David Fuller: 80 people contact police in wake of bedsit murder and necrophilia admission
David Fuller this week admitted to the "bedsit murders" of Wendy Knell and Caroline Pierce in 1987 - and the sexual assault of nearly 80 bodies at the hospitals he worked in.
Friday 5 November 2021 15:24, UK
Around 80 members of the public have contacted a police helpline in the wake of the David Fuller murder and sexual abuse case.
Fuller, 67, pleaded guilty to murdering Wendy Knell, 25, and Caroline Pierce, 20, in two separate attacks in Tunbridge Wells in 1987.
The electrician and maintenance engineer also admitted assaulting nearly 80 dead bodies, many of which he filmed, but detectives believe there may have been hundreds more in the three decades he worked in hospitals.
Following his admission, Kent Police asked people to get in contact if they had information about the case - codenamed Operation Sandpiper.
The force said: "The Operation Sandpiper team are working to identify any further victims and specialist officers will contact families who may be directly affected by this case privately.
"If you have any information about the case, please contact the Operation Sandpiper contact centre on 0800 051 5270 or email [email protected]."
A statement released today said: "Specialist family liaison officers have already contacted the families of all identified victims and are supporting them.
"As of this morning, the contact centre had received around 80 calls from members of the public."
Fuller faces a mandatory life sentence, but because he killed two victims, sexually attacked them and tried to conceal his crimes, he could be jailed for the rest of his life without chance of parole.
After the extent of his offending was revealed, the NHS ordered health trusts to review the way in which their mortuaries are accessed - including effective CCTV coverage, swipe access on all entry and access points, risk assessments and appropriate DBS check application.
Police have spent £2m marshalling 317 family liaison officers, drawn from 27 UK forces to track down the relatives of his hospital victims and break the news.