Found Deceased UK - Leah Croucher - Emerson Valley - Milton Keynes - #7

[LammyTheRobot]

The house was being maintained up to 2020 at least, as shown in the attached satellite images.

You can see the garden in March 2020 is about the same state as in May 2018 (i.e. maintained), but then some time between March 2020 and June 2021 was left to grow over in a really bad way (compared to the neighbours' for example).

So, a fair conclusion from this was that somebody other than NM maintained the property between his death in April 2019 and that March 2020 satellite photo. Likely needing keys.

Interesting you can see (top left) between May 2018 and March 2020, the small trees/bushes in the pathway between the house and the fence have been removed. But then in the most satellite recent shot, which was taken October this year (the 3D Google Earth one) you can see they are back.

 

[Jaesu]

"Maxwell, then aged 48, admitted committing a sexual assault on a woman in Milton Keynes in February 2018 and was sentenced to 200-hours of unpaid work and made to pay £85 court costs and £1,000 compensation. He was also placed on the sex offender's register for five years.
The pervert went on to strike again just nine months later. He was on the run for that offence at the time of Leah's disappearance but had managed to evade arrest on 18 occasions".......

So according to the DM, The offence must have been committed in October/November 2018 - Around the same time that he had received the keys to the house.

Looks like his offences escalated very quickly in that last year IMO.

Either escalated or simply those he chose were willing to take it further court wise.
(A lot don't get reported - I know I didn't opt to formally report my assault. Too traumatic.)

 

[Miss_French]

The house was being maintained up to 2020 at least, as shown in the attached satellite images.

You can see the garden in March 2020 is about the same state as in May 2018 (i.e. maintained), but then some time between March 2020 and June 2021 was left to grow over in a really bad way (compared to the neighbours' for example).

So, a fair conclusion from this was that somebody other than NM maintained the property between his death in April 2019 and that March 2020 satellite photo. Likely needing keys.

Interesting you can see (top left) between May 2018 and March 2020, the small trees/bushes in the pathway between the house and the fence have been removed. But then in the most satellite recent shot, which was taken October this year (the 3D Google Earth one) you can see they are back.

Access to and maintenance of the garden may not have required keys.

 

[LammyTheRobot]

Access to and maintenance of the garden may not have required keys.

May not, true, but more likely than not, IMO.

 

[bringmeacupoft]

Access to and maintenance of the garden may not have required keys.

And the neighbour has reportedly said they cut the grass every now and then.

And it’s fair to say someone maintained the garden, we don’t know they maintained the actual house.

 

[Kinners_D]

Either escalated or simply those he chose were willing to take it further court wise.
(A lot don't get reported - I know I didn't opt to formally report my assault. Too traumatic.)

I think the escalation to murder is always going to be classified as significant. I do however believe there will be more victims of his sexual assaults out there who for various reasons had not come forward.

I'm still of the opinion that he underestimated Leah, maybe thinking she was quiet, reserved and younger than she was, also with her self defense abilities, regardless of how successfully deployed she would have been more resistant than he expected and the murder occurred out of necessity or by accident. I don't think this started with murder as the expectation.

 

[Kinners_D]

And the neighbour has reportedly said they cut the grass every now and then.

And it’s fair to say someone maintained the garden, we don’t know they maintained the actual house.

I thibk there is a lack of clarity on this at the moment. An empty house, which has been unoccupied for some time doesn't strike me as something needing maintenance. The duration of time he had keys (at least 4-5 months) suggests to me that he was hired for a specific purpose, something like redecoration, this also gives plenty of time to be coming and going as and when, even into later hours without any suspicion being raised.

 

[tedtink]

The house was being maintained up to 2020 at least, as shown in the attached satellite images.

You can see the garden in March 2020 is about the same state as in May 2018 (i.e. maintained), but then some time between March 2020 and June 2021 was left to grow over in a really bad way (compared to the neighbours' for example).

So, a fair conclusion from this was that somebody other than NM maintained the property between his death in April 2019 and that March 2020 satellite photo. Likely needing keys.

Interesting you can see (top left) between May 2018 and March 2020, the small trees/bushes in the pathway between the house and the fence have been removed. But then in the most satellite recent shot, which was taken October this year (the 3D Google Earth one) you can see they are back.

Thank you for these.
Is there any way you can find an earlier one that shows the house without the lean-to?
I'm interested to know if there is a door that exits the garage under the lean-to that links to the side door of the house.

If that is the case LC could have been taken through the garage under cover to the side door. I'm also interested to know if the neighbours left for work around or before 8.30am (NM may have known this)

 

[CoverMeCagney]

The house was being maintained up to 2020 at least, as shown in the attached satellite images.

You can see the garden in March 2020 is about the same state as in May 2018 (i.e. maintained), but then some time between March 2020 and June 2021 was left to grow over in a really bad way (compared to the neighbours' for example).

So, a fair conclusion from this was that somebody other than NM maintained the property between his death in April 2019 and that March 2020 satellite photo. Likely needing keys.

Interesting you can see (top left) between May 2018 and March 2020, the small trees/bushes in the pathway between the house and the fence have been removed. But then in the most satellite recent shot, which was taken October this year (the 3D Google Earth one) you can see they are back.

That last photo gives a really good idea of just how close the lake is from the house.

 

[Jaesu]

I think the escalation to murder is always going to be classified as significant. I do however believe there will be more victims of his sexual assaults out there who for various reasons had not come forward.

I'm still of the opinion that he underestimated Leah, maybe thinking she was quiet, reserved and younger than she was, also with her self defense abilities, regardless of how successfully deployed she would have been more resistant than he expected and the murder occurred out of necessity or by accident. I don't think this started with murder as the expectation.

I agree, it is however not uncommon path for RSO to escalate to murdering their victims, especially if (as we know) NM had escalated to raping in effectively broad daylight, my memory is a bit faint on the case but I'm sure the press at the time suggested the attack was very violent. (I haven't had any luck finding the article though so my memory could be off - he was not named in the piece at the time).

 

[Jaesu]

The house was being maintained up to 2020 at least, as shown in the attached satellite images.

You can see the garden in March 2020 is about the same state as in May 2018 (i.e. maintained), but then some time between March 2020 and June 2021 was left to grow over in a really bad way (compared to the neighbours' for example).

So, a fair conclusion from this was that somebody other than NM maintained the property between his death in April 2019 and that March 2020 satellite photo. Likely needing keys.

Interesting you can see (top left) between May 2018 and March 2020, the small trees/bushes in the pathway between the house and the fence have been removed. But then in the most satellite recent shot, which was taken October this year (the 3D Google Earth one) you can see they are back.

One thing I had noticed in old photos (not so much satellite images but the neighbours property listing garden view) is that the house in late 2018-mid 2019 only had one satellite dish up, not two as is the case now. So someone, maybe NM installed the second dish. (I would have thought you would need keys for the wiring part of installation but I'm blissfully ignorant of how satellite dishes are installed these days!)

 

[tedtink]

Either escalated or simply those he chose were willing to take it further court wise.
(A lot don't get reported - I know I didn't opt to formally report my assault. Too traumatic.)

ETA - For clarity - his offences (even the ones we know of) escalated to murder (allegedly) very quickly in this last year IMO. Rape to murder is escalation.

 

[Petrocelli]

One thing I had noticed in old photos (not so much satellite images but the neighbours property listing garden view) is that the house in late 2018-mid 2019 only had one satellite dish up, not two as is the case now. So someone, maybe NM installed the second dish. (I would have thought you would need keys for the wiring part of installation but I'm blissfully ignorant of how satellite dishes are installed these days!)

Really good point. Why would you need two anyway in an empty house.

I find it odd that it was a holiday home in that location anyway but maybe the owners used to live there before going back abroad and just kept it. Big risk leaving an empty property for long periods.

 

[Kinners_D]

Really good point. Why would you need two anyway in an empty house.

I find it odd that it was a holiday home in that location anyway but maybe the owners used to live there before going back abroad and just kept it. Big risk leaving an empty property for long periods.

In theory you may need multiple satellites for access to specific channels in other countries. Even if the owners were rarely in the house they may well want to have access to their TV subscriptions from the countries they spend the majority of their time in.

It's not so risky to leave the home unoccupied for longer periods, as someone mentioned there are special insurance products for empty homes. The house is also in a nice area and people have said that this practice is quite common in the area.

 

[Miss_French]

One thing I had noticed in old photos (not so much satellite images but the neighbours property listing garden view) is that the house in late 2018-mid 2019 only had one satellite dish up, not two as is the case now. So someone, maybe NM installed the second dish. (I would have thought you would need keys for the wiring part of installation but I'm blissfully ignorant of how satellite dishes are installed these days!)

Having a dish myself, it does need access as the cable needs to come through a wall or window frame nto the house, so drilling required. However, it's quite a specialised job to position everything, know the right cables, connect to the satellite, and some services will have access cards or codes that are only available from the service provider.

 

[Kinners_D]

ETA - For clarity - his offences (even the ones we know of) escalated to murder (allegedly) very quickly in this last year IMO. Rape to murder is escalation.

It is escalation, for sure. But on the other hand if his intent was sexual assault/rape as per his MO and the murder was an accident or due to loss of control of what he expected to be an easily controlled victim not sure it can be classified as escalation, as his motive has not changed, circumstances have dictated the outcome in some way.

 

[pedronz06]

The house was being maintained up to 2020 at least, as shown in the attached satellite images.

You can see the garden in March 2020 is about the same state as in May 2018 (i.e. maintained), but then some time between March 2020 and June 2021 was left to grow over in a really bad way (compared to the neighbours' for example).

So, a fair conclusion from this was that somebody other than NM maintained the property between his death in April 2019 and that March 2020 satellite photo. Likely needing keys.

Interesting you can see (top left) between May 2018 and March 2020, the small trees/bushes in the pathway between the house and the fence have been removed. But then in the most satellite recent shot, which was taken October this year (the 3D Google Earth one) you can see they are back.

I thought he'd actually buried body parts in this area, but it was later revealed to all be in the loft. Let's hope he just cleared them for better access and hope there is not something or someone else buried there. It's not just the bushes that are missing there's also no growth in that area too which can occur if someone is buried there. If I were going to bury anything it would be there or under the slabs. Looks like gravel has been put on top at some point. If he was attacking women regularly it's possible he's killed again, he can't keep them all in the loft.

 

[Vera_dci]

One thing I had noticed in old photos (not so much satellite images but the neighbours property listing garden view) is that the house in late 2018-mid 2019 only had one satellite dish up, not two as is the case now. So someone, maybe NM installed the second dish. (I would have thought you would need keys for the wiring part of installation but I'm blissfully ignorant of how satellite dishes are installed these days!)

Excellent point that raises so many questions :

Why would you install a further satellite dish if the house was 'unoccupied ' over that period. Additionally, the wires would need to be connect to an internal receiver.

 

[Kinners_D]

I thought he'd actually buried body parts in this area, but it was later revealed to all be in the loft. Let's hope he just cleared them for better access and hope there is not something or someone else buried there. It's not just the bushes that are missing there's also no growth in that area too which can occur if someone is buried there.

I think additional burial is unlikely. He may not have been the one to remove them. Digging a grave, inconspicuously in such an overlooked area is incredibly difficult thing to achieve.

 

[Kinners_D]

Excellent point that raises so many questions :

Why would you install a further satellite dish if the house was 'unoccupied ' over that period. Additionally, the wires would need to be connect to an internal receiver.

As I said, could be for international channels not available on standard services in the UK.

Wires could be capped, pushed through, and a receiver installed later.

Again I'm not sure this is something that needs to be pondered on too hard, there are many simple explanations for this.

EtA - if you look at the orientation of the satelites/receivers they point to significantly different places, which suggests they are servicing different providers.