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Netflix’s gripping miniseries is based on one of Britain’s most haunting murder cases, but the real story behind it is even more heartbreaking. From a brutal attack in Wimbledon Common to a devastating wrongful accusation and a long-delayed confession, we’re digging into the tragedy that left a family forever changed.
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00:00So can we have the room please? Yes, of course. Thank you. What's happened? Take a seat.
00:07Welcome to Ms. Mojo and today we're looking over the tragic true story behind the Netflix
00:13miniseries The Witness. What an utter chaotic catalogue of errors this whole investigation
00:20have been. The murder of Rachel Nichol. At the top of his memoir, Letting Go, a true story of
00:26murder, loss and survival, Alex Hanscom mentions that his memory isn't flawless. This is worth
00:32noting since Hanscom was only two years old when his world was forever changed. I think over time
00:37you remember the key elements of the story, the things you need to remember. So I think with
00:43people, memory is different for everyone. You know, I think you tend to remember what you need
00:47to remember to function as you move forward in your life. On July 15, 1992, young Alex and his
00:54mother, Rachel Nichol, took their dog for a walk in Wimbledon Common, an open area in southwest
00:59London. In 2017, the same year he published his memoir, Hanscom told the son what happened that
01:05fateful day. My mother and I both sensed that there was something, you know, coming, there was
01:10something in the air. So we both turned our heads to the right and we saw this stranger lurching
01:15towards us. Despite his age and less than perfect memory, Hanscom distinctly remembers a man with a
01:20black bag over his shoulder. The ensuing tragedy has, quote, remained engraved in Hanscom's mind.
01:26When a seismic event changes the course of our lives, its impressions are marked on us forever.
01:33And the day I watched my mother's soul leave her body on the morning of Wednesday, 15th of July,
01:401992, is one I will never forget. According to Hanscom, he was grabbed and thrown to the ground.
01:48His mother dropped beside him within seconds. Hanscom described his memory as a, quote,
01:53silent movie because there were no screams. Everything went silent.
01:57The interesting thing is even though there was this intensity of the moment,
02:01there was also a strong sense of peacefulness, of serenity at the same time.
02:07Hanscom remembers the attacker's blank face, armed with a knife he took from his bag.
02:12After washing his hands in a stream, the attacker disappeared, quote, like a ghost.
02:17Hanscom attempted to wake his mother, thinking she might be asleep or playing a game.
02:21I remember saying, wake up, mommy. And she didn't respond. And I said, wake up, mommy.
02:28One more time. And she didn't respond. And I said for the third time, wake up, mommy.
02:35And at that moment, I knew that my mother was gone and that she was never coming back.
02:41In reality, Rachel Nichol was dead, having been stabbed almost 50 times. Hanscom found others in
02:48the park who called an ambulance with the authorities following. While Hanscom claims to have vivid
02:53memories of his mother's murder and her attacker, the case persisted for over a decade.
02:58Alex's description means we go back through every statement looking for anything resembling a match.
03:04Look, I know it's a lot on top of everything else, but this isn't wasted time. Someone must have seen
03:10this man. The wrong suspect. He's a man aged between 20 and 30 with poor heterosocial skills.
03:17He'll have a powerful, deviant, sexual fantasy life and probably some form of dysfunction.
03:23If he's employed, it will be an unskilled occupation and he'll be single.
03:29Although Hanscom was covered in blood when he was found, there was little forensic evidence.
03:33The police interviewed roughly 500 suspects and arrested over 30, eventually focusing on Colin
03:39Stagg of Roehampton.
03:51Unemployed at the time, Stagg was known for walking his dog in Wimbledon Common.
03:55Two months after Nichols' murder, Stagg pleaded guilty to exposing himself in the common,
04:00receiving a 200-pound fine. Criminal psychologist Paul Britton devised a profile for Nichols' killer,
04:07with the police feeling that Stagg fit the bill. Stagg also seemed to meet Hanscom's physical
04:11description of his mother's attacker. Without the DNA to back up their suspicions,
04:16the authorities assigned a female officer to go undercover in what came to be known as Operation Edzel.
04:21Now, with that in mind, do you think you can help us to design a
04:26covert operation to get the truth out of Stagg?
04:32I think so.
04:34Stagg had been part of the Lonely Hearts Club. The undercover policewoman used this to contact Stagg,
04:39using the name Lizzie James. Conversing through letters containing sexual fantasies,
04:44Stagg and James eventually met in person.
04:47And when they parted, he gave her a new letter. Another fantasy. More extreme this time,
04:53in which he describes carrying a knife.
04:55Landing on the subject of Nichols' murder, James tried to get a confession out of Stagg.
05:00While Stagg wanted to impress James, he never admitted to any involvement in the Wimbledon Common case.
05:06Do you know who did it, Colin? I mean, do you have any ideas?
05:13No. I don't know.
05:15Regardless, Stagg was officially charged in August 1993.
05:19When Stagg went to trial in September 1994, a lack of evidence quickly led to his acquittal.
05:25Mr. Justice Ognell felt the police's treatment of Stagg was, quote,
05:29deceptive conduct of the grossest kind.
05:31Many still accused Stagg of being a murderer until new evidence came to light.
05:36Again, that was down to, like, the vicissitude and the perniciousness of the Sun newspaper and other tabloid newspapers at
05:42the time.
05:44They were just printing lies, constant lies about me, and I couldn't defend myself, and people believed what they read
05:50in the newspapers.
05:50Nichols' true killer.
05:52Robert Knapper's upbringing was deeply disturbing, reportedly facing abuse at home, mistreatment at school, and an assault on a camping
06:00trip.
06:00In addition to being on the autism spectrum, Knapper's mental health issues extended to paranoid schizophrenia.
06:06Well, like I said, Knapper wasn't there long, and the only person I saw him talk to was himself.
06:11The girls gave him a wide berth, I remember that.
06:14It's hard to say when Knapper's criminal history started.
06:17Multiple sexual assaults traced as far back as 1989 have been potentially linked to him.
06:22We started attacking women, some with children, present on the Green Chain Walk pathway, which runs through woodland and open
06:32common land in southeast London, which is also not far from the scene of the Bissett murders.
06:39At least three lives ended at Knapper's hands.
06:42One of them was Rachel Nichol, although Knapper wouldn't be charged with her murder until years later.
06:48Knapper had been on the police's radar during the Nichol case.
06:51He was questioned in August 1992 concerning assaults that had occurred around the Green Chain Walk.
06:56Yet the authorities thought Knapper didn't meet the description, being too tall.
07:00So basically nothing else was done.
07:04Which baffles me to this day.
07:06A month after Stag's initial arrest, Knapper was apprehended for possessing weapons at his flat.
07:11Knapper was only incarcerated for eight weeks.
07:14Less than a year later, Stag was charged with Nichol's murder, with Knapper still a free man.
07:19Knapper went on to target Samantha Bissett and her young daughter Jasmine.
07:23In November 1993, Knapper infiltrated their home, killing and mutilating Samantha.
07:29Jasmine wasn't spared either.
07:31Today the man who found their bodies said, I think it was a madman, a psychopath.
07:36Police think the murders happened late on Wednesday.
07:38They have few clues to go on.
07:40It's unclear why exactly Knapper allowed Alex Hanscombe to live while cutting Jasmine's life tragically short.
07:46It was probably due to Knapper's resentment toward women.
07:49In any case, Knapper left fingerprints behind this time, leading to his arrest in May 1994.
07:55Despite the similarities between the murders, Dr. Paul Britton didn't think there was a connection between Knapper and Nichol.
08:11Knapper would be questioned about Nichol's murder in November 1994, although he claimed to have nothing to do with it.
08:18Just under a year later, Knapper entered a guilty plea concerning the murders of Samantha and Jasmine.
08:23He also confessed to multiple assaults that occurred in 1992.
08:27Knapper's imprisonment today brings to an end an appalling catalogue of crime which spanned nearly two years in southeast London.
08:34An official police photographer who had the grisly task of recording the scene inside the Bissett's flat was so horrified
08:41that she hasn't been able to work since.
08:43Knapper would be sent to Broadmoor Hospital, a high-security psychiatric hospital.
08:47By this point, Stagg had been acquitted, but Knapper still wasn't being treated as a serious suspect in the Nichol
08:53case.
08:53Can't be the same killer, can it?
08:57Can't it?
08:58That child was allowed to live, Mickey. It's a big difference.
09:02Knapper was questioned about Nichol's killing again in December 1995.
09:06With Knapper remaining firm that he wasn't involved, though, the investigation saw little traction until the early 2000s.
09:13DNA analysis saw some significant breakthroughs during that time, paving the way for new evidence.
09:18We developed a whole new technique, a new sensitive technique, and this involved taking a tiny amount of DNA from
09:26a sample and then multiplying up the DNA, or we call it amplifying.
09:34So you've got several times via your original amount, so you've got enough to actually analyze.
09:40Knapper's conviction and aftermath.
09:43Male DNA was uncovered on Nichol's clothing. It didn't belong to Alex or his father, Andre Hanscom.
09:49The phone rang one day out of the blue, and it was the police, and they had news, and the
09:55news was there was a positive identification, and they said that the person that had been identified was a completely
10:03new name.
10:03In time, Knapper emerged as the primary suspect, with the case fully reopened in July 2004.
10:10It'd still be another three years until Knapper was charged with Nichol's murder in November 2007.
10:15I've noticed you've been very preoccupied lately with the numbers and other thoughts, but why do you think that is?
10:24What are you so scared of, Bob?
10:25In January 2008, Knapper pleaded not guilty, with his trial set to commence in December of that year.
10:31Although Knapper had repeatedly asserted that he wasn't involved in Nichol's death, he had a change of tune at this
10:37trial.
10:38He didn't admit to murder, but Knapper would plead guilty to manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility.
10:44While Knapper acknowledged that he committed other attacks, he's been suspected of well over 100 sex crimes.
10:50More could and should have been done.
10:54Had more been done, we would have been in a position to have prevented this and other very serious attacks
11:01by Knapper.
11:01Knapper was again sentenced to Broadmoor Hospital, with Mr. Justice Griffiths-Williams deeming him, quote,
11:07a very dangerous man.
11:09He is to remain there indefinitely, with little chance that Knapper will ever get out.
11:14You must be returned immediately to Broadmoor and you will never be released unless you are no longer a danger
11:20to the public.
11:22That is unlikely ever to happen.
11:24While the Nichol case received closure after 16 years, Justice had stumbled along the way.
11:30After being incarcerated for more than a year and his acquittal, Stag struggled as the court of public opinion continued
11:36to demonize him.
11:37When I was arrested, there were articles in the newspapers stirring people's emotions up against me.
11:42People shouted out stuff like guilty, hang him, and stuff like that, you know.
11:46The constant accusations and paranoia reached a boiling point when Stag threatened a man with an axe at Wimbledon Common.
11:53Stag avoided further prison time, receiving a 12-month probation in 1995.
11:58Stag pursued legal action against the police, receiving over £700,000 in 2008.
12:04Lizzie James sued over the ordeal as well, settling for £125,000.
12:09Stag lay on the ground and showed Lizzie the position of Rachel's body as it was left by her murderer.
12:15Napper issued an apology to Stag via his counsel.
12:19His barrister also extended an apology to Rachel Nichol's partner and son, quote,
12:23for the dreadful thing that he did.
12:25Why would the killer apologize if it made no difference to a sentence?
12:28That man's not very well, Alex. We've known that for a long time.
12:33I'm not sure he even knows why he said it.
12:35As depicted in The Witness, Alex and Andre Hanscom were both left with psychological scars over the loss.
12:41Although Andre tried to shield his son from the media, trauma seemed to follow wherever they moved.
12:47This put a strain on their relationship.
12:49The fundamental point was that he was the protector of the family as the father.
12:56And, you know, unfortunately had allowed this to happen to us.
13:05While the sorrow has never left, the father and son would reach a place of reconciliation.
13:10They'd move to Barcelona, where Alex is involved in yoga, hypnotherapy, and music.
13:15Alex has learned to live with the grief, saying that he had, quote,
13:18no choice but to make peace with it.
13:21I feel that if there's a 0.001% chance of, you know, of coming through the other end.
13:33All I can say is that I feel it's worth giving a show.
13:37What did you think of The Witness and its depiction of this true story?
13:40Let us know in the comments.
13:41Let us know in the comments.
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