WEBVTT 1 00:00:47.840 --> 00:00:50.119 In the mid nineteen nineties, Backton was in the midst 2 00:00:50.399 --> 00:00:54.560 of London's Docklands transformation. The old industrial East End was 3 00:00:54.600 --> 00:00:58.000 being reinvented straight by street a state by state. The 4 00:00:58.039 --> 00:01:01.439 Docklands Light Railway had extended the Beckton in nineteen ninety four, 5 00:01:01.920 --> 00:01:05.239 connecting the area to Canary Wharf's claiming tors and the 6 00:01:05.280 --> 00:01:10.159 financial district. Beyond where the vast becked In gasworks had 7 00:01:10.200 --> 00:01:14.079 once dominated the landscape. New housing estates now spread across 8 00:01:14.159 --> 00:01:17.959 former Braunfield land. The prefabricated homes that were built after 9 00:01:18.000 --> 00:01:20.840 the war were now being swept away to make room 10 00:01:20.879 --> 00:01:25.680 for modern developments. The terraced council estates along Tollgate Road 11 00:01:25.920 --> 00:01:29.959 remained largely unchanged. They were located just off the roundabout 12 00:01:30.120 --> 00:01:32.599 where the old route leads down to the Thames and 13 00:01:32.640 --> 00:01:36.680 the abandoned East End Docks. It was here on a 14 00:01:36.719 --> 00:01:40.000 cold Sunday afternoon in October of nineteen ninety four that 15 00:01:40.079 --> 00:01:42.799 nine year old Daniel Hamley was fixing the chain on 16 00:01:42.840 --> 00:01:46.079 his bicycle. He was a helpful boy from a troubled home, 17 00:01:46.640 --> 00:01:49.280 the kind of child who earned pocket money carrying shopping 18 00:01:49.319 --> 00:01:53.319 bags for customers at the local supermarket. He set out 19 00:01:53.359 --> 00:01:56.599 on his bike that afternoon with his mother's permission to 20 00:01:56.680 --> 00:02:00.200 visit his best friend. He had no clue that were 21 00:02:00.239 --> 00:02:16.759 predators circling the estate hunting for a boy just like him. 22 00:02:19.759 --> 00:02:22.879 Daniel Charles Hanley was born to parents Maxine and David 23 00:02:22.960 --> 00:02:26.719 on the second of October nineteen eighty five. He was 24 00:02:26.759 --> 00:02:28.840 the fourth of five sons in a family that would 25 00:02:28.840 --> 00:02:32.039 eventually stretch across a small council flat in East London. 26 00:02:33.159 --> 00:02:34.719 He was a boy who moved through the world at 27 00:02:34.719 --> 00:02:38.360 full speed, always on his bike, always with his hands dirty, 28 00:02:38.800 --> 00:02:42.120 always somewhere he wasn't supposed to be, but somehow always welcome. 29 00:02:43.000 --> 00:02:46.879 His grandmother might have said he had restless faith. His 30 00:02:46.960 --> 00:02:50.599 teachers at North Beckham Primary School called him lively and energetic, 31 00:02:51.240 --> 00:02:53.360 which was a polite way of saying he couldn't sit still. 32 00:02:54.400 --> 00:02:57.360 Head teacher Stan Adderidge would later remember him that way, 33 00:02:58.000 --> 00:03:01.439 a boy who burned bright and fast. Daniel had a 34 00:03:01.479 --> 00:03:05.120 developmental delay at nine years old. He functioned more like 35 00:03:05.159 --> 00:03:07.520 a seven year old, but this didn't slow him down. 36 00:03:08.319 --> 00:03:11.800 If anything, it made him swayter, more trusting, more eager 37 00:03:11.840 --> 00:03:15.800 to help. His family described him as chirpy, cheeky, helpful, 38 00:03:16.319 --> 00:03:18.159 a boy who would do anything for a pine coin 39 00:03:18.360 --> 00:03:21.960 or a kind word, and his name suited him. Daniel 40 00:03:22.159 --> 00:03:25.960 a gift from God, though by nineteen ninety four God 41 00:03:26.000 --> 00:03:29.159 seemed to have been looking the other way. The Hamleys 42 00:03:29.199 --> 00:03:32.960 lived on Tolgate Road in Beckton, a working class neighborhood 43 00:03:32.960 --> 00:03:35.800 in East London where the terraced council houses lined the 44 00:03:35.800 --> 00:03:40.120 streets in neat identical rows. But the family fractured and 45 00:03:40.199 --> 00:03:44.560 Daniel Senior moved out of the family home. Maxine moved on. 46 00:03:45.360 --> 00:03:48.000 She was now living with a man named Alexander Joseph, 47 00:03:48.479 --> 00:03:51.879 and the five boys had to adjust new flat, new 48 00:03:51.919 --> 00:03:56.159 father figure, new rules. By October of nineteen ninety four, 49 00:03:56.280 --> 00:03:58.520 Daniel was navigating life the way most nine year old 50 00:03:58.520 --> 00:04:03.319 boys do, being everywhere all at once. The neighbors knew 51 00:04:03.360 --> 00:04:07.840 him well. Marie lenn And remembered everybody knew him because 52 00:04:07.879 --> 00:04:11.280 he was everywhere. He was always about. He was the 53 00:04:11.360 --> 00:04:14.240 kind of boy who seemed to live outside, racing up 54 00:04:14.240 --> 00:04:16.680 and down the streets on a rusty saddle the sports 55 00:04:16.759 --> 00:04:21.120 bike that had seemed better years. He delivered papers, He 56 00:04:21.120 --> 00:04:24.480 helped neighbors carry shopping. He pushed trolley's back at Asda 57 00:04:24.560 --> 00:04:27.839 for a pond deposit. Those who knew him described him 58 00:04:27.879 --> 00:04:31.279 as friendly and fearless. He always seemed to have bruises 59 00:04:31.279 --> 00:04:35.759 and scraped knees. Some people said he was sensitive. He 60 00:04:35.800 --> 00:04:38.560 and his friends were played on by the Docklands railway line, 61 00:04:39.000 --> 00:04:42.879 exploring the industrial landscape that defined their corner of London. 62 00:04:44.040 --> 00:04:46.680 He also had a habit of wandering into other people's homes. 63 00:04:47.920 --> 00:04:52.639 Azra Asphal, another neighbor, lived just stores down. She remembered 64 00:04:53.279 --> 00:04:55.279 he spent more time in other people's houses than he 65 00:04:55.319 --> 00:04:57.920 did in his own. He was in my house most days. 66 00:04:58.439 --> 00:05:00.600 He's a very nice boy, but of any anyone offered 67 00:05:00.639 --> 00:05:05.360 him money, he'd do anything. It wasn't meant cruelly. It 68 00:05:05.439 --> 00:05:07.639 was the observation of a child who was helpful to 69 00:05:07.680 --> 00:05:11.360 a fault, eager to place, perhaps looking for stability and 70 00:05:11.439 --> 00:05:16.079 attention that a chaotic home life couldn't always provide. Daniel 71 00:05:16.120 --> 00:05:20.360 had a life that existed mostly outside four Walls. During 72 00:05:20.399 --> 00:05:24.199 the wake, he attended North Beckham Primary School. After schooling 73 00:05:24.240 --> 00:05:27.839 on the weekends, he roamed the neighborhood. His best friend, 74 00:05:27.959 --> 00:05:31.560 Alan Crane lived in an estate nearby. He was always 75 00:05:31.560 --> 00:05:35.439 at Allen's home. His mother, Sharon fondly remembered how he 76 00:05:35.480 --> 00:05:39.680 would bring her chocolates and flowers. He spoke about his dreams. 77 00:05:40.680 --> 00:05:44.720 She recalled he wanted to be a train driver. Those 78 00:05:44.720 --> 00:05:47.720 who loved him worried about him sometimes, especially when he 79 00:05:47.800 --> 00:05:51.639 disappeared for hours at a time. Victim wasn't necessarily a 80 00:05:51.720 --> 00:05:55.560 dangerous place, but it was London, the kind of place 81 00:05:55.600 --> 00:05:58.120 where you keep your doors locked and tell your children 82 00:05:58.160 --> 00:06:03.240 not to talk to strangers. Daniel, though, talked to everyone. 83 00:06:03.600 --> 00:06:07.240 He wasn't afraid. He liked to chat, but it was 84 00:06:07.279 --> 00:06:10.720 this open nature that would ultimately lead him into trouble. 85 00:06:19.879 --> 00:06:22.439 It was the second of October nineteen ninety four, and 86 00:06:22.519 --> 00:06:25.680 Daniel did what he did most sundays. He went outside 87 00:06:25.680 --> 00:06:29.399 to play. He'd been to the local supermarket earlier, where 88 00:06:29.399 --> 00:06:32.199 he often helped customers load their shopping into their cars, 89 00:06:32.720 --> 00:06:36.079 earning a few coins for his efforts. When he returned home, 90 00:06:36.120 --> 00:06:38.199 he asked his mother Maxine, if he could go to 91 00:06:38.240 --> 00:06:42.639 his friend's house. He was talking about Alan Crane, who 92 00:06:42.680 --> 00:06:45.680 lived on the Windsor Estate not far from Tollgate Road. 93 00:06:46.800 --> 00:06:49.000 Maxine said yes, but told them to be home by 94 00:06:49.000 --> 00:06:53.560 six o'clock, just in time for dinner, Daniel hopped onto 95 00:06:53.600 --> 00:06:57.920 his bike, a silver BMX without a saddle. He was 96 00:06:58.000 --> 00:07:00.439 dressed in a red boiler suit with the word racing 97 00:07:00.439 --> 00:07:04.480 emblazoned on the left breast pocket. He then peddled off 98 00:07:04.480 --> 00:07:08.319 into the gray October afternoon. Daniel played for some time 99 00:07:08.319 --> 00:07:11.360 at Alan's house, using the curbs as ramps around the 100 00:07:11.480 --> 00:07:16.120 estate to practice stunts on his bike. The afternoon stretched 101 00:07:16.160 --> 00:07:19.959 on the light began to fade. Daniel set out late 102 00:07:20.000 --> 00:07:23.040 in the afternoon to head home. By six pm, the 103 00:07:23.079 --> 00:07:27.399 streets were emptying. Families were gathering around tables, pulling curtains. 104 00:07:27.399 --> 00:07:31.759 Clothed against the cold. Maxine sat at the table and waited. 105 00:07:32.920 --> 00:07:37.680 Six o'clock came and went. Daniel didn't come home. At first. 106 00:07:37.759 --> 00:07:42.560 She wasn't worried. He was always late, always distracted, Always 107 00:07:42.600 --> 00:07:46.120 one more game, one more ride, one more friend's house 108 00:07:46.199 --> 00:07:50.439 to visit. But as the minutes ticked by, the worry 109 00:07:50.480 --> 00:07:54.439 began to creep in. By seven, it settled in her 110 00:07:54.519 --> 00:07:58.519 chest like a stone. By eight nine ten o'clock, the 111 00:07:58.560 --> 00:08:02.839 panic had fully taken hold. Maxine went outside, calling his 112 00:08:02.959 --> 00:08:07.279 name down the street. There was no response. She walked 113 00:08:07.279 --> 00:08:10.279 to the Windsor estate knocking on doors, asking neighbors if 114 00:08:10.279 --> 00:08:13.439 they'd seen him, if you had seen him earlier playing 115 00:08:13.439 --> 00:08:17.600 on his bike, but not recently, not for ours. She 116 00:08:17.680 --> 00:08:21.079 checked the usual places, the railway line, the park, the 117 00:08:21.120 --> 00:08:24.959 empty industrial estate where the children liked to play, but 118 00:08:25.040 --> 00:08:29.199 Daniel wasn't there. At ten forty six pm, Maxine Hanley 119 00:08:29.240 --> 00:08:31.040 called the police to report that her nine year old 120 00:08:31.079 --> 00:08:34.559 son Daniel, had failed to come home. The operator took 121 00:08:34.559 --> 00:08:39.039 down the details Daniel Charles Hamley, nine years old, red 122 00:08:39.080 --> 00:08:42.440 boiler suit with racing on the pocket, silver BMX bike 123 00:08:42.559 --> 00:08:45.960 without a saddle. The police assured her they would look 124 00:08:46.000 --> 00:08:49.519 into it. Children went missing all the time. Most of 125 00:08:49.559 --> 00:08:54.240 them turned up within ours, embarrassed and unharmed. But Maxie 126 00:08:54.279 --> 00:08:56.799 knew her son. He wasn't the kind of boy who 127 00:08:56.840 --> 00:09:00.720 steed out past arc on purpose. If he wasn't home, 128 00:09:01.399 --> 00:09:09.919 it was because something had stopped him. The search for 129 00:09:10.000 --> 00:09:13.720 Daniel got under way immediately within ours of Maxine's call. 130 00:09:13.799 --> 00:09:17.360 The neighborhood was swarming with police officers, their torches cutting 131 00:09:17.440 --> 00:09:22.320 through the October darkness. Detective Superintendent Ed Williams took charge, 132 00:09:22.720 --> 00:09:26.480 suspecting from the outset a pedophile abduction with possible murder. 133 00:09:27.320 --> 00:09:29.440 It was a grim instinct, but Williams had seen enough 134 00:09:29.519 --> 00:09:33.879 missing children cases to know the signs. Neighbors came out 135 00:09:33.879 --> 00:09:36.399 in their droves to help in the search, calling Daniel's 136 00:09:36.440 --> 00:09:41.080 name into the night. Scotland Yard announced, obviously our concern 137 00:09:41.159 --> 00:09:43.440 is growing as he is a very vulnerable lad with 138 00:09:43.440 --> 00:09:47.919 the speech impediment. He's never gone off before. Williams's team 139 00:09:47.960 --> 00:09:51.440 deployed local resources for doorder during quarries and physical searches 140 00:09:51.480 --> 00:09:56.200 across the vicinity, including wasteland, warehouses and nearby waterways, where 141 00:09:56.240 --> 00:09:59.000 divers were sent to scar the River Thames docks and 142 00:09:59.039 --> 00:10:03.159 tidal basins. That night, two teenage boys were walking through 143 00:10:03.159 --> 00:10:07.240 east Ham when they spotted a BMX lying on the verge. 144 00:10:07.480 --> 00:10:11.840 It was distinctive silver with a missing saddle. It was 145 00:10:11.919 --> 00:10:15.679 Daniel's bike. Three days later two boys from the estate 146 00:10:15.759 --> 00:10:18.600 came forward and admitted they had seen the bike lying 147 00:10:18.600 --> 00:10:21.000 on the verge just around the corner from Tolgate Road. 148 00:10:22.519 --> 00:10:25.440 They had taken it home to Clapton wiped it down, 149 00:10:25.559 --> 00:10:28.559 thinking they might keep it, but when they heard about 150 00:10:28.559 --> 00:10:31.840 the missing boy, Gil got the better of them. They 151 00:10:31.840 --> 00:10:34.799 gave the bike to police. The bike had been found 152 00:10:34.759 --> 00:10:39.120 abandoned about two hundred yards from Daniel's home. When Detective 153 00:10:39.200 --> 00:10:43.399 Superintendent william saw it wiped clean, abandoned so close to home, 154 00:10:44.159 --> 00:10:48.799 he knew this wasn't a runaway. Someone had taken Daniel. 155 00:10:49.720 --> 00:10:52.919 The next morning, the search continued. It was clear that 156 00:10:52.960 --> 00:10:55.759 Daniel wasn't in the neighborhood or surrounding area, so the 157 00:10:55.759 --> 00:10:59.679 search found out further Afield. Police checked all of the 158 00:10:59.720 --> 00:11:02.519 places says that Daniel liked to hang out, including the 159 00:11:02.559 --> 00:11:06.600 old becked In gasworks. There was a Vietnam film set 160 00:11:06.639 --> 00:11:10.320 there from the movie Fill Metal Jacket. Daniel and other 161 00:11:10.399 --> 00:11:13.960 children in the area enjoyed playing there, building dens among 162 00:11:13.960 --> 00:11:18.000 the industrial ruins, but Daniel was nowhere to be found. 163 00:11:18.799 --> 00:11:21.960 The search continued over at Beckton Lake, but Daniel wasn't 164 00:11:21.960 --> 00:11:24.919 there either. By day three of the search, police began 165 00:11:24.960 --> 00:11:28.600 to seriously consider the possibility that Daniel had been taken. 166 00:11:29.919 --> 00:11:35.120 Detective Superintendent Williams announced, We're going to search every site necessary. 167 00:11:35.720 --> 00:11:38.799 We've already searched all over the open spaces in the locality. 168 00:11:39.480 --> 00:11:42.240 There will be other searches later today in other areas 169 00:11:42.240 --> 00:11:46.720 around his home. Daniel's a very friendly boy, so it 170 00:11:46.759 --> 00:11:50.399 seemed plausible he would speak to a stranger. He was 171 00:11:50.440 --> 00:11:52.679 well known to many of the local bus drivers, and 172 00:11:52.759 --> 00:11:55.720 several from East London Buses were helping in the search. 173 00:11:56.919 --> 00:12:00.440 One of the drivers, Paul Woods, remarked, we're really worried. 174 00:12:00.840 --> 00:12:03.240 We all know him well. We see him on his 175 00:12:03.240 --> 00:12:05.279 bike or getting on the bus and he always has 176 00:12:05.320 --> 00:12:08.440 a chat. One driver in particular is very friendly with 177 00:12:08.559 --> 00:12:26.279 him and it's extremely upset. Daniel's family were beside themselves 178 00:12:26.279 --> 00:12:30.279 with worry. His uncle, Alan Guy, pleaded for any information. 179 00:12:31.320 --> 00:12:35.080 He even appealed to Daniel directly telling him, please, Daniel, 180 00:12:35.120 --> 00:12:37.639 will you come home. You know how to contact us, 181 00:12:38.000 --> 00:12:41.720 you know our number. Another theory was that Daniel had 182 00:12:41.759 --> 00:12:44.679 simply run away from home for whatever reason. It was 183 00:12:44.679 --> 00:12:48.759 a more comforting theory than any of the others. Alan 184 00:12:48.840 --> 00:12:52.679 continued staring, if anyone is keeping Daniel, and I don't 185 00:12:52.720 --> 00:12:57.000 mean malevolently, I would urge them to return him. Days 186 00:12:57.039 --> 00:12:59.840 continued to trickle past, and the longer time went on 187 00:13:00.080 --> 00:13:04.240 on the bleaker, the outcome was looking A police spokesman 188 00:13:04.399 --> 00:13:07.840 ominously said, I'm afraid that time appears to be running 189 00:13:07.840 --> 00:13:10.759 out for him. The weather had taken a turn for 190 00:13:10.799 --> 00:13:15.960 the worst and it was becoming increasingly cold. If Daniel 191 00:13:16.159 --> 00:13:18.519 was hiding out somewhere, he wouldn't have been able to 192 00:13:18.519 --> 00:13:23.000 survive the cold nights dressed only in a boiler's suit. Then, 193 00:13:23.039 --> 00:13:26.240 on the fifth day of this search, the investigation took 194 00:13:26.320 --> 00:13:30.679 a sharp turn. Police turned their attention to Daniel's home, 195 00:13:31.440 --> 00:13:36.320 specifically the garden. Forensic experts arrived on the scene as 196 00:13:36.360 --> 00:13:40.879 police began to excavate the garden. The police stressed, however, 197 00:13:41.120 --> 00:13:43.759 that it was just a practical part of the investigation. 198 00:13:45.080 --> 00:13:50.080 Detective Superintendent william said every investigation should actually start with 199 00:13:50.120 --> 00:13:52.960 those who is closest to the person. At the same time, 200 00:13:53.000 --> 00:13:56.519 they started to search another property at Newark Knock, just 201 00:13:56.559 --> 00:14:00.240 around the corner. This was where Daniel had lived with 202 00:14:00.279 --> 00:14:04.799 his mother, father, and four siblings before the separation around 203 00:14:04.840 --> 00:14:09.200 six months earlier. To some it seemed the farious, but 204 00:14:09.320 --> 00:14:13.519 detective stress that the family were cooperating and weren't considered suspects. 205 00:14:14.879 --> 00:14:17.960 The searches in the deg found nothing of interest, no 206 00:14:18.120 --> 00:14:22.360 clues that could point detectives in the right direction. It 207 00:14:22.440 --> 00:14:25.039 was as though the ground had opened up and swallowed 208 00:14:25.120 --> 00:14:29.200 Daniel hole. But the more that Williams looked at Daniel 209 00:14:29.240 --> 00:14:34.159 Hanley's family, the more he began to worry. The family 210 00:14:34.559 --> 00:14:38.399 had been living in Squalor. Maxine had sold the furniture, 211 00:14:38.559 --> 00:14:42.720 the fridge, and even the children's beds. Daniel and his 212 00:14:42.799 --> 00:14:46.480 brother slept on piles of rags on the floor. Two 213 00:14:46.519 --> 00:14:48.759 of them had moved out even though they were just 214 00:14:48.879 --> 00:14:53.879 young teenagers. Daniel had no proper clothing, wore an elder 215 00:14:53.919 --> 00:14:57.240 brothers cast off shoes, and didn't even have socks on 216 00:14:57.279 --> 00:15:01.679 the day he disappeared. Detectives had heard stories of bizarre 217 00:15:01.840 --> 00:15:06.720 sexual activity of Daniel's mother, Maxine, routinely having sex in 218 00:15:06.759 --> 00:15:10.240 her bedroom with her boyfriend alex knowing that local children 219 00:15:10.240 --> 00:15:14.080 were watching through holes in the door of other adults 220 00:15:14.159 --> 00:15:18.600 visiting the house for group sex. Williams was particularly worried 221 00:15:18.639 --> 00:15:23.279 about Alexander Joseph. Here was this physically powerful young man 222 00:15:23.679 --> 00:15:26.200 who could clear and press one hundred and forty kilos 223 00:15:26.720 --> 00:15:31.679 with a notorious temper, who he discovered had previously fantasized 224 00:15:31.720 --> 00:15:36.960 about killing children. Williams had found evidence of two occasions 225 00:15:36.960 --> 00:15:41.080 where Alexander had attacked Daniel's oldest brother, Paul, who was 226 00:15:41.120 --> 00:15:44.799 then fourteen. Once Paul had beaten him at a computer game, 227 00:15:45.039 --> 00:15:48.039 and Alexander had thrown him on the floor and kicked him. 228 00:15:48.519 --> 00:15:51.000 On another occasion, Alexander had been having a roy with 229 00:15:51.120 --> 00:15:54.279 Maxine and had tried to take back his engagement ring. 230 00:15:55.080 --> 00:15:58.200 When she refused, he grabbed Paul by the neck and 231 00:15:58.240 --> 00:16:02.440 started to strangle him. Was it possible that Alexander had 232 00:16:02.480 --> 00:16:06.039 lost his temper with Daniel, that he'd gone too far 233 00:16:06.360 --> 00:16:10.279 and killed him, and that Maxine was now covering up 234 00:16:10.320 --> 00:16:23.799 for him. It had been awake since Daniel vanished. Detectives 235 00:16:23.840 --> 00:16:27.720 appealed for more information about his BMX. They wanted to 236 00:16:27.759 --> 00:16:30.240 know how it ended up abandoned about two hundred yards 237 00:16:30.240 --> 00:16:33.440 from his home. They asked witnesses to come forward if 238 00:16:33.440 --> 00:16:36.879 they had seen Daniel or his distinct BMX after he 239 00:16:36.960 --> 00:16:41.000 left his friend's home on Windsor Estate. As they waited 240 00:16:41.000 --> 00:16:45.840 for tips to come in, Daniel's mother spoke publicly. Maxine 241 00:16:45.879 --> 00:16:48.639 said that the day since he disappeared had been hell. 242 00:16:49.840 --> 00:16:53.240 She said, I don't know what I feel. I don't 243 00:16:53.240 --> 00:16:56.080 know what to think. Every day that goes by, I 244 00:16:56.120 --> 00:16:58.480 get more frightened, just in case something might have happened 245 00:16:58.480 --> 00:17:02.399 to him. I'm just hoping alive. The next week passed 246 00:17:02.399 --> 00:17:05.720 in a blur for the family. The search was still ongoing, 247 00:17:05.920 --> 00:17:09.799 but detectives hit a brick wall. Maxine said that she 248 00:17:09.880 --> 00:17:14.119 really struggled. She left Alexander, saying that she needed to 249 00:17:14.119 --> 00:17:17.559 be alone. She struggled to cope with her other children 250 00:17:18.000 --> 00:17:21.640 and asked friends to look after them. She said, I'm 251 00:17:21.680 --> 00:17:24.960 losing hope. I just want to shut myself away. My 252 00:17:25.079 --> 00:17:27.279 parents say I should get out, even just down to 253 00:17:27.359 --> 00:17:29.359 the shops, but I stay in doors all the time. 254 00:17:29.920 --> 00:17:33.880 I've got to be hearing casey rings. Maxine had found 255 00:17:33.880 --> 00:17:38.000 herself being targeted by the community. They found comfort in 256 00:17:38.039 --> 00:17:40.759 accusing her of being a bad mother instead of the 257 00:17:40.799 --> 00:17:45.079 alternative possibility Daniel had been taken and killed by a stranger. 258 00:17:46.240 --> 00:17:49.000 They didn't want to consider the possibility that their child 259 00:17:49.319 --> 00:17:52.759 could be next to Mark. Two weeks since Daniel had vanished, 260 00:17:52.759 --> 00:17:57.839 a reconstruction was staged showing Daniel's last known movements. The 261 00:17:57.920 --> 00:18:01.319 last reported siding had come from a girl. She said 262 00:18:01.319 --> 00:18:04.119 she saw him in Yarrow Crescent around seven p m 263 00:18:04.160 --> 00:18:08.039 on his bike. This was just a short distance from 264 00:18:08.079 --> 00:18:11.640 winter Green Close, where his b m X was found abandoned. 265 00:18:13.000 --> 00:18:17.079 Detectives hoped that would jog people's memories, as Detective Superintendent 266 00:18:17.119 --> 00:18:20.759 Williams asked, did anyone see Daniel walking away from his 267 00:18:20.839 --> 00:18:23.480 bike on his own? Was he with anyone or did 268 00:18:23.480 --> 00:18:27.359 he get into a car. By the next week, detectives 269 00:18:27.400 --> 00:18:31.160 admitted what everybody was thinking, Daniel was most likely never 270 00:18:31.240 --> 00:18:36.000 coming home, that he had been taken and killed. Detective 271 00:18:36.039 --> 00:18:40.079 Superintendent Williams said, the history of missing children tells me 272 00:18:40.119 --> 00:18:42.319 that when they have disappeared for this length of time, 273 00:18:42.759 --> 00:18:47.119 there's little hope of recovery. The search for Daniel continued, 274 00:18:47.480 --> 00:18:50.319 but it became clear detectives were now searching for a body. 275 00:18:51.680 --> 00:18:54.839 They shifted their focus to derelict land and empty properties 276 00:18:54.839 --> 00:18:57.839 in the area. They also said they were taking a 277 00:18:57.880 --> 00:19:01.960 close look at known sex offenders. It was the start 278 00:19:02.000 --> 00:19:05.920 of November when a disturbing tip finally came in. According 279 00:19:05.920 --> 00:19:08.039 to a local man, he saw a boy fitting Daniel's 280 00:19:08.039 --> 00:19:12.799 description talking to two men. The boy was sitting beside 281 00:19:12.799 --> 00:19:15.480 a BMX around one hundred yards from where his bike 282 00:19:15.599 --> 00:19:18.799 was found. He was chatting to two men in an 283 00:19:18.920 --> 00:19:24.039 estate car, possibly a Nissan or a Ladda. One man 284 00:19:24.119 --> 00:19:26.640 was around forty while the other was around twenty five 285 00:19:26.680 --> 00:19:30.559 to thirty five. The witness said he then saw Daniel 286 00:19:30.680 --> 00:19:35.720 cycling away. Detectives began to formulate a new theory. They 287 00:19:35.799 --> 00:19:39.119 strongly believed that these two men were child predators and 288 00:19:39.200 --> 00:19:42.640 had abducted Daniel after he cycled away from them. But 289 00:19:42.680 --> 00:19:45.640 then there was a twist. On the fourteenth of December, 290 00:19:46.119 --> 00:19:50.880 Williams arrested Maxine and Alexander. They were questioned closely about 291 00:19:50.960 --> 00:19:56.400 Daniel's disappearance. Maxine later remembered, as I went into the house, 292 00:19:56.400 --> 00:19:59.200 a police officer came out and said, I'm arresting you 293 00:19:59.279 --> 00:20:02.440 on suspicion of the murder of Daniel Hanley. I was 294 00:20:02.480 --> 00:20:04.920 so shocked that all I could say was, how can 295 00:20:04.960 --> 00:20:07.279 you arrest me for the murder of Daniel Hanley when 296 00:20:07.319 --> 00:20:10.599 you haven't even found the body. She was taken to 297 00:20:10.720 --> 00:20:14.960 Edmonton Police station in question for three days. Maxine was 298 00:20:15.000 --> 00:20:17.440 able to persuade them that she was telling the truth. 299 00:20:18.440 --> 00:20:23.000 Williams wasn't so sure about Alexander, though, However. Psychiatrists who 300 00:20:23.039 --> 00:20:25.960 examined him concluded that he was far too simple minded 301 00:20:26.359 --> 00:20:29.720 to be able to concoct and sustain a complicated lie, 302 00:20:30.079 --> 00:20:33.640 and so he must be telling the truth. Williams accepted 303 00:20:33.640 --> 00:20:36.319 that they had done nothing to Daniel, but he charged 304 00:20:36.359 --> 00:20:41.119 them with gross indecency with children, assault and neglect. Alexander 305 00:20:41.160 --> 00:20:44.440 was sent to the psychiatric wing of Pentonville Prison, having 306 00:20:44.480 --> 00:20:48.960 been charged with defenses committed against some other children. Daniel's 307 00:20:48.960 --> 00:20:52.400 mother was on remand charged with similar offenses under the 308 00:20:52.480 --> 00:20:56.960 Children's Act. Williams redoubled his efforts to find Daniel, a 309 00:20:57.039 --> 00:21:00.440 boy who had clearly been a victim all of it life. 310 00:21:10.359 --> 00:21:13.359 The months continued to trickle past and winter gave way 311 00:21:13.440 --> 00:21:17.200 to spring. A local man was walking on Woodland Golf 312 00:21:17.240 --> 00:21:19.759 and Country Club in the small town of Bradley's Stoke, 313 00:21:20.240 --> 00:21:22.920 just north of Bristol, on the twenty seventh of March 314 00:21:23.039 --> 00:21:27.480 nineteen ninety five. It had been six months since Daniel disappeared. 315 00:21:28.640 --> 00:21:33.119 Stephen Jordan was with his dogs searching for rabbits. His 316 00:21:33.240 --> 00:21:35.799 dog wandered off into the undergrowth with his nose to 317 00:21:35.839 --> 00:21:40.119 the ground. He had detected a scent, but it wasn't 318 00:21:40.119 --> 00:21:44.759 a rabbit. Stephen followed, pushing through some long grass and 319 00:21:44.839 --> 00:21:49.200 brambles near the edge of the golf course. He approached 320 00:21:49.200 --> 00:21:52.559 where his dog was sniffing and spotted what looked at 321 00:21:52.599 --> 00:21:56.160 first like an old safety helmet half buried in the 322 00:21:56.240 --> 00:21:59.960 dirt and leaves, but when he got closer, he recoil 323 00:22:00.200 --> 00:22:04.880 in horror. It was a small skull. He stepped back 324 00:22:05.200 --> 00:22:08.720 and for a moment he just stood there. His mind 325 00:22:08.759 --> 00:22:12.079 was trying to process what he was looking at. He 326 00:22:12.160 --> 00:22:16.000 then immediately called the police. Within minutes, the area was 327 00:22:16.039 --> 00:22:20.359 swarming with police officers. They approached the small skull and 328 00:22:20.440 --> 00:22:24.240 cut back some grass. That's when they found a bright 329 00:22:24.279 --> 00:22:27.839 red boiler suit with the word Champion on it. The 330 00:22:27.880 --> 00:22:32.160 fabric was faded and dirt stained, but they recognized it immediately. 331 00:22:33.279 --> 00:22:36.599 The word racing was still visible on the left breast pocket. 332 00:22:37.960 --> 00:22:42.880 They contacted Detective Superintendent in Ed Williams. He arrived at 333 00:22:42.880 --> 00:22:45.319 the scene and stood looking down at the shallow grave. 334 00:22:46.680 --> 00:22:49.039 It was more than one hundred and twenty miles from Beckden, 335 00:22:49.839 --> 00:22:53.720 but Detective Williams knew right away they had finally found 336 00:22:53.799 --> 00:22:57.920 Daniel Hanley. His body was transported to the mortue in 337 00:22:58.000 --> 00:23:03.359 the local hospital. He was identified via dental records. Back 338 00:23:03.359 --> 00:23:05.640 at the scene, twenty six other small bones were found 339 00:23:05.680 --> 00:23:10.599 buried nearby. Daniel's skull had been uncovered by a scavenging fox, 340 00:23:11.240 --> 00:23:15.200 disturbed from its resting place by an animal looking for food. 341 00:23:15.519 --> 00:23:19.000 The case was no longer a missing person investigation. It 342 00:23:19.079 --> 00:23:23.119 was a murder inquiry, and detectives already had a theory. 343 00:23:33.599 --> 00:23:36.079 In April, detectives shared what they had come to believe 344 00:23:36.880 --> 00:23:40.839 Daniel had been killed by a pedophile sex ring. There 345 00:23:40.839 --> 00:23:44.000 were two suspects, the men seen in the car speaking 346 00:23:44.000 --> 00:23:48.079 to Daniel the day he disappeared. Detectives said they had 347 00:23:48.079 --> 00:23:51.200 information that suggested that Daniel was abducted by these two men, 348 00:23:51.680 --> 00:23:54.079 driven more than one hundred and twenty miles to Bristol, 349 00:23:54.440 --> 00:23:57.319 and sexually abused over a period of time before he 350 00:23:57.440 --> 00:24:02.200 was killed. Detective Williamson said, it is a horrific act 351 00:24:02.279 --> 00:24:05.079 of the pattern of activity of pedophiles that they do 352 00:24:05.200 --> 00:24:09.240 pass children from hand to hand. This isn't just my imagination, 353 00:24:09.920 --> 00:24:11.960 it is the reality of the conduct of men of 354 00:24:11.960 --> 00:24:15.880 this kind. It's a brutal fact of life. The witness 355 00:24:15.920 --> 00:24:19.920 sidings were beginning to piece together a horrifying timeline. One 356 00:24:19.960 --> 00:24:22.240 witness said they saw Daniel with three men in a 357 00:24:22.279 --> 00:24:25.000 cafe in the Bristol area on the twelfth of October, 358 00:24:25.559 --> 00:24:29.279 ten days after he disappeared. He seemed to be relaxed, 359 00:24:29.839 --> 00:24:32.440 like he was supposed to be there, like he wasn't 360 00:24:32.480 --> 00:24:35.839 being held against his will. Another witness had said they 361 00:24:35.839 --> 00:24:38.920 saw Daniel in a Bristol straight in early November, not 362 00:24:39.079 --> 00:24:42.519 far from where his body was eventually found. He was 363 00:24:42.559 --> 00:24:45.480 being walked between two men who were holding his arms 364 00:24:45.480 --> 00:24:50.000 above his head. The witness said he seemed distressed and 365 00:24:50.079 --> 00:24:53.200 said he looked like he was close to death. Williams 366 00:24:53.200 --> 00:24:55.680 called for a press conference and went again to Crime 367 00:24:55.720 --> 00:24:59.319 Watch to ask for help, particularly for sightings of Daniel 368 00:24:59.359 --> 00:25:03.400 in the Bristol aga. They released a composite sketch of 369 00:25:03.400 --> 00:25:06.400 one of the men, hoping somebody could help identify him. 370 00:25:07.400 --> 00:25:10.440 He was a white man, clean shaven, with a wronged face. 371 00:25:11.640 --> 00:25:15.839 The sketch was circulated in newspapers and on television. Someone 372 00:25:15.920 --> 00:25:20.039 somewhere had to know this man. Public appeals, broadcast on 373 00:25:20.119 --> 00:25:24.480 BBC's Crime Watch elicited one hundred and thirty eight telephone tips, 374 00:25:25.160 --> 00:25:28.480 many referencing sidings of a silver blue Pugio Estate car 375 00:25:28.519 --> 00:25:32.480 near the abduction site. Detectives began cross referencing the tips, 376 00:25:33.200 --> 00:25:36.839 the silver blue Pudio Estate, the two men, the sidings 377 00:25:36.839 --> 00:25:39.519 in Bristol. The body found near a golf course in 378 00:25:39.599 --> 00:25:44.440 Bradley's Stoke, and then someone recognized the face in the 379 00:25:44.480 --> 00:25:49.720 composite sketch. The witness was a psychiatrist identified only as 380 00:25:49.759 --> 00:25:53.799 mister B. He told detectives about a former patient who 381 00:25:53.839 --> 00:25:57.000 had once told him he fantasized about abducting, raping, and 382 00:25:57.079 --> 00:26:00.799 killing a little boy. That patient was thirty two year 383 00:26:00.839 --> 00:26:05.240 old Timothy John Morse. Morse lived in Bradley's Stoke, on 384 00:26:05.279 --> 00:26:08.359 the outskirts of Bristol, where he co owned and ran 385 00:26:08.480 --> 00:26:11.799 a mini cap firm. It was early close to where 386 00:26:11.839 --> 00:26:16.440 Daniel's body had been found. Williams immediately sent officers to 387 00:26:16.519 --> 00:26:21.000 Morse's address, but when they arrived, he was gone. His 388 00:26:21.079 --> 00:26:23.880 business partner said he had left the country and gone 389 00:26:23.920 --> 00:26:29.440 to the Philippines. Williams instincts kicked in. People didn't just 390 00:26:29.519 --> 00:26:33.920 flee to Southeast Asia for no reason. When Williams ran 391 00:26:34.039 --> 00:26:38.839 Morse's record, the picture became even more clear. Moose was 392 00:26:38.880 --> 00:26:41.680 convicted of raping two young boys in nineteen eighty six 393 00:26:42.079 --> 00:26:44.599 and had his seven year sentence cut to five on 394 00:26:44.680 --> 00:26:48.400 the second of November nineteen eighty six. He was a 395 00:26:48.440 --> 00:26:52.119 convicted pedophile. He had told friends he needed boys age 396 00:26:52.160 --> 00:26:56.359 between eight and twelve to satisfy his lust, and if 397 00:26:56.400 --> 00:26:59.480 the witness accounts were accurate, there had been two men 398 00:26:59.519 --> 00:27:03.240 in the car. Williams needed to find out whom Morse 399 00:27:03.240 --> 00:27:06.240 had been with. He needed to find the second man. 400 00:27:24.920 --> 00:27:26.960 It was soon discovered that Moors hadn't fled to the 401 00:27:26.960 --> 00:27:31.160