Serial killer sentenced over 1999 murder and kidnap after advancements in DNA techniques

A serial killer who murdered five women in 2006 has been sentenced for the murder another teenager seven years earlier following groundbreaking forensic techniques.

The 1999 murder of Victoria Hall had remained unsolved for more than two decades until a pioneering tool in DNA analysis pinned Steve Wright to the murder – backed by extensive circumstantial evidence.

Over the course of two nights, Steve Wright prowled the streets of Felixstowe in Suffolk looking to kidnap a young woman.

After a failed attempt to kidnap a 22-year-old woman on 18 September 1999, Wright kidnapped and murdered 17-year-old Victoria the following day.

On Monday, Wright, now aged 67, pleaded guilty to kidnap and murder before trial at the Old Bailey. He also pleaded guilty of the attempted kidnap of the then-22-year-old woman.

Today, at the same court, he was sentenced to life imprisonment, with a minimum term of 40 years.

Samantha Woolley, a specialist prosecutor who led the CPS case against Wright, said: 

"Justice has finally been achieved for Victoria Hall after 26 years.

“The meticulous work we have carried out with Suffolk Police, supporting their investigation and working hard to bring this case to court, has resulted in Wright admitting his guilt.

“Our case was bolstered by critical DNA evidence made possible because of pioneering new forensic techniques – along with a wealth of other evidence which gave him little choice but to plead guilty.

“Much attention will be made of Steve Wright being convicted of another murder, attention he does not deserve. Quite simply, he represents the very worst of humanity and I hope he will now be forgotten.

“This outcome should make plain that time does not preclude a successful prosecution; we will doggedly pursue justice for the victims of non-recent crimes, no matter how many decades have passed.

“Our thoughts remain with Victoria’s family, and all those who loved and cherished her.”

Behind the conviction:

DNA:

• The prosecution presented results from a re-examination of samples recovered during the post-mortem examination of Victoria Hall. These samples yielded Y-STR DNA profiles – a breakthrough technique which can detect tiny fragments of male DNA. This profile matched that of Steve Wright.
• Y-STR analysis was the same technique used to help convict David Newton – more than a decade after he murdered Una Crown in January 2013.
• A forensic pathologist concluded there was compelling evidence that the perpetrator of Victoria Hall’s murder was the same offender responsible for the homicides of the five women murdered in Ipswich – which Wright was convicted of.

Vehicle analysis:

• The survivor of the attempted kidnap described a vehicle and partial number plate.
• A painstaking process of elimination to identify the vehicle was eventually whittled down from 56 to just two – one of which belonged to Wright.
• The victim’s description largely matched Wright’s Ford Granada Scorpio, which he sold just 10 days after murdering Victoria.
• Several witnesses in the area of both the kidnap of Victoria Hall and attempted kidnap the night prior all noted the distinctive noise of the car exhaust as it fled the scene on each occasion.

CCTV analysis:

• A man was seen at a petrol station approximately five miles away from the deposition site at around 6.15am on 19 September 1999 – only a few hours after Victoria was kidnapped. 
• Enhanced CCTV stills were examined by two facial comparison experts who, separately and using different reference images, compared the stills to photographs of Steve Wright.
• Both experts concluded it was “more than probable” that the male seen in the CCTV is Steve Wright.

Witness testimony:

• The victim of the attempted kidnap described the assailant as white with a thick build, short strawberry blonde hair, with a piggy or rounded nose with a wide and puffy face – a description which matched Wright at the time.
• Shortly after the disappearance of Victoria Hall, a former colleague of Wright recalled asking him what he thought happened to her – to which Wright replied “You do not want to know” before giving him a look described as menacing.

Pre-trial work:

• Ahead of the planned trial, the prosecution was successful in admitting bad character evidence, meaning Wright’s previous convictions for murder could be outlined to the jury as part of this case – as prosecutors deemed the similarities and Wright’s modus operandi wholly relevant.
• We worked with international partners to ensure evidence could be given remotely from witnesses in Spain.