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| Version 3 | Version 4 |
|---|---|
| Life term for Facebook murderer | Life term for Facebook murderer |
| (10 minutes later) | |
| A convicted sex offender has been sentenced to life imprisonment after admitting the kidnap, rape and murder of a teenage girl. | A convicted sex offender has been sentenced to life imprisonment after admitting the kidnap, rape and murder of a teenage girl. |
| Chapman, 33, was told by Judge Peter Fox QC he must serve a minimum of 35 years in prison. | Chapman, 33, was told by Judge Peter Fox QC he must serve a minimum of 35 years in prison. |
| Teesside Crown Court heard he met and befriended 17-year-old Ashleigh Hall on Facebook by posing as a teenage boy. | Teesside Crown Court heard he met and befriended 17-year-old Ashleigh Hall on Facebook by posing as a teenage boy. |
| Chapman, 33, who had a history of sex assaults, at first denied the charges, but changed his plea to guilty. | Chapman, 33, who had a history of sex assaults, at first denied the charges, but changed his plea to guilty. |
| Ashleigh was suffocated and dumped in a farmer's field near Sedgefield after agreeing to meet him. | Ashleigh was suffocated and dumped in a farmer's field near Sedgefield after agreeing to meet him. |
| Since the age of 15, Chapman had been the subject of several sexual assault investigations. | Since the age of 15, Chapman had been the subject of several sexual assault investigations. |
| In 1996 he was jailed for seven years for raping two prostitutes at knifepoint. | In 1996 he was jailed for seven years for raping two prostitutes at knifepoint. |
| 'Calculated and wicked' | |
| In October last year, Ashleigh was attracted by a picture of a young, bare-chested man that Chapman - calling himself Peter Cartwright - had posted on the website. | In October last year, Ashleigh was attracted by a picture of a young, bare-chested man that Chapman - calling himself Peter Cartwright - had posted on the website. |
| Later that month, she told her mother she was going to stay with a friend. Text messages showed she thought she was being picked up by "Peter Cartwright's" father. | Later that month, she told her mother she was going to stay with a friend. Text messages showed she thought she was being picked up by "Peter Cartwright's" father. |
| Ashleigh thought she was meeting another teenager | |
| Prosecutor Graham Reeds QC said: "Having invented 19-year-old Peter to make contact with girls he now decided to invent Peter's dad in order to persuade Ashleigh that it was safe to get into his car. | Prosecutor Graham Reeds QC said: "Having invented 19-year-old Peter to make contact with girls he now decided to invent Peter's dad in order to persuade Ashleigh that it was safe to get into his car. |
| "The plan he devised was calculated and wicked and it worked." | "The plan he devised was calculated and wicked and it worked." |
| Mr Reeds said Chapman picked her up near her home, and then drove her to Thorpe Larches, near Sedgefield, where he attacked her. | Mr Reeds said Chapman picked her up near her home, and then drove her to Thorpe Larches, near Sedgefield, where he attacked her. |
| "After the rape, her arms were bound up again and further tape was put over her face, suffocating her to death," he said. | "After the rape, her arms were bound up again and further tape was put over her face, suffocating her to death," he said. |
| Her body was dumped in a gully up against a fence by Old Stockton Road. | Her body was dumped in a gully up against a fence by Old Stockton Road. |
| Number plate | |
| Chapman was arrested the following day after a nationwide alert went out to trace the car he had been using. | Chapman was arrested the following day after a nationwide alert went out to trace the car he had been using. |
| The registration number had been put into the Automatic Number Plate Recognition System because the convicted sex offender was not complying with his registration requirements. | The registration number had been put into the Automatic Number Plate Recognition System because the convicted sex offender was not complying with his registration requirements. |
| He is a predatory sex offender who, through the tentacles of the internet, could reach out to the young and the vulnerable Det Insp Mick Callan, Durham Police | |
| During initial interviews, he told police they could "crush his car" and made no mention of Ashleigh, but later he lost his nerve and told a stunned custody officer: "I killed someone last night." | During initial interviews, he told police they could "crush his car" and made no mention of Ashleigh, but later he lost his nerve and told a stunned custody officer: "I killed someone last night." |
| He led them to the spot where her body was found, almost 24 hours after she left the family home. | He led them to the spot where her body was found, almost 24 hours after she left the family home. |
| Durham Police have admitted that had he remained silent the car would probably have been crushed and valuable evidence lost. | Durham Police have admitted that had he remained silent the car would probably have been crushed and valuable evidence lost. |
| Det Insp Mick Callan, head of the force's major crime team, said: "The truth is he is a predatory sex offender who, through the tentacles of the internet, could reach out to the young and the vulnerable. | Det Insp Mick Callan, head of the force's major crime team, said: "The truth is he is a predatory sex offender who, through the tentacles of the internet, could reach out to the young and the vulnerable. |
| "He knows full well that using his real name and picture would not grab the attention of any young woman for a moment. | "He knows full well that using his real name and picture would not grab the attention of any young woman for a moment. |
| "But by using the picture of a good-looking young man as a cover he has woven a web of attraction and deceit that has sadly had a murderous ending." | "But by using the picture of a good-looking young man as a cover he has woven a web of attraction and deceit that has sadly had a murderous ending." |