Death in the Woods

The first case in this episode begins with an apparently motiveless killing. Police found the body of one of their own, Police Community Support Officer Julia James, lying in a field in Kent. There was no obvious motive, no suspect and no clear clue to point detectives towards her attacker.

Despite a major investigation involving 1,000 officers, the trail began to run cold. Detectives needed evidence that could not be seen with the naked eye, so they turned to forensic biologist Naomi Richardson. With no clear DNA found on Julia’s clothing, Naomi examined the crime scene itself, including blades of grass that appeared to have been plucked and piled over blood. The results were inconclusive, but when a witness statement led detectives to suspect Callum Wheeler, Naomi’s work finally linked Julia’s DNA to items seized from his home.

Wheeler pleaded not guilty, but the expert evidence helped put him behind bars for a lengthy sentence.

The case features insight from senior BBC reporter Piers Hopkirk and lead forensic biologist Stephen Paddock.

Also in this episode, police discover the body of 21-year-old Hyo Jung Jin, a South Korean student who had travelled to London on a sightseeing trip. The victim had been stuffed inside a suitcase and dumped at the side of a country lane in North Yorkshire. Her body had been wrapped and bound using distinctive tape that was rare and sold only at prestigious art galleries.

After tracing Miss Jin back to the London flat where she had been staying, investigators found blood in her bedroom and realised this was where she had been killed.

A car hired using the victim’s credit card was also found with blood in the boot. Investigators identified the man who had hired it as Kyo Soo Kim, who had moved to London from South Korea in 2000. Kim was also the landlord of the flat where detectives believed Miss Jin had died.

With Kim now the prime suspect, detectives discovered that another South Korean student was missing: Song In Hea, a 22-year-old student who had moved to London to study. She had been staying at a different property linked to Kim in Augusta Street, east London. When police searched the address, they found her body hidden within the walls, bound in the same distinctive tape and wrapped in sheets.

Detectives suspected Kim of a double murder, but he claimed he had been out of the country and held to his alibi. To test that timeline, they brought in leading forensic entomologist Dr John Manlove, in the hope that by studying insect activity on the body, he would be able to establish whether Kim had been in London all the time. His investigation confirmed that Miss Song had been killed while Kim was still in the country, and Kim was charged with the murders of both Miss Jin and Miss Song. He was found guilty and sentenced to 25 years in prison.

The programme includes revealing interviews with Andy Baker, former Commander and head of homicide at the Met, and barrister Sallie Bennett Jenkins KC.