whiting was convicted on charges of car theft and dangerous driving. and so found himself back in prison having been handed a twenty two month sentence. While inside, officers took the chance to question him again about Sarah's disappearance and also used it as an opportunity for a forensic team to search his van Inside, police found suites, toys, rope hidden behind a curtain, knives, baby oil and cable ties Clearly this was a predatory kit used as a means of detaining his victims The forensic evidence recovered from the van linked Whiting to Sarah's murder And that was so important because he'd never admitted to being in the presence of Sarah Clear it was hiding something During questioning, he reportedly showed evidence of being stressed, something noted due to his constant chain smoking The evidence in question was as follows Sarah's loose hair was found to contain over two hundred material fibers And some of these came from a sweater found in Whiting's van Further fibers on Sarah's lost shoe were found to match the passenger seat cover in the van and Sarah's hair was also found on the sweater It was theorized by officers that Sarah managed to throw one shoe out of the window as a cry for help. about heartbreaking That shoe was the only item of Sarah's clothing ever recovered A strand of blonde hair was also found on a t shirt in the van and was also subjected to DNA testing The result showed there was a one in a billion chance of it belonging to anyone other than Sarah Panne Professor Wiltshire also found pollen from plants such as the hedge and stingy nettles near Sarah's shallow grave on Whiton's Red Jumper added to the mounting evidence She theorized it must have been dark when Whiton was at the location, as he didn't seem to see the nets he'd have had to walk through Trishia also believes that Whiton fell over because he had the pollen not only on his front from leaning over, but also on his back With all that evidence now gathered, Whiton was finally charged with the abduction and murder of Sarah on february sixth, two thousand one taken seven months teams now finally had their m Appearing in Louis Crown Court, he pleaded not guilty to both charges and was remanded in custody. On the first anniversary of Sarah's disappearance july first, two thousand one Their family hosted a memorial in an attempt to help with their grief Hundreds of friends and relatives then gathered on Gorin Beach in Worthin, West Sussex to remember her somethingomet which had the full backing of Sarah's parents, although they didn't attend Whyon's murder trial began nine months after he were charged, opening on november fourteenth, two thousand one at Louis Crown Court before mister Justice Curtis Lee bravely gave evidence during that trial Recalling how he'd seen a scruffy man with yellowish teeth driving through Kingston Gorse on the evening, Sarah went missing The jury saw photographs of the contents of Whiteon's van and heard from two motorists who recalled seeing such a white van packed up at the roadside That was near the site where Sarah's body was later recovered and it was on the evening of july first two thousand Upon the trial's conclusion after four weeks, Whiting was convicted of the abduction and murder of Sarah Payne and was handered a life sentence The trial judge stated it was a rare case in which a life sentence should truly mean life Yet it's important to note that he was sentenced before the whole lifeife order was introduced in the Criminal Justice Act two thousand three It's been noted that had he been sentenced with the rules as they are now, he probably would have received a whole life order as a starting point And his time spent in prison has been far from uneventful as well, especially when it comes to him being a target for other prisoners to make a name for themselves On august fourth, two thousand, Whiting was attacked to HMP Wakefield by convicted murderer Ricky Tragaskis, who used a razor as his weapon of choice The attack left Whiteen with a six inch scar on his right cheek Tragazquz received an additional six year sentence for the assault Later that year on november twenty fourth, then Home Secretary David Blunkett ordered that Whyen must serve a minimum of fifty years in prison, making him ineligible for parole until twenty fifty one at which point it'd be notighted two But fast forward to june ninth, twenty ten, and on that day a high court judge actually reduced Whyen's minimum term by ten years, taking it down to fourter. Sara attended that hearing and described the decision point in In July of twenty eleven, Whyen was attacked again at HMP Wakefield, this time by twice convicted murderer, Gary Vinter a choice this time was a sharpened toilet brush handle which Vinta used to stab Whiteen in the eye. He ended up being treated at Pinderfield's Hospital, having stitches applied to his wound The plastic shard which were lodged in there was removed Vinta admitted wounding with intent and received an indefinite sentence with a minimum term of five years On november eighth, twenty eighteen, Wyon was stabbed once again in his cell this time by a jewer of fellow prisoners Kevin Hyden and Richard Prendergast burst into a whiteen' cellar around six twelve PM after he'd returned from collecting his evening meal Hyden used a screw as a weapon. Prendergas used two pieces of wood with a six point seven centimeter screw protruding from them. They called Whiting a nce and Hydn shouted Stab him, stab him, G him in the neet. during the assault Whiton suffered wounds to his chest, back and other areas on that occasion, and was treated in hospital before being returned to prison Both attackers received an additional seven and a half years each on top of their existing sentences Another six years would pass, but inevitably, Whyon was stabbed again on february eleventh, twenty twenty four This time by fellow inmate Andrew Light Light entered Whiteon's cell and lunged at him repeatedly with a sharpened chunk of wood and his officers held him back after the attack He shouted See you later Roy That's for Sarah Painne Wy in was taken to the hospital and treated, with his injuries being described as minor cleared and in a stable position He was returned to prison. As we approach the end of this episode, it wouldn't be right if we didn't discuss Sarah's law inspired by Meghgan's lore in the USA Sarah's law, which is officially known as the Child seex offender Disclosure schcheme, gives parents, carers and guardians the right to ask police whether someone who has contact with their child has any record of child sexual offensces If a risk is identified, police can disclose that information to whoever is best placed to protect the child Additionally, even if a person has never been convicted of anything Police can still disclose information if they hold intelligence suggesting that person poses a risk of harm to children It's important to note though, that you can only inquire about a specific named person in relation to a specific child So it's not like you can use it to do a general check on someone willy and nilly without a particular concern The law has been tightened a lot since its inception to the point where sex offenders' fingerprints can now be taken every year, along with photographs of them. These all help in protecting children in the UK from predators Sara said during the campaign, I just couldn't imagine how a man could have a previous conviction for hur and a child and still be living in a village with children still be living in a seaside town for God's sake Before Sarah's law came into effect, the police couldn't move a sex offender from places such as schools because it was a human right to stand where they pleased. Ridiculous, I know Sarah's parents and the News of the Wor campaigned for the change in law And the former tabloid newspaper helped Sara publish their infamous nameame and shame campaign in which the names of pedophiles were published