by Press Association

  • Halliwell's father reportedly lived near Claudia
  • Becky Godden's mother believes March 19 may have been significant date for killer
  • She says: "I believe he has been up and down the country murdering young women"

MISSING York woman Claudia Lawrence may have been a victim of convicted murderer Christopher Halliwell, a former senior detective has said. 

Taxi driver Halliwell, 52, admitted the murder of Sian O'Callaghan and was convicted last week of murdering Becky Godden in 2003. Former detective superintendent Steve Fulcher, who caught him, believes he may also have killed Claudia and other women.

He said that Halliwell's father lived a few streets from where Claudia lived in Heworth, meaning he may have known and visited the area.

Mr Fulcher told the Sunday Express: "Claudia Lawrence disappeared from York seven years ago. Halliwell's father lived a few streets away from where Claudia went missing.

"It fits his pattern of behaviour - abducting women walking alone either late at night or early in the morning."

A North Yorkshire Police spokesman said on Sunday afternoon: "The investigation team is aware of this matter and they will carefully assess the information in line with the on-going review of the Claudia Lawrence case.

"However, to be clear, the team is not aware of any evidence that would link this individual to the disappearance and suspected murder of Claudia."

Claudia has not been seen since March 2009. She spoke to her parents by phone on the evening of March 18 but did not turn up for her early shift the next morning at the University of York, where she was a chef.

After a major case review in 2014, several arrests were made but the Crown Prosecution Service told North Yorkshire Police the case was not strong enough to take to court.

Martin Dales, friend and spokesman for Claudia's father, Peter Lawrence, responded to Mr Fulcher's remarks. He said: “It has been an ongoing nightmare, particularly for parents Joan and Peter and sister Ali, as they wait for news of her whereabouts.

"I know North Yorkshire Police have worked tirelessly to find the answer, but it is high time whoever is responsible for Claudia’s disappearance came clean. How can someone be so cruel for this length of time?”  

He added: "I think the retired officer in question has a detailed knowledge of things. The overriding point is really whoever has done whatever to Claudia, it has been an incredibly long time.

"It's a heartbreaking period to go without somebody and we hope this will come to some conclusion - whether this is it is for other people to find out.

"There are pluses and minuses of thinking: 'Are we going to get some sort of conclusion or is this just another false dawn?' All the time, Claudia is still not here.

"It's got to be thoroughly checked out."

>>> 7 years and many twists, but no answers: Claudia Lawrence investigation timeline

52-year-old Halliwell, a taxi driver, was serving a life sentence for the murder of Miss O'Callaghan, 22, in March 2011. He was then sentenced last week to life for the killing of Becky Godden, 20, in 2003.

Halliwell, formerly of Nythe, in Swindon, had admitted that crime to Mr Fulcher after showing him where he had put Miss O'Callaghan's body but a High Court judge ruled that confession inadmissable as Mr Fulcher breached police procedural rules by failing to caution the killer.

Mr Fulcher was found guilty of gross misconduct, but kept his job. He resigned several months later, ending his 27-year police career.

York Press:

The detective, who is now a security consultant in Somalia, also linked Halliwell to other unsolved crimes, including the murder of Melanie Hall.

The 25-year-old university graduate disappeared in 1996 after leaving a nightclub in Bath, Somerset and her remains were later found in vegetation off the northbound slipway at junction 14 of the M5 at Thornbury in 2009.

Mr Fulcher said: "The circumstances match his modus operandi in abducting a girl, late at night, from a nightclub. Evidence of her being tied up with rope is consistent with Halliwell's interests."

Mr Fulcher won praise from Miss Godden's mother Karen Edwards, who said the her daughter's remains may never have been found if it was not for the his actions.

He has criticised police forces for "obsessing" about procedure rather than looking at the bigger picture and said he wants to ensure detectives in a similar position are not treated in the same way.

Mrs Edwards also said she believed her daughter's killer could be linked to Miss Lawrence's disappearance as well as that of Miss Hall.

She told the Mail on Sunday her own inquiries into Halliwell's background found that the date when Miss Lawrence went missing, exactly two years before he abducted Miss O'Callaghan, could be significant.

"I believe he has been up and down the country murdering young women," Mrs Edwards said.

"He used to be a groundworker up north - I know somebody who worked with him on the same building site. He would go and have a pint with the lads and then disappear.

"Serial killers are usually triggered by dates. That was the day that Halliwell broke up with one of his partners."

She said Halliwell was familiar with York and said he matched the description of a man police have long sought in conneciton with Claudia's disappearance.

A witness saw a man with a woman on Melrosegate Bridge at about 5.35am on March 19. He was smoking a cigarette with his left hand, and was described as about 5ft 6in tall with a skinny build. He was wearing a dark hooded top with the hood up, and dark-coloured combat trousers with pockets on the side.

Halliwell is said to match the description and is left-handed and smokes.