Man, 89, guilty of murder after wife's body found in septic tank years after disappearance

15 July 2022, 16:07 | Updated: 15 July 2022, 16:40

Retired pig farmer David Venables, 89, has been found guilty at Worcester Crown Court of the 1982 murder of his wife Brenda, whose body was found hidden in a septic tank 37 years after she disappeared.

David Venables, 89, tried to blame serial killer Fred West for Brenda Venables's murder, but was convicted by a 10-2 majority verdict on Friday.

The pensioner, who was given headphones to aid his hearing, blinked several times when the verdict was returned and then stared back towards the jury bench.

The jury members, who had deliberated for 16 hours and 43 minutes over four days, were thanked for their dedication by the trial judge.

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David Venables, 89, killed his wife Brenda Venables and dumped her body in a septic tank in the grounds of "remote" Quaking House Farm in Worcestershire in May 1982.

He reported his wife, who was 48 at the time, missing and no trace of her was found until nearly 2019 when police discovered human remains, including a skull, in a cesspit at a property where the couple used to live.

The remains were discovered in the underground chamber, in what was once a "rough", overgrown and "secluded " spot, 37 years after she vanished, by contractors, clearing out the tank at the house which had since been sold to Venables' nephew.

Michael Burrows QC, told the court that Venables had been in an on-off relationship with his mother's former carer Lorraine Styles in the run-up to his wife's disappearance.

Mr Burrows said: "The truth, say the prosecution, is that it was David Venables who killed her.

"He wanted her out of the way: he wanted to resume his long-standing affair with another woman.

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"He knew about the septic tank in its secluded location.

"It was for him almost the perfect hiding place.

"It meant he didn't have to travel and risk being seen making a suspicious journey around the time of her disappearance or risk being seen disposing of her body somewhere else.

"And, of course, even if someone did think to look inside the tank, her body would be hidden from view.

"And for nearly 40 years, it was the perfect place and he got away with murder."

The jury heard Venables' affair with Ms Styles started "around 1967", and continued on and off.

Mr Burrows said that by 1981, Ms Styles had "doubts again about David Venables' feelings for her", but that the farm owner rekindled the extramarital affair over that Christmas and New Year, just months before his wife vanished.

Venables, described by one witness at the trial as a smartly-dressed "typical gentleman farmer", told the jury he woke up on the morning of May 4 1982 to find his wife, then aged 48, had disappeared.

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He said he then searched surrounding lanes and a stretch of the nearby River Severn.

Following the murder, the court heard, Venables appeared calm to those who knew him.

He later sought an annulment of his marriage to Mrs Venables, who was described by relatives and friends in court as a kind, hospitable and friendly woman.

Speaking on behalf of West Mercia Police, Detective Sergeant James Beard said: "We very much welcome the verdict and that justice has now been done.

"The terrible truth is that Brenda was killed by the person who was meant to care for her most. He then let her family and friends go for so long not knowing what happened to her.

"They were robbed of a sister and auntie and left without closure for 40 years.

"We cannot begin to imagine the pain that must have caused them and I'd like to commend them for the courage and dignity they have shown throughout the investigation and the court proceedings."

Venables is expected to be sentenced next week.