GUILTY UK - Kempsey, found in a septic tank, Jul'19, missing in 1982 - Brenda Venables *husband arrested*

[Mind your biscuits]

Oooh! Good spot.

The missing woman was supposedly in bed with her husband that night, and when he woke up she was gone.
Maybe in an era when forensics were not mainstream, he chucked her in the cess pool with her Nightie and jewelry still on.
Iirc she ran a garden center/nursery at that farm. The pig farm was elsewhere. Moo.

 

[ZaZara]

Not sure if this has any relevance, but May 3, 1982 was the May Bank Holiday - so could it have been a long week end off for the farm workers ?

Farm work does not stop at bank holidays nor during other holidays.

 

[Cherwell]

The pig farm was elsewhere. Moo.

Shouldn't that be "Oink"?
<gets coat>

 

[Alyce]

Farm work does not stop at bank holidays nor during other holidays.

Depends on the farm

 

[Cherwell]

The house stands in its own grounds today, not in a farmyard, so there's little reason for farm workers to be there. I don't know if that was the case in the 80s though. There's a building that looks like it might be a barn.

 

[tresir2012]

Some more from the link above. The piggery was "nearby". Mr V sold the farmhouse to a relative. It could well have been fenced off from the farmland at that stage I guess.

"Mrs Venables and husband David, who is now 86 and still lives in the area, ran a nursery on the site, while Mr Venables was said to have a piggery nearby. They were not thought to have any children.

A relative of Mrs Venables said: "We have had no developments for 37 years. To suddenly be confronted with this major development is quite a lot to process." They added: "Brenda’s bank account remained untouched and there were no positive sightings of her after she disappeared."

Mr Venables was never arrested in connection with his wife’s disappearance, according to relatives. He sold the farmhouse to a relative for £467,000 five years ago and now lives in a bungalow around a mile away."

 

[Mind your biscuits]

Shouldn't that be "Oink"?
<gets coat>

Ha ha that made me laugh!

 

[beatrixpotter]

So is there any way she could have fallen in? Was it some kind of old and strangely accessible tank at this farm? We have a septic tank in our yard but I couldn't access it without digging up the ground and then prying the lid off, then reburying everything. It would take a lot of time and effort. The only other way would be in small parts flushed down a drain.

The only reason I'm even remotely entertaining the idea that he might have been unaware was that he sold the farm instead of keeping it to continue hiding and hindering any access to the tank. But I'm not sure what kind of septic tank it was and how easy to access. I mean if someone could fall in then no lid? So it seems unlikely. Just thinking out loud...why did he sell it then?

 

[Ginger21]

So is there any way she could have fallen in? Was it some kind of old and strangely accessible tank at this farm? We have a septic tank in our yard but I couldn't access it without digging up the ground and then prying the lid off, then reburying everything. It would take a lot of time and effort. The only other way would be in small parts flushed down a drain.

The only reason I'm even remotely entertaining the idea that he might have been unaware was that he sold the farm instead of keeping it to continue hiding and hindering any access to the tank. But I'm not sure what kind of septic tank it was and how easy to access. I mean if someone could fall in then no lid? So it seems unlikely. Just thinking out loud...why did he sell it then?

He's in his 80s. He might have thought since he's old anyway he'd be able to get away with it. Also might have thought that they wouldn't be going into the tank anytime soon etc.

 

[tresir2012]

So is there any way she could have fallen in? Was it some kind of old and strangely accessible tank at this farm? We have a septic tank in our yard but I couldn't access it without digging up the ground and then prying the lid off, then reburying everything. It would take a lot of time and effort. The only other way would be in small parts flushed down a drain.

The only reason I'm even remotely entertaining the idea that he might have been unaware was that he sold the farm instead of keeping it to continue hiding and hindering any access to the tank. But I'm not sure what kind of septic tank it was and how easy to access. I mean if someone could fall in then no lid? So it seems unlikely. Just thinking out loud...why did he sell it then?

The remains were in a bag. There is a picture of the cesspit in a couple of the links. Large concrete upstand with central cast iron lid plus two likely drainage soakaways either side.

 

[ZaZara]

Depends on the farm

With a nursery and a pigfarm spring would have been busy. Perhaps the nursery wasn't busy in winter, but livestock needs care all the year round, except in the short time when the pigs have been transported to the slaughterhouse and new ones have not yet arrived. But even then, a lot of cleaning has to be done for instance. My neighbour used to have chickens for meat, not eggs, and they'd plan their holidays around the age of the chickens and ordered the new ones two weeks later. He could afford to do so, it is also a matter of income.

 

[tresir2012]

He's in his 80s. He might have thought since he's old anyway he'd be able to get away with it. Also might have thought that they wouldn't be going into the tank anytime soon etc.

Selling it to a relative as well. Perhaps he disliked this relative. It is strange.

I think I would want my money back on that house.

 

[beatrixpotter]

The remains were in a bag. There is a picture of the cesspit in a couple of the links. Large concrete upstand with central cast iron lid plus two likely drainage soakaways either side.

Oh, well that rules that out! She certainly didn't put herself in a bag before falling in. I missed reading that info. Thanks.

 

[chimpface]

How do you know it's nothing to do with it? If the perp lived halfway between the two that's only 25 miles for each murder. The bones in a bag are a valid similarity that was mentioned so I linked the thread for the poster and others interested. Has the husband been declared a POI in this case and I missed it? It could have been a worker on the farm or an affair or any possibility.

Man, 86, arrested after woman's body is found in a septic tank | Daily Mail Online

 

[ZaZara]

Man, 86, arrested after woman's body is found in a septic tank | Daily Mail Online

From the link:


West Mercia Police said the suspect remains in custody and is helping officers with their inquiries following the discovery on July 12.

 

[CoverMeCagney]

Man, 86, arrested after woman's body is found in a septic tank | Daily Mail Online

86! Well I never! Who could that possibly be...?

 

[Legally Bland]

An 86-year-old man thought to be David Venables is in custody after remains believed to be of his wife Brenda, who disappeared in 1982, were discovered at their former home in Kempsey, Worcs.

'Husband', 86, arrested for murder after human remains found in septic tank at farm where wife vanished in 1982

 

[Tortoise]

Officers said the deceased was "likely to be" Ms Venables, although there were no "DNA results at this time".

Murder arrest over remains found in septic tank

 

[Tortoise]

I wonder what sort of conversations family has been having with him since July 12th. Or anyone he comes into contact with regularly.

 

[Officer Dibble]

I wonder what sort of conversations family has been having with him since July 12th. Or anyone he comes into contact with regularly.

Good point.