Still Missing UK - Bernadette Walker, 17, left parent's car, Peterborough, 21 July 2020 *Arrests* #4

[Sooty]

If it was simply a story, a plan, to get him removed from the house - wouldn’t BW have gone nuclear - straight to authorities. She wouldn’t have been building up, asking for support from friends about how to talk to her mum about it. MOO

 

[Becky53]

Didn’t see SaW as she wasn’t giving evidence and was screened off from the public gallery.

Edited for focus.

Was she just screened off from gallery or from ScW too?

I’m now wondering if she’s requested special measures to portray herself as “a victim”. It would fit with her allegations of domestic abuse etc etc...

 

[Rosegold68]

Yes I don't understand the great fear of social services being involved. Seems a very extreme reason to murder someone! I hope this question is asked of them both. Also why would the kids get taken away if SaW had done nothing wrong?

one reason would be money.....no children means they would not get the benefits. which i know would be a lot of money due to family size and disability benefits. i hope i'm wrong but that stands out to me immediately

 

[Sooty]

one reason would be money.....no children means they would not get the benefits. which i know would be a lot of money due to family size and disability benefits. i hope i'm wrong but that stands out to me immediately

but why would *she* have the children taken from her?

 

[MrsBrooks]

The daily mail and sky news have also put out news reports today! They don’t say anything different from the other paper , however, it may mean more reporters will now be covering the case !

 

[HongKongPhooey]

Well done @MIdge28 !

 

[MIdge28]

Edited for focus.

Was she just screened off from gallery or from ScW too?

I’m now wondering if she’s requested special measures to portray herself as “a victim”. It would fit with her allegations of domestic abuse etc etc...

The dock is screened off from the public gallery so when Scott was in there during the break I couldn’t see him either. I think the jury can see them as there is glass down that side. They both have prison wardens with them all the time.

 

[SuperStarSleuth]

Good job... really hope the outcome is one we all want and that she is found xx

 

[Ayashley]

Bernadette Walker murder trial: Tearful accused dad suggests abuse allegations made to get him ‘out of house’

Ms Wilding also went on to read WhatsApp messages sent to Sarah Walker, in which Scott Walker said: “I’m just feeling a bit out of this and that I’m not missing her either”.



...Wellll alrighty then

 

[Sooty]

Quoted from the news report : ….He was also asked why the police were not contacted before this point, to which he said: "It was a case of, 'give it a couple of days and she'll turn up and the police won't have to be involved, therefore there are no social services involved'."

he seems convinced and so matter-of-fact that there would be no police and no SS involvement- why would he be so sure BW would just give up on her accusations? She had assured her grandparents that she wasn’t lying. She had written in her notebook that she wasn’t lying.

 

[Ayashley]

I was there at court this afternoon. It was ScW being questioned by his defence and it took all day to go through all of his phone calls, text messages, WhatsApp messages and Fb posts/ messages even to the point of identifying each person in every photo posted! They read out all the phone numbers and a reference code for each - honestly it took forever. ScW was very humble, very polite, very co-operative. He smiled when he mentioned any of the children and only got stressy once when he was asked if he had sexually abused Bernadette. The jury and barristers all have files full of maps, photos and transcripts of texts / messages. Didn’t see SaW as she wasn’t giving evidence and was screened off from the public gallery.

Thank you for going! Are you able to be there everyday? All of us here at WS appreciate you taking time to go. It's incredibly reassuring to know they are being thorough with everything. I feel I learned more from your little bit of info than I did any of the articles lol.

 

[MIdge28]

Thank you for going! Are you able to be there everyday? All of us here at WS appreciate you taking time to go. It's incredibly reassuring to know they are being thorough with everything. I feel I learned more from your little bit of info than I did any of the articles lol.

That’s very kind of you Ayashley - I tried to find out the answers to things members had been wondering about. I’m hoping to go again Friday.

 

[jackal67]

but why would *she* have the children taken from her?

Yes that's what l have said too. She wasn't accused ?

 

[jackal67]

If it was simply a story, a plan, to get him removed from the house - wouldn’t BW have gone nuclear - straight to authorities. She wouldn’t have been building up, asking for support from friends about how to talk to her mum about it. MOO

I don't think she would have been confident enough to go to police on her own . Truth or story she needed her mum to believe her and take charge.

 

[Crazysaz]

Hi all first post! Social services are awful. They do not do what they are supposed to do. Underfunded and understaffed. Young social workers straight out of uni with no understanding of the real world. So I can understand why Sarah Walker would be reluctant to have their involvement. I contacted them about my teen being out of control for support and advice and the crap I had was disgusting. I could write a book! My opinion on this case is Sarah seems a strange one. Attention seeking. Her tik tok … how she even had the time with ten kids! Poor Bernadette. Hate that there’s no media coverage. She deserved so much more. Glad we have a ws in court.

 

[jackal67]

The dock is screened off from the public gallery so when Scott was in there during the break I couldn’t see him either. I think the jury can see them as there is glass down that side. They both have prison wardens with them all the time.

I really thought that they would not be in court together when one was giving evidence! SaW gets to hear his version first. Surely that helps her knowing what he has said?

 

[jackal67]

Hi all first post! Social services are awful. They do not do what they are supposed to do. Underfunded and understaffed. Young social workers straight out of uni with no understanding of the real world. So I can understand why Sarah Walker would be reluctant to have their involvement. I contacted them about my teen being out of control for support and advice and the crap I had was disgusting. I could write a book! My opinion on this case is Sarah seems a strange one. Attention seeking. Her tik tok … how she even had the time with ten kids! Poor Bernadette. Hate that there’s no media coverage. She deserved so much more. Glad we have a ws in court.

I am sure no one wants social services involved with their family but murder to avoid it?? I would have thought they would have social services input due to the kids with disabilities? Is it possible that they were already on their radar and couldn't risk any further problems being known?

 

[Benlupin]

My first post. Great website and posts. I have been following this case of Bernadette Matthews on Websleuths since the poor girl went ‘missing’.

I felt the need to comment, as yesterday I finished reading the book ‘Something in The Water’ by Catherine Steadman. I thought by some bizarre twist I was suddenly reading about BM case. Briefly, in trying to hide a secret, the wife plotted against her husband. The storyline spoke of forgetting a backpack, sending mobile phone messages to ‘missing husband’ that she knew was already dead, how deep to dig a grave in the woods in Norfolk, wondering when to report a missing person when you know they are dead, ( someone tells her, you don’t), hiding the body in an old fridge until she had the chance to bury the body. Weird.

To reiterate others comments, Peterborough is a small town, surrounded by countryside with dykes, ditches and many untouched hedgerows. I believe many local people are concerned and do care. The local newspaper comes out once a week and has poor readership. It is possible to read daily online, but many people are not aware of this and so the story is no longer out there for many.


I guess the lack of information coming out of court is due to protecting the other children. Frustrating though. Would court be given comments about family life made by the other children through police, social workers or schools?

 

[Mercsw]

Looking at the court summary, is Scott Walker witness 14? Sorry not sure if I misunderstood the order of play so to speak

 

[CSIAngus]

I still struggle to see the motive for SaW being involved in the killing of her own daughter and I find her part in the cover up activities quite baffling. I would have thought she would have turned on him as soon as she admitted the two charges.

Leaving her to one side, I can clearly see the motive of ScW not wanting to be unmasked as a paedophile child rapist, going to prison for a long time, segregated as a Rule 45 prisoner and life on the sex offender's register. Add what BW had alleged about ScW secretly filming her undressing (the voyeurism), and what SaW had said about ScW making threats to kill the boyfriend, trying to get him sacked for his relationship with SaW, stalking them, simulating killing the new baby twice and the dog. If he went down, he'd lose everything including SaW. Having said that, I can quite easily see how he might have gone on to kill the boyfriend or SaW or both.