All language subtitles for Cold Case Detectives -- S01E02 (2023) WEB.eng

She said that she's been lying there
absolutely petrified,

thinking, "Oh, my gosh,
is he gonna kill me?"

These are the cold case detectives,

pursuing justice in crimes
often decades old.

A team of seasoned investigators
and forensic experts

at South Wales Police.

-Did you have sex with that woman?
-No comment.

They're committed to solving
some of the most baffling murders

and sex crimes which have gone
undetected for years.

It's horrific. Horrific.

I just hope he...
He does get punished.

Using the latest developments
in forensic science

to uncover new evidence,
they're determined

to put some of the most dangerous
criminals behind bars.

The time will come where
we will be knocking on their door...

and their world is gonna cave in.

You're under arrest
on suspicion of rape.

You don't have to say anything but
anything you say may be evidence.

Advances in forensic science

have given the cold case detectives
a chance to try and solve

the 60-year-old abduction
and murder of a little girl

that happened
on a busy street in Cardiff.

For Gerry Blake,
the murder of his childhood friend

Carol Ann Stephens
is close to his heart.

I've got a personal knowledge
of this case,

and every time I think of it,
there's a knot in your stomach.

You just hope that one day,
you're gonna get a breakthrough

that we may be able
to detect this case.

This morning,
the team are driving 300 miles

to interview a new witness.

So, we're travelling up
from South Wales up to visit

a gentleman witness
from the Folkestone area

who is friendly
with Carol Ann Stephens.

He was a six or seven-year-old child
at the time.

He stated that he was the young boy

who was in what we termed
in the day was a Red Indian outfit,

and he was with Carol
when she got into the car.

But the witness wasn't interviewed
by police at the time

because of his young age.

We're gonna be showing him
a line-up, and hopefully...

he may identify

the person who he thinks
he saw some 60 years ago.

We're hoping that this person,

who we know
is a key witness to this,

is gonna say, "I saw the driver,
and I might recognise him again."

The team want to know

if the man he saw 60 years ago
was Ronald Murray...

the prime suspect at the time,

who was questioned
but never charged with the murder.

He was quite confident that...

about the information
that he was passing

and he also suggested
that there was a possibility

that he may identify this man
if he saw a photograph.

You've got to be thinking,
"This is 60 years ago."

But you can also be thinking,
"My God, if he picks him out,

where's this gonna take us?"

Can I just thank you...

-You're welcome.
-For making the call to us

and giving the information
that you have so far?

Back in 1959, you, of course,
were living in Malefant Street.

That's right, yeah.

I was a short distance from you.
Do you remember the area at all?

I do, yes, I remember the park,
I remember the trams,

I remember my second year at...
I went to Gladstone Primary...

That's what I wanted to come to,
because I just wandered,

I was actually at Gladstone School.

Just between you and I,
I'm just a little bit older.

She was one of the gang.

She fitted in well with the boys,
so she was...

If there was a tree, she'd climb it,

or if there was a gate to jump over,
it was the same.

I think she was quite happy.

She wanted that level of,
you know...

Amusement with the kids.
She was not happy to be at home.

She couldn't wait to get out.
She was quite a wild child.

We knew the whole family.

We knew the mum cos she was only
just a few doors down from us.

I would say she was
in the same street, definitely.

Probably five, six, seven doors
down the road from us.

And... regularly,
there would be a tap on the door.

It would be her.
"Can you come out and play?"

It would be quite Sunday mornings
or all sorts of times.

She seemed to be out from...
basically until it got dark.

So she was always out,
seemed to be out.

Stephen was playing with Carol
on the morning she went missing...

and is believed to be
the last person

to see the six-year-old
before she was abducted.

I really feel that...

I was very much at risk
at that moment.

He may have taken us both,
and we could both have been dead,

you just don't know.

I was certainly the one nearest
the door when it was opened,

and if I'd got in, he might
have just drove off with me.

As a 6-year-old,
there's nothing you can do about it.

You'd have no chance, literally.

So I was lucky,
and she was unlucky, but...

that's all you can say, really.
You just don't know.

Tell me what you remember
of that particular morning.

The main memory is I remember
the car door being opened,

and there was a white bag of sweets
on the chair, on the car seat.

I can remember that.

Tell me about the car.

It was dark in colour, leather seat,

the door was open, and...
there was a white bag.

I'm fairly sure he offered me
the sweets first, and I...

-He offered you sweets?
-Yes.

-There's a male in the car?
-Yeah, definitely.

On his own. There was no-one else.

Whether we'd ever seen him before,
I have no memory of it.

Did the male person speak?

He did but I've got no memory of it.

-You don't recall what was said?
-No, no.

I've got no memory
of his accent or...

-Don't know his accent?
-No.

Anything strange?

I would've remembered.
It would've stood out a bit more.

What happened after you'd been
invited to have the sweets?

Yeah, I would've stepped away.

I wouldn't have got in the car
unless I'd known the person.

-What did Carol do?
-I...

I only assume she got in,
but I've not really

-got a memory of that.
-Right, OK.

I think he realised
that the information he had

was absolutely crucial.

And it put him in a huge position.

A very, very difficult position.

And he was trying to remember
for when he was six years of age,

and knowing full well that he was
the last person to see Carol alive,

except for the murderer.

Stephen, I certainly appreciate
what you're doing.

We're going back 60 years.
I'm conscious of that as well.

-Very difficult for you to remember.
-Yeah.

After taking a statement,

it's the crunch moment
of their visit.

Can the witness identify
the man he saw in the car?

Strict procedures must be followed

for the outcome
to be used as evidence

so Gerry and James leave the room
and hand over to Paul Hayes,

a specialist
in identification line-ups.

He's created a virtual
identity parade of nine men,

one of them being
their prime suspect, Ronald Murray,

and the others being pictures
of innocent men,

unconnected with the case,

who the police
refer to as "distractors".

My name is Paul Hayes.

We're at the home address of
the witness in Folkestone, in Kent.

The date is 6th of 11th, 2019,
the time is 11.47.

Are you able to identify
any person on the film?

Number five is probably
the only one that sort of...

came out of the page at me slightly.

In order to confirm
the identification,

is this the person
you were referring to?

Yes.

Stephen, if you could
just sign by here, underneath.

How did it go?

OK, unfortunately,
he's picked out a distractor.

-So it was a negative viewing.
-Right.

That's a shame.

It is disappointing
because had he picked the person out

on the photographs today then
that would have been a huge bonus

and it would've been so significant
given the line-up that it was.

I was, I think...

the word I'd have to use
would be absolutely gutted.

If we'd had a live witness
who could've put

Carol Stephens
getting into Murray's car,

that would've been
the icing on the cake, really.

Now Gerry and the team's last hope
lies with the scientists

who are looking for any trace

of the killer's DNA
on Carol's clothes.

The ability to recover suspects' DNA
from the tiniest of stains

is already delivering results
in their review of over 300

unsolved sex attacks,
codenamed Operation Dudley.

As they begin work on a new case
in the suburbs of Cardiff,

they're hoping for further success,

this time on a vicious rape
from 1980.

I remember it like it's yesterday.

I remember every detail.

I was scared to go out,
well, for the first five years,

scared to go out at night.

She got off the bus on Newport Road.

She'd been visiting family
outside of the Cardiff area.

Detectives Jenna Hargraves
and Patrick Catto are retracing

the steps of the victim
in this 40-year-old crime.

Until you've been at that location,

you can't really have that
true understanding

of what that area looked like.

And it's changed massively
since the offence happened,

but the routes and everything
are the same.

So it's just to have
that clear image

and that understanding
of what the victim is telling you.

She's walked along here,
Partridge Road,

where she's actually come
face-to-face with the suspect.

He's offered to help her
carry her belongings,

she's got a box
and she's walking her dog.

She declines, says, "No, I'm fine,"
continues to walk down this lane.

But as she turns around,
she sees the suspect.

She's turned,
she's looked at him and thought,

"Right, well, he was walking

in the other direction,
and now he's behind me."

So she panics and continues to walk.

As she's walking, she can hear him
picking up his pace.

So she starts to run.

She's got a pair of high heels on.

She's carrying a box,
she's got her dog, she's panicking.

And the next minute, she just
feels a push from behind her,

and next thing is she goes
sliding onto the floor, basically.

She's felt the suspect
then turn her over,

where she's lying on her back,
and he basically straddles her,

which is when he then...
he rapes her.

She said that she's been
lying there absolutely petrified.

It was around the time
that the Yorkshire Ripper was...

Was still outstanding.

And she said
that she lay there thinking,

"Oh, my gosh, is he gonna kill me?"

Well, after it happened, I was just
a nervous wreck, you know.

And I did drink too much.
That's what it led to.

It was... Yeah, it was just...

to try and forget, you know?

Once you get into that...

get, like, you know, into...
start doing stuff like that,

you can't stop.

I did go a bit off the rails.

I know it's a long time ago.

At the time, it's a lot worse.

You know, you hurt more and...
But you get...

Over the years,
it fades a little bit.

It's still in your head, but...

you learn to live with it.

I've sat in front of this lady

and she has described
a horrific attack

that happened to her
and the impact it's had on her life.

So I want to be able
to do the best job

to be able to have
the best outcome for her

and to have some sort
of closure for her, really.

The cold case detectives
are determined

to get the victim
the justice she deserves,

and it all hinges on the fact

that key items of evidence from 1980
have been preserved.

Forensic scientist Amy Lewis

will now examine
the 40-year-old samples

for the tiniest traces
of the attacker's DNA.

Unfortunately, we don't have
any original clothing.

However, we do have
the fibre tapings from the skirt.

So, this is similar to, like,
a lint roller, if you like.

So, it's Sellotape
that was dabbed over the surface

to remove the fibres on the surface.

So we're looking at those today
for semen and DNA.

You can't see the semen staining,
so I use wet and dry swabs

to remove as much material
as possible,

and then those swabs, then,
are sent to a forensic provider

to see if there is
any semen present.

The stakes are high.

The process will destroy
the fragile taping,

the only exhibit that could contain
the attacker's semen.

Amy has just one chance to capture
the DNA evidence she needs.

I feel a lot of pressure
with cold cases.

I have a lot of passion for
cold cases because I feel like...

These victims have lived with this
regardless of what the offence is,

and they deserve justice.

Back with the murder investigation,
cold case detective Gerry Blake

is haunted by the fact
that the killer of his school friend

Carol Ann Stephens
is still unidentified

after more than 60 years.

This is Gladstone School,

which is only a stone's throw
from where Carol was living

and where I was living
in Tewkesbury Street.

All the children from the area
all used to come to this school.

Gerry knows the team's new testing
using cutting-edge forensic science

might be his last chance
to see the killer identified.

In the days following
the finding of her body

and the days
leading up to her funeral,

we, as children,
were requested by the staff

if we could all bring in
two of the old pennies,

which was a contribution
to the floral tributes

for Carol's funeral.

And then, on the day of her funeral,

all the children from the school,
together with the staff and parents,

would all stand outside
the front of the school,

as they watched the funeral cortege
come up from Malefant Street

and then, of course,
into Cathays Cemetery,

where Carol's body was laid to rest.

With a child murderer still at large
more than 60 years later,

the question of who killed
Carol Ann Stephens

has always played on the minds
of those living in the Cathays area.

There was always the fear
that he would come back.

He could still be alive.

That's the worry.
He could still be alive, and...

Did he do it again?

And what drove him to do it?
I mean, was it the first?

Was there... Were there others?
Wouldn't know.

Gill Ward was 13 years old in 1959

and is still looking
for answers and justice

for her friend and neighbour.

It would be good if they could put
an end to it and could finally...

find out who actually did it.

It'll put a lot of minds at rest,
I think.

We want to find out who's done this.
We've... I've got children.

And it is upsetting,

but 33 years in the police force,
you...

No, you don't get used to it, but...

You just want to find
the person that's done it.

We still have many of the exhibits

left from the murder
of Carol Stephens,

which, as we speak, are with
the Forensic Science Service.

We can only hope,
with the advances in technology

and in the science itself,
that we may get a breakthrough.

I feel that would be our only
opportunity to detect this case.

So, really and truly,
everything is with the scientists.

But it's been such a long,
long time,

the provenance of the exhibits
has to be... maintained.

We can only live in hope.

And it would be so wonderful

to get a result
for this particular case.

With cutting-edge DNA technology
now on their side,

the cold case team
have been testing Carol's clothes

for any trace of her killer.

But the senior team have
some agonising decisions to make

now that the forensic tests
have been completed.

With regards to leads, we're not
getting anything that's jumping out.

It is a slow process, and sometimes
we just need to know when to stop.

In several years' time,

will there be something better
we can do with this sample?

Is it worth me
using this sample up now

to try and get something,
or hanging onto it for a few years

where I might be more certain
of getting a result from it.

Unfortunately, there's no
ground-breaking evidence right now

to say who's a potential offender
of what happened to Carol.

It's very disappointing. We've put
a lot of work and a lot of effort

to try and identify
who may have been responsible,

but unfortunately, we haven't
obtained that information.

It's frustrating
that you try your hardest,

but the results just aren't there.

OK, so, really, then,

in terms of this guy
that we've discussed,

you know, this Ronald Murray,
who's been a sort of thread

throughout this inquiry
from the early days,

you know, really,
I think it's a fair assessment

to call him, you know,

a person of interest only.

Certainly, he's someone
we're trying to rule out.

But currently, as we all know,

we've been unable to do it.

We haven't been able
to rule him out, but likewise,

we haven't been able to firmly
link him evidentially either.

No, we've got circumstantial
evidence of movements,

but with today's sort of standards
of charging, you know,

I think it's a fair
sort of punt that,

you know, we need more, really.

Yeah.

It's clearly disappointing that
all of the efforts we've gone

to find out who the killer is,

to try and prove or disprove
if it was Ronald Murray,

cos he was a suspect at the time...

We've been unable to provide those
definitive answers to the family

and to those communities in Cardiff,
and down in Horeb.

So that is disappointing.

But... I think we can be satisfied

that we've demonstrated
we've done all we can do.

The cold case detectives
make the difficult decision

to call it a day...

for now.

There are those cases
that kind of, like... I don't know.

They're imprinted on your mind
and you never forget about them.

Going forward, all we can do,

if we can't further this
to completion,

is take care of the documents,
take care of the exhibits,

you know,
hope that in years to come,

there's a DNA 25 or DNA 27
which is even more sensitive,

to hopefully
pave the way for people

who will take our seats
in years to come,

who can wrap this up
once and for all, really.

For Gerry,
it's a bitter pill to swallow,

and he knows his childhood community
will also be disappointed.

Maybe as a child,
you don't realise the full

significance and things.

But as an adult and as a parent,
it's your worst nightmare

and something
you never really get over.

You'd expect, in this day and age,

with science and the way
it's come on in all these years,

that they could have perhaps linked

something with what they found
at the scene.

I know it's a long time ago,

but you would hope that with the new
DNA bases and whatever...

you'd think that they could.

But of course,
if the evidence isn't there...

It's a shame, a great shame.

This is so sad

and such a tragic end
to a lovely little girl.

A little girl who's life
was taken far too young.

All Carol did was go out playing
with friends and never came home.

There's still people,
former friends of Carol's

and neighbours who remember her
and who've come forward

because they still want
to find justice for Carol.

We know that we're not far off
from getting a result.

Unfortunately, we haven't got it,

but I know it wasn't
for the want of trying.

We will still continue
to try and get justice for Carol.

And I just hope that we can do it
in my lifetime.

God bless you, Carol.

You were so young...

and you deserved so much better.

God bless.

Each day brings a new dawn for us.

Just because we haven't got
a result on this particular case,

we look at the next case.

What we have is that
we have highs and lows,

and we'll always be determined

to try and get justice
for all the victims of crime.

That is the purpose and reason
why we're police officers.

And that commitment to get justice,

whatever the passage of time,
pays off...

with a breakthrough
on the rape case from 1980.

Forensic scientist Amy Lewis

tested a taping
thought to contain a semen stain

that was recovered
from the skirt of the victim.

I've had some really good news.

I found out today that

we have a profile
from the tapings that I took.

It's a male profile,

which, more than likely,
is gonna be the offender.

This DNA profile
has now been searched

against the national database
of over six million names.

We have received a match
from somebody

who has been in custody previously
and provided their DNA.

The suspect is around the age
of about 66, 67, according to this.

I think it's fantastic,
sending out a message to people

that it doesn't matter
when this crime was committed.

Don't think you've got away with it.

Science and technology changes,
the way we investigate a crime,

it's changing all the time,
and to be able to...

get a suspect out of that now
I think is phenomenal.

It's unbelievable.

I never would have thought,
not in a million years, you know.

I mean, forty years, my God.

I would think, "Oh, it would be
a miracle if they caught him,

cos they've forgotten
about it now."

But I didn't.

I just want him to suffer
after what he put me through.

I just hope he does get punished.

OK, morning. It's six o'clock.
Thank you for coming in so promptly.

OK, the purpose of today
is to effect the arrest

following a cold case review
by the major crime review team.

He's to be arrested
on suspicion of rape.

He's likely to be
an engaging character,

he's been arrested previously
for indecent images.

From speaking to Avon and Somerset
officers, it's quite a small flat.

It's not a large area to search.

We can access the building
from the rear.

It's absolutely incredible.

This happened
before I was even born.

-Hi there. Roland Long?
-Police, it is.

-Just woke up, have you?
-Yeah.

Do you want
to take a seat there for me?

Mr Long, you're under arrest
on suspicion of rape

that occurred on the 17th August,
1980 in Cardiff.

OK? You do not have to say anything,
but it may harm your defence

if you do not mention something
which you later rely on in court.

Anything you do say
may be given in evidence.

Their suspect
is 66-year-old Roland Long,

who has previous convictions
for a string of sexual assaults.

We'll do a search of your address.
You got a laptop? Other devices?

-Have you got a phone?
-I think he was incredibly shocked.

40 years. I don't think he believed
that we were gonna come knocking

and arrest him for an offence
that happened back then.

Right, go on, then.

Roland Long will now be taken
to Cardiff Bay police station

where he will be questioned.

This is his opportunity
to tell us what happened

on that date of the offence

and to give us that insight of...
Was he in Cardiff on that date?

Where was he living?
Did he have a family?

Where was he working?

Did he have any
connections to the victim?

Does he know her?

So this is his opportunity
to tell us his side of the story.

OK, we'll go to Cardiff Bay now,
Roland, OK?

OK, come on, then, Roland.
We'll book you in, OK?

He put his sunglasses on
while he was in custody,

and he seemed like he was trying
to hide himself,

shuffling along like this
quiet older man, I suppose.

Can you take
your sunglasses off, please?

Whether he was trying to come across
as this innocent individual

that wouldn't have
committed a crime like this.

-How long will I be here?
-I don't know.

I don't know how long.
That's one thing we don't know.

You've been arrested
for a recordable offence.

That gives the police powers
to take fingerprints, DNA,

a footwear impression
and a photograph.

We're just in here, OK?

Right foot on the yellow pad.

And then that same right foot
onto the middle of the white.

That's perfect.

We've got that DNA evidence,
and we want to know

how have we located his semen
on that victim's skirt?

We want to find out
did he commit the offence.

If you can sit back for me

and face the top circle there
for the camera. OK?

A bright light's gonna
come on now, OK?

One last thing to do, then,
I need to take a swab of your DNA.

Open your mouth slightly.

It'll be from the inside
of your cheeks.

Thank you.

-And on the other side, OK?
-Sure.

At this point,
he could turn round and say

that he met the victim
and it was all consensual,

but this is his opportunity
to tell us that.

The... He's in...

Bloomin' hell, what a day.

With Long in custody,

as the detectives
gear up to question him,

the rest of the cold case team get
started on their next investigation.

This time,
a 40-year-old unsolved murder

of a taxi driver from Cardiff.

Morning, everyone.
Thanks for coming today.

Just gonna give you
a quick ten-minute presentation

on the review that we're starting

on John Joseph Armstrong,
affectionately known as Jack.

The victim,
born the 7th September, 1921

in Penrith in Cumbria,
and moved to Cardiff in 1951.

Detective Chief Inspector
Patrick Catto

now believes recent
scientific developments

mean there's a very real chance
of identifying his killer.

We're looking at a forensic review
to revisit all the exhibits.

The investigation at the time
was a thorough investigation.

There are over 300 exhibits
from the scene.

It has so much potential to find out
who is responsible for this.

He was always quiet, dad.

Kept himself to himself, like.
He had a couple of best friends.

Never knew him to go out drinking.

Never knew him
to go to the pictures ever, no.

He just was a family man.

He just used to go out,
earn his money, and come home.

Sit on the chair.

Say he was awake, but he was asleep.
"I'm just resting my eyes."

He had quirky little ways,
If he was driving,

he never had his shirt sleeves down,
always had his sleeves rolled up.

And he always put his right arm
out of the window,

and his one arm was always brown
and the other wasn't. Yeah.

We owe this to the victims
of these horrific crimes.

If we find that person who is
responsible, that would be huge.

That would really put some closure
and help the family move on.

The murder weapon
has never been found.

I know there
was extensive searches...

with metal detectors

up and around the area,
but it had never been found.

But it looks as if
a plumber's hammer has been used,

or some sort of hammer,
to the side of his head,

and, ultimately, killed him.

There's gonna be
a few photographs here now

which are quite disturbing.

That's the blood.

The heavy blood staining
in the passenger seat of...

Jack's car.

So there's an indication
something has taken place there.

The person responsible has caused
some horrific injuries to Jack,

and are obviously
a dangerous individual

and a danger to the public.

And there is a possibility this
person responsible is still alive.

On Friday, 5th October, 1979,
at one o'clock in the afternoon,

Jack Armstrong was called
to pick up a fare

going by the name of Mr Williams.

The customer had booked a taxi
to take him from a pub in Cardiff

to Cowbridge,
a short distance from the city.

At half past one, Jack radioed in
with his call sign, "Castle 10",

to say he'd picked up his fare.

This was the last time
anyone heard from Jack.

Later that evening
the police were called

after Jack's taxi
was found abandoned

near the village of Treoes,
twenty miles from Cardiff.

This is the lane, Pat,
that, in 1979, looked like this.

Forty years worth of nature
reclaiming the ground.

Now it's a path rather than a road.

Jack's car was found down in Treoes,

and there was nobody in the vehicle.

Jack was nowhere to be seen.

And there was extensive blood
inside the vehicle,

and in particular
in the passenger side.

Following the discovery of the car,

two witnesses came forward
with vital information.

They saw a suspicious man
cleaning inside the taxi,

but he did not match
Jack's description.

Whoever's done it,
hasn't just dumped it and run.

They've taken the time
to wipe the steering wheel and...

Yeah, which,
as the witness has said,

that somebody's leaning
inside the taxi,

they more or less
try and shield themselves

and are wiping something down,
maybe even the steering wheel.

That would indicate that the person

who was wiping that
would be wiping off evidence

relating to themselves,
probably fingerprints.

The man seen by the witness
quickly became the prime suspect.

We've been able to position
where Jack's taxi was

and where it was dumped here.

Parked facing the dual carriageway,
abandoned on the left-hand side.

The road, effectively,
was a dead end.

For somebody to come up this lane...

-Yeah.
-It's, you know...

They... To me, it would appear
that they know where this lane is.

Back in 1979,

detectives were fearing the worst
as they searched for Jack,

and had to break the news
to his family.

I was living with my dad
at the time.

I cut his hair for him cos I always
used to cut his hair for him.

And he went about his business
as usual.

Had his cuppa and his ciggie,
that was his breakfast, always.

A cup of tea
and a cigarette and a cough,

and that was his breakfast,
always, for years.

He went to work, as far as I know,
everything was fine,

and never heard no more.

In the evening, I went up to the pub
cos I used to play darts up there.

And Robert, my step-brother,

came up the pub and said,
"Your father's missing."

DNA technology, science,
has advanced significantly.

Now, even the slightest touch
is enough to yield DNA,

even going back all this time.

So there is a real possibility
of getting DNA

and find out
who's responsible for this.

Next time, the cold case detectives
sift through 40-year-old exhibits

which could hold the key
to finding Jack's killer.

We'd eliminate Jack,

and whatever's left in that profile
could be the killer.

And the prime suspect
in a 40-year-old rape case

faces tough questions.

"He has held her to that floor
where he's raped her."

Was that you?

Subtitles: Krzysiek Igielski
plint.com