Deceased/Not Found UK - April Jones, 5, Machynlleth, Wales, 1 Oct 2012 #7 *M. Bridger guilty*

[Alyce]

I understand and agree it's not a very sensible question. I was just pointing out that it wouldn't necessarily have been discussed. The individual who asked it would not necessarily have mentioned it to the other jurors therefore it is probably a reflection on the individual rather than the jury as a whole.

Thanks Clio.... my only hope - if it is one juror's question, as seems likely from what you have advised - is that the rest of them can see things a bit clearer ( am trying to be polite with my wording here )

I am mindful of a recent UK trial where the judge dismissed the jury in the end , due to basic lack of sense, and there had to be a retrial

 

[Perodicticus potto]

So how on earth do they think there would be time for a body to decompose and begin to emit a smell to surrounding houses ?

It actually doesn't take as long for a body to start to smell as people think. I work in a vet's surgery where, sadly, we sometimes have to put animals down. There is a noticeable "off" smell within minutes of death, although at that point it's only detectable in the same room. I don't know how long it would take to spread to other buildings.

 

[agme28]

Why did it take the police so long to visit Bridger's house? Did they simply not have him in mind as a suspect until the next day? I would have thought the detail about the left hand drive would have put him in the spotlight straight away, and if his ex had only split up with him that day, she would have known his address. Is anyone else a bit confused by this? I wonder when his name first got mentioned as a possible suspect.

 

[ann-other]

To me there still seems to be quite a few anomalies and I feel there is more to come. Hopefully, when we hear the child witness evidence via link on Tuesday, things may become clearer.

 

[italianWSfan]

http://news.sky.com/story/1086492/april-jones-frantic-mum-searched-in-bins

In the video of this link, you can see some of the CCTV video evidence, such as MB walking his dog the day after the abduction...

 

[veggiefan]

Why did it take the police so long to visit Bridger's house? Did they simply not have him in mind as a suspect until the next day?

I think that was what they confirmed in court, when they said that he was not a suspect at 10.42 the next day, when he was filmed walking his dog by the police helicopter.

I would have thought the detail about the left hand drive would have put him in the spotlight straight away, and if his ex had only split up with him that day, she would have known his address. Is anyone else a bit confused by this? I wonder when his name first got mentioned as a possible suspect.

The only suggestion that the car was LHD was deduction from the evidence of a very young child - with hindsight it seems obvious, but I doubt the police were in a position to limit their enquiries at that early stage, especially given the limited resources available that evening.

Also, as speculated here at the time, because MB had only recently moved to Ceinws, it was quite possible that any change of address for the owner of the vehicle (if made) had not yet been processed and was therefore not on the database accessible to the police. Who knows if his ex knew his new address?

 

[agme28]

It's such a shame that she was so close by and that they were unable to get to her in time. Poor little mite.

 

[graceholl]

Yes.... I'm a bit concerned if they weren't able to come up with and talk through the points you mentioned.

Agree. Let's hope we don't have a repeat of the Vicky Pryce trial jury wise! (Obviously not making any other connections between the two trials haha - was just horrified they had to retrial because of what sounded like an ignorant jury)...

 

[graceholl]

Thanks Clio.... my only hope - if it is one juror's question, as seems likely from what you have advised - is that the rest of them can see things a bit clearer ( am trying to be polite with my wording here )

I am mindful of a recent UK trial where the judge dismissed the jury in the end , due to basic lack of sense, and there had to be a retrial

Sorry Alyce, I quoted and posted my own version of this post before reading this! My thoughts exactly!

 

[Clutchbag]

Ii have been reading up on Bridgers barrister, seems quite a formidable person with attention to detail and has had achieved many acquitals


i dont see how Aprils blood in his flat can be explained away if he said she did not bleed when injured

 

[gia2]

Is that not a rather worrying question asked by the Jury

Did the neighbours detect smell of dead body ?

Given that
1. MBs cottage seems to be slightly apart from other houses

2. The cottage has thick walls

3. And ..... most importantly

AJ disappeared Monday evening
MBs cottage was visited and searched Tuesday afternoon
AJ was not found in the cottage on the Tuesday

So how on earth do they think there would be time for a body to decompose and begin to emit a smell to surrounding houses ?

I don't think they mean the smell of decomposition. If possible human bone fragments were found in his fireplace I would think they were refering to any posible unusual smoke smell detected (rather than coal/wood). JMO

 

[Alyce]

Why did it take the police so long to visit Bridger's house? Did they simply not have him in mind as a suspect until the next day? I would have thought the detail about the left hand drive would have put him in the spotlight straight away, and if his ex had only split up with him that day, she would have known his address. Is anyone else a bit confused by this? I wonder when his name first got mentioned as a possible suspect.

That has puzzled me as well. In the earlier reporting last year, I think it was said that he had split with his ex a few weeks before October 1 and the comment was made back then that perhaps his ex didnt know his new address - hence the reason for the delay in the police visit.

However, now that we are hearing the split was on the same day then I really dont understand why he was not visited straight away.
From what we were told, he was immediately named by various people on that first evening, because of the detail about the car, so why no police visit until the following afternoon ?

 

[veggiefan]

From what we were told, he was immediately named by various people on that first evening, because of the detail about the car, so why no police visit until the following afternoon ?

The "detail" supplied by the child that evening, confirmed in a police statement at 10.30pm, was that "April was seen getting into a light-coloured van that drove off".

I'm not sure how this would be linked to MB, since he has a dark blue 4x4.

At 9am the next morning, the police had refined the description to "a grey or light-coloured van, or van-sized vehicle" - so I don't think it still had been linked to MB at that stage.

 

[agme28]

From what I've read on another forum, the police knew who they were looking for quite early on and he may have been known to them prior to this. They must have ruled out the white van and ruled in the left hand drive element very quickly to be searching for him by the next day. I feel he must have been known to them, that appears to be the feeling on the other forum at the time. One poster imparticular was a local providing quite detailed information on the local impression of Bridger.

 

[sleuther317]

I can't wrap my head around the fact that they arrested him the next day or so and made the comment that there was no indication of blood in his house at first sight and that it took special procedures to find blood residue which led them to a blood stain on the underside of the carpet. Yesterday, my daughter spilled nail polish on the carpet, completely different I know but, I tried everything and tried for hours to get it up and it is still there. How could he get a puddle of blood up so fast and completely get rid of "surface" evidence if there was so much blood there? Had he done this before? It makes me wonder.

 

[ScotsPaddy]

Can someone else have a wee nosey at this video please,between 16-18 seconds and tell me if you see anything.
http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/april-jones-murder-trial-video-3407469

Also having found the cottage in Ceinws on google maps that he stayed in, his comment that he had looked everywhere for April apart from down from his house is really bugging me.
The direction he is walking with his dog is 'down from his house' and looking on maps its all downhill from the cottage, zooming out a bit on maps and i can see areas where he could easily dump the remains, or bits of the remains. Also not far for him to 'visit' the spot also.
Apologies if this makes no sense but im struggling to type what im thinking, i am thinking Aprils just down the road from the cottage. Also walking the dog gives him the opportunity for him to see if anything is visible.

Id also like to know where he was spotted with the black bin bag?.

 

[Sarah]

Can someone else have a wee nosey at this video please,between 16-18 seconds and tell me if you see anything.
http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/april-jones-murder-trial-video-3407469

Yes I see it and I think I know what you're thinking.
I just can't be completely sure what it actually is.

He uses his right hand to lean across and take a small white object from his left sleeve / out of his left hand and tosses it onto the grass verge.
On the first watching I thought he was tossing a small bone or scrap of something to the dog, but seeing it again it definitely seems to be thrown into the grass.

As I said, I really can't make out exactly what it is and don't want to read something into it that isn't there.
Given what we know though, the potential implications are sickening.

 

[ScotsPaddy]

Thanks Sarah, yes that's what i see too, although pausing it it looked like something long and thin with something on the end of it, like a necklace but im really unsure what it could be but he definitely reaches over with his right hand and takes something from his left sleeve/hand and throws it, definitely.
Also, if you concentrate on his left hand, where hes holding the stick, it looks like he still has something in his hand.

 

[Sarah]

I've just been watching and pausing again, but the monitor I'm using just isn't good enough to pick up any real detail.

Definitely not something given to the dog you can see it land in the grass behind the dog, but that's about all I can tell.
This must have been picked up on when the tapes were being reviewed and they must have searched the grass verge for whatever it was. So far I haven't heard or seen anything about any evidence being retrieved from that area though.

 

[ScotsPaddy]

I agree that it should have been picked up when the footage was reviewed but if it was something of importance or in relation to April then surely it would have been mentioned?, also if it was nothing then why did he throw it away the way he did, im thinking the way a dealer dumps stash,or the way a thief would dump a wallet, he threw it quickly too.

Having looked at the maps, and read some more on his siting with a black bag, im absolutely convinced that black bag was in relation to April and that she is within 2 miles of Ceinws. i actually think somewhere of of the road that's at the front of his cottage heading towards the village south of Ceinws (Plas-Llwyn-Gwen).