Melanie Hall murder: fresh police appeal 30 years after Bath disappearance
Avon and Somerset Police have launched a new appeal to solve the 1996 murder of Melanie Hall, whose body was found wrapped in bin bags beside the M5 in 2009.
Thirty years on, family await justice for Melanie Hall
Steve Hall sits in his daughter's bedroom, clutching an old teddy bear and turning over antique clay pipes on the windowsill. The room is almost unchanged from the evening Melanie left and never came home. The bed is neatly made, books remain on the shelf, and a wooden dressing table stands in the corner beneath a faded picture.
"Nothing prepares you for it," he told The Independent. "It's a bit like car accidents — you always think they're going to happen to someone else, but occasionally they happen to you."
Melanie Hall, 25, disappeared on a night out with friends at the former Cadillacs nightclub in Bath in 1996. Earlier that day she had watched England draw against Switzerland on the opening day of the Euro football finals with her boyfriend. The university graduate was last seen sitting on the edge of the dance floor. Thirteen years later, in 2009, her remains were discovered wrapped in bin bags beside the M5 motorway. Avon and Somerset Police have made 11 arrests in connection with the case, but no one has ever been charged with her murder.
On Friday — the anniversary of her disappearance — the force launched a fresh appeal under the banner of the Justice for Melanie campaign, which aims to take people back to the month she went missing in the hope of triggering dormant details or memories.
Detective Chief Inspector Ben Lavender said: "Just one small detail or memory… could prove to be a huge breakthrough and solve Melanie's murder."
Messages will be displayed on the digital screen during Saturday's rugby match between Bath and Leicester Tigers. A van carrying advertising will travel around Bath, and appeals will also appear on local businesses and council services.
A reward of £20,000, offered by independent charity Crimestoppers, is available for information leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible.
A family's three decades of anguish
For Melanie's family — her father Steve, mother Pat, and sister Dominique — the uncertainty over what happened and why has persisted for thirty years.
Dominique said the thought she finds hardest to carry is the prospect of her sister's final moments. "The biggest thing I put in a box is her being scared and frightened," she said. "I find it a little bit overwhelming. I hope and pray that whatever happened to her was quick and she didn't know it was coming."
On the question of justice, she was direct: "I do feel angry. I feel angry that she lost her life at 25, that someone chose to take that away from her. I feel angry that I lost my sister. I've lost part of myself, part of my identity."
Her father echoed that need for answers. "It will never bring Melanie back, it will never take away the 30 years of what we've lost with her," he said. "I'd like justice for her, I'd like to understand why."
Melanie's mother Pat is now suffering from advanced dementia. Steve Hall said the grief of losing his daughter had taken a lasting toll. "I think she gave up when Melanie was found. I think she kept going until that point in time and I think when she got her daughter back, that for her was the finish of it, and she wasn't the same afterwards."
Items still missing
A post-mortem examination found that Melanie had suffered extensive head injuries. Her clothing, jewellery and other belongings have never been recovered. Police are still seeking a pale blue silk dress, black suede mule shoes, a cream single-breasted jacket, a Next watch, silver drop earrings and a black handbag.
Anyone with information can contact Avon and Somerset Police's Operation Denmark team online, by calling 101, or by visiting an enquiry office. Crimestoppers can be contacted anonymously at its website or by calling 0800 555111.
Source: The Independent