MURDER SQUAD

17 April, 2006 by The_Boss

ITV1 Thursday 20 April 2006 10:00 PM to 10:30 PM

Murder Squad provides a unique insight into the dedicated police squads that spring into action as soon as a murder is discovered in the capital.

The new series follows detectives on eight real murder enquiries, from their first moments on the crime scene - the crucial ‘golden hour’ - through to the trial of the defendants.

The nine-part series, which has taken over a year to film, focuses on the Murder Investigation Teams in south London. They are among the most successful homicide squads in the world, with a clear-up rate of more than 90%.

The series starts with the tragic story of pensioner Winifred Hill who’s been fatally mugged by a heroin addict in the quiet London suburb of Biggin Hill.

Once detectives are alerted to the death of the 76-year-old they swing into action. Winifred’s 97-year-old friend who was with her when she was attacked provides a valuable lead, telling police she overheard the mugger use the phrase 'excuse me ladies' when he stole Winifred's handbag. The detectives seek out muggers who have used the words 'excuse me ladies' in the past and put them under surveillance.

They learn that the muggers escaped in a car and eyewitnesses took down the number plate, allowing them to find out that the car was stolen in a house burglary over a month ago.

With the surveillance operation in full swing, the stolen car is spotted in a different part of London by murder detectives who take chase. The traffic police film the dramatic pursuit of the car and the suspect across London, finally forcing the car into a dead end. They grab the passenger but fail to catch the driver who sprints away.

The passenger identifies the escaped driver as heroin addict Darren Stanger. He is well known to police and has previous convictions, including one for violently mugging an elderly lady in her 80's. The stolen car holds a clue as to where Stanger may be hiding. It contains a methadone bottle, prescribed by a chemist in Bromley. The murder squad find out that Stanger uses a flat near to the chemist to take his heroin.

Six days into the enquiry, detectives capture Stanger. One of his associates is questioned, and his evidence confirms that Stanger was responsible for the mugging of Winifred Hill. In December 2005 Darren Stanger pleaded guilty to manslaughter and aggravated robbery.

The murder squads are on call around the clock out and deal with any suspicious deaths, suicides, attempted murders and murders. The first 24 hours of an enquiry are crucial and the crimes are usually solved by the forensic evidence, witness statements and CCTV gathered in that period.

Following the Stephen Lawrence enquiry, murder investigations were revised and specially trained full time teams (27 of them across London, each with about 30 officers) were set up to investigate all homicides.