Editing Moors murders (section)

== Investigation ==
=== Arrest ===
After the murder of Evans, Smith agreed to return the following morning to help transport the body to the car before disposing of it on Saddleworth Moor. He arrived home around 3:00 a.m. and asked his wife to make a cup of tea, which he drank before vomiting and telling her what he had witnessed. At 6:10 a.m., having waited for daylight and armed himself with a screwdriver and bread knife{{snd}}in case Brady was planning to intercept him{{snd}}Smith called police from a [[phone box]] on the estate. He was picked up by a police car from the phone box and taken to Hyde police station, where he told officers what he had witnessed the previous night.{{sfnp|Benfield|1968|pp=150–151|ps=none}}

[[Superintendent (police)#United Kingdom|Police Superintendent]] Bob Talbot of the [[Stalybridge]] police division went to Wardle Brook Avenue, accompanied by a [[detective sergeant]]. Wearing a bread deliveryman's overall on top of his uniform, he asked Hindley at the back door if her husband was home. When she denied that she had a husband or that a man was in the house, Talbot identified himself. Hindley led him into the living room, where Brady was lying on a [[Divan (furniture)|divan]], writing to his employer about his ankle injury.{{sfnp|Benfield|1968|p=151}} Talbot explained that he was investigating "an act of violence involving guns" that was reported to have taken place the previous evening.{{sfnp|Topping|1989|pp=120–121|ps=none}} Hindley denied there had been any violence, and allowed police to look around the house. When police asked for the key to the locked spare bedroom, she said it was at her workplace; but after police offered to take her to retrieve it, Brady told her to hand it over. Evans' body was discovered in the bedroom, and Brady was arrested on suspicion of murder.{{sfnp|Topping|1989|pp=120–121|ps=none}} As Brady was getting dressed, he said, "Eddie and I had a row and the situation got out of hand."{{sfnp|Ritchie|1988|p=85|ps=none}}

=== Initial analysis ===
Though Hindley was not initially arrested, she demanded to go with Brady to the police station, taking her dog.{{sfnp|Staff|2007|pp=193–194|ps=none}} She refused to make any statement about Evans' death beyond claiming it had been an accident, and was allowed to go home on the condition that she return the next day.{{sfnp|Topping|1989|pp=122–124|ps=none}} Over the next four days Hindley visited her employer and asked to be dismissed so that she would be eligible for [[unemployment benefits]]. On one of these occasions, she found an envelope belonging to Brady which she burned in an ashtray; she claimed she did not open it but believed it contained plans for bank robberies.

In the meantime, the police were uncovering more evidence and became convinced that Hindley was actively involved in the murder of Evans and other possible victims. On 11 October, she too was arrested and taken into custody. She was charged as an [[Accessory (legal term)|accessory]] to the murder of Evans and [[Remand (detention)|remanded]] at [[HM Prison Risley|Risley Prison]].{{sfnp|Topping|1989|pp=122–124|ps=none}}

Police searching the house at Wardle Brook Avenue found an old exercise book with the name "John Kilbride", which made them suspect that Brady and Hindley had been involved in the unsolved disappearances of other children and teenagers.{{sfnp|Topping|1989|p=33|ps=none}} Brady told police that he and Evans had fought, but insisted that he and Smith had murdered Evans and that Hindley had "only done what she had been told."{{sfnp|Topping|1989|p=122|ps=none}} 

Smith said that Brady had asked him to return anything incriminating, such as "dodgy books", which Brady then packed into suitcases; he had no idea what else the suitcases contained or where they might be, though he mentioned that Brady "had a thing about railway stations." A search of left-luggage offices turned up the suitcases at Manchester Central railway station on 15 October;{{sfnp|Lee|2010|pp=234–235|ps=none}} the claim ticket was later found in Hindley's prayer book.{{sfnp|Topping|1989|p=107|ps=none}} Inside one of the cases were—among an assortment of costumes, notes, photographs and negatives—nine pornographic photographs of a young girl, soon identified as Downey, naked and with a scarf tied across her mouth, and a sixteen-minute audiotape recording of a girl identifying herself as "Lesley Ann Weston"{{efn|Downey's stepfather was named Alan West.<ref>{{cite news|title=Stepfather of Moors Murder Victim Lesley Ann Downey Dies|url=https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/stepfather-moors-murder-victim-lesley-11507044|work=Manchester Evening News|date=21 June 2016|access-date=5 February 2021}}</ref>}} screaming, crying and pleading to be allowed to return home to her mother.{{sfnp|Goodman|1973|p=28|ps=none}}{{sfnp|Topping|1989|p=35|ps=none}} Downey's mother was asked by police to look at the two photographs which were deemed appropriate in order to identify her daughter, and also identified the voice from the recording, too, was of her daughter.{{sfnp|Topping|1989|pp=35–36|ps=none}}

Officers making inquiries at neighbouring houses spoke to Hodges, who had on several occasions been taken to Saddleworth Moor by Brady and Hindley, and was able to point out their favourite sites along the [[A635 road]].{{sfnp|Goodman|1973|p=27|ps=none}} Police immediately began to search the area, and on 16 October found an arm bone protruding from the peat, which was presumed at first to be that of Kilbride, but which the next day was identified as that of Downey, whose body was still visually identifiable; her mother was able to identify the clothing, which had also been buried in the grave.<ref name="Times ears covered">{{cite news |title= Two women at 'bodies on moors' trial cover their ears |newspaper=The Times |publisher=Times Digital Archive |date=27 April 1966 |page=9 |issue=56616 |url=http://infotrac.galegroup.com/itw/infomark/552/371/35114420w16/purl=rc1_TTDA_0_CS151743131&dyn=3!xrn_2_0_CS151743131&hst_1?sw_aep=mclib |access-date=11 August 2009 |url-access=subscription |mode=cs2}}</ref>

[[File:Myra at John Kilbride's grave.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.3|alt=A crouched blonde woman in thick jacket, trousers, and boots, holding a small dog.|In this photograph taken by Brady in November 1963, Hindley crouches over John Kilbride's grave on Saddleworth Moor with her dog, Puppet.]]
Also among the photographs in the suitcase were a number of scenes of the Moors. Smith had told police that Brady had boasted of "photographic proof" of multiple murders, and officers, struck by Brady's decision to remove the apparently innocent landscapes from the house, appealed to locals for assistance finding locations to match the photographs. On 21 October they found the "badly [[human decomposition|decomposed]]" body of Kilbride, which his mother had to identify by clothing.{{sfnp|Goodman|1973|pp=28–29|ps=none}} That same day, already being held for the murder of Evans, Brady and Hindley appeared at Hyde [[Magistrates' Court]] charged with Downey's murder. Each was brought before the court separately and remanded into custody for a week.<ref>{{cite news |title=Couple on Moors Murder Charge |newspaper=The Times |date=22 October 1965 |page=8 |issue=56459 |url=http://infotrac.galegroup.com/itw/infomark/552/371/35114420w16/purl=rc1_TTDA_0_CS134834518&dyn=3!xrn_1_0_CS134834518&hst_1?sw_aep=mclib |publisher=Times Digital Archive |access-date=11 August 2009 |url-access=subscription |mode=cs2}}</ref> They made a two-minute appearance on 28 October, and were again remanded into custody.<ref>{{cite news |title=Couple in Court Two Minutes |newspaper=The Times |publisher=Times Digital Archive |date=29 October 1965 |page=15 |issue=56465 |url=http://infotrac.galegroup.com/itw/infomark/552/371/35114420w16/purl=rc1_TTDA_0_CS252799325&dyn=3!xrn_2_0_CS252799325&hst_1?sw_aep=mclib |access-date=11 August 2009 |url-access=subscription |mode=cs2}}</ref>

The investigating officers suspected Brady and Hindley of murdering other missing children and teenagers who had disappeared from areas in and around Manchester over the previous few years, and the search continued for a while after the discovery of Kilbride's body, but with winter setting in it was called off in November. Various newspapers were also keen to name possible further victims of the "Moors Murders", with Reade and Bennett being two of them.{{sfnp|Goodman|1973|pp=30–32|ps=none}}

Presented with the evidence of the tape recording, Brady admitted to taking the photographs of Downey, but insisted that she had been brought to Wardle Brook Avenue by two men who had subsequently taken her away again, alive. By 2 December, Brady had been charged with the murders of Kilbride, Downey and Evans. Hindley had been charged with the murders of Downey and Evans, and being an accessory to the murder of Kilbride.<ref>{{cite news |title=Clerk Accused Of Three Murders |newspaper=The Times |publisher=Times Digital Archive |date=3 December 1965 |page=17 |issue=56495 |url=http://infotrac.galegroup.com/itw/infomark/535/223/73522511w16/purl=rc1_TTDA_0_CS285829507&dyn=6!xrn_6_0_CS285829507&hst_1?sw_aep=mclib |access-date=25 September 2009 |url-access=subscription |mode=cs2}}</ref> At the committal hearing on 6 December, Brady was charged with the murders of Evans, Kilbride, and Downey, and Hindley with the murders of Evans and Downey, as well as with harbouring Brady in the knowledge that he had killed Kilbride. The [[prosecution]]'s opening statement was held ''[[In camera|in chambers]]'' rather than in open court,<ref>{{cite news|title=Hearing Of Moors Murder Case In Camera |newspaper=The Times |publisher=Times Digital Archive |date=7 December 1965 |page=6 |issue=56498 |url=http://infotrac.galegroup.com/itw/infomark/535/223/73522511w16/purl=rc1_TTDA_0_CS100886919&dyn=6!xrn_7_0_CS100886919&hst_1?sw_aep=mclib |access-date=25 September 2009 |mode=cs2 |url-access=subscription}}</ref> and the [[defense (law)|defence]] asked for a similar stipulation but was refused.<ref>{{cite news |title=Prosecution tells how a youth of 17 died |newspaper=The Times |publisher=Times Digital Archive |date=8 December 1965 |page=15 |issue=56499 |url=http://infotrac.galegroup.com/itw/infomark/758/656/39554341w16/purl=rc1_TTDA_0_CS251881864&dyn=3!xrn_7_0_CS251881864&hst_1?sw_aep=mclib |access-date=28 September 2009 |url-access=subscription |mode=cs2}}</ref> The proceedings continued before three [[Magistrate (England and Wales)|magistrates]] in Hyde over an eleven-day period during December, at the end of which the pair were committed for trial at [[Chester Crown Court|Chester Assizes]].<ref name="HindleyODNB" /><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.cheshire-live.co.uk/news/history/how-chester-chronicle-covered-infamous-11209509|title=How The Chester Chronicle covered the infamous Moors Murders trial|work=Chester Chronicle|date=20 April 2016|access-date=19 September 2019|mode=cs2}}</ref>

Many of the photographs taken by Brady and Hindley on the moor featured Hindley's dog Puppet, sometimes as a puppy. To help date the photos, detectives had a veterinary surgeon examine the dog to determine his age; the examination required a [[general anaesthetic]] from which Puppet did not recover. Hindley was furious, and accused the police of murdering the dog&nbsp;– one of the few occasions detectives witnessed any emotional response from her.{{sfnp|Topping|1989|p=37|ps=none}} Hindley wrote to her mother:
{{blockquote|I feel as though my heart's been torn to pieces. I don't think anything could hurt me more than this has. The only consolation is that some moron might have got hold of Puppet and hurt him.{{sfnp|Staff|2007|p=213|ps=none}}}}

=== Trial ===
The 14-day trial began in a specially-prepared court room at Chester Assizes before Mr Justice [[Fenton Atkinson]], on 19 April 1966.<ref name="HindleyODNB"/> The dock was fitted with bulletproof glass to protect Brady and Hindley because it was feared that someone might try to kill them, such was the public outrage at the crimes.<ref name="Chron1">{{cite news|url=https://www.cheshire-live.co.uk/news/chester-cheshire-news/how-chester-focus-nation-during-11204422|title=How Chester was the focus of the nation during Moors Murderers trial – Pt. 1|newspaper=[[Chester Chronicle]]|date=18 April 2016}}</ref> Other elaborate security precautions included a public address system costing £2,500 and £500 worth of telephone equipment.<ref name="Chron1"/> National and international journalists covering the trial booked up most of the city's hotel rooms.<ref name="Chron2">{{cite news|url=https://www.cheshire-live.co.uk/news/history/how-chester-chronicle-covered-infamous-11209509|title=How The Chester Chronicle covered the infamous Moors Murders trial – Pt. 2|newspaper=Chester Chronicle|date=19 April 2016}}</ref> Onlookers – some travelling for hours – would stand outside Chester Assizes every day during the trial.<ref name="Chron2"/>

Brady and Hindley were charged with murdering Evans, Downey and Kilbride.{{sfnp|Staff|2007|p=222|ps=none}} The [[Attorney General for England and Wales|Attorney General]], Sir [[Elwyn Jones, Baron Elwyn-Jones|Elwyn Jones]], led the prosecution, assisted by [[William Mars-Jones]].<ref name="HindleyODNB" /> Brady was defended by [[Emlyn Hooson]] QC, the [[Liberal Party (UK)|Liberal]] [[Member of Parliament (United Kingdom)|Member of Parliament]] (MP),<ref>{{cite news |title=Boy tricked into seeing murder, moors trial Q.C. says |newspaper=The Times |publisher=Times Digital Archive |date=20 April 1966 |url=http://archive.timesonline.co.uk/tol/viewArticle.arc?articleId=ARCHIVE-The_Times-1966-04-20-16-001&pageId=ARCHIVE-The_Times-1966-04-20-16 |access-date=16 September 2009 |first=Fiona |last=Hamilton |mode=cs2}}{{dead link|date=September 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> and Hindley was defended by Godfrey Heilpern QC, [[recorder (judge)|recorder]] of [[Salford]] from 1964; both were experienced [[Queen's Counsel]].{{sfnp|Staff|2007|p=225|ps=none}}<ref>{{cite news |title=Mr Godfrey Heilpern |url=http://infotrac.galegroup.com/itw/infomark/374/527/35176649w16/purl=rc1_TTDA_0_CS237861029&dyn=15!xrn_2_0_CS237861029&hst_1?sw_aep=mclib |newspaper=The Times |publisher=Times Digital Archive |date=5 May 1973 |page=14 |issue=58774 |url-access=subscription|mode=cs2}}</ref>

Smith was the chief prosecution witness. Before the trial, the ''[[News of the World]]'' newspaper offered £1,000 to Smith for the rights to his story; the American ''[[People (magazine)|People]]'' magazine made a competing offer of £6,000 (equivalent to about £{{formatnum:{{Inflation|UK|1000|1966|r=-4}}|0}} and £{{formatnum:{{Inflation|UK|6000|1966|r=-4}}|0}} respectively in {{Inflation/year|UK}}).{{Inflation-fn|UK|df=y}} When Smith accepted the ''News of the World'' offer—its editors had promised additional future payments for [[Print syndication|syndication]] and [[serialisation]]—he agreed to be paid £15 weekly until the trial, and £1,000 in a lump sum if Brady and Hindley were convicted.{{sfnp|Bingham|2016|p=235}} During the trial, the judge and defence barristers repeatedly questioned Smith and his wife about the nature of the arrangement. At first, Smith refused to name the newspaper, risking [[contempt of court]]; when he eventually identified the ''News of the World'', Jones, as Attorney General, immediately promised an investigation.{{sfnp|Bingham|2016|p=237}} Comparing Smith's testimony with his initial statements to police, Atkinson—though describing the paper's actions as "gross interference with the course of justice"—concluded it was not "substantially affected" by the financial incentive. Jones decided not to charge the ''News of the World'' on similar grounds.{{sfnp|Bingham|2016|pp=230, 238}}

Both Brady and Hindley entered [[plea]]s of not guilty;<ref name="TimeNotGuilty">{{cite magazine |title=A Most Unusual Trial |url=http://connection.ebscohost.com/c/articles/54033848 |access-date=5 September 2019 |magazine=Time Magazine |volume=87 |issue=17 |date=29 April 1966 |page=40 |mode=cs2 |via=EBSCOhost}}</ref> Brady testified for over eight hours, Hindley for six.{{sfnp|Topping|1989|p=38|ps=none}} Brady admitted to striking Evans with the [[axe]], but claimed that someone else had ''killed'' Evans, pointing to the pathologist's statement that his death had been "accelerated by strangulation"<!-- this needs further work; at least it needs to be explained that, in any event, it appears to have been Brady who strangled Evans anyway-->; Brady's "calm, undisguised arrogance did not endear him to the jury [and] neither did his pedantry", wrote Duncan Staff.{{sfnp|Staff|2007|pp=227–228|ps=none}} Hindley denied any knowledge that the photographs of Saddleworth Moor found by police had been taken near the graves of their victims.{{sfnp|Topping|1989|p=39|ps=none}}

The sixteen-minute tape recording<ref name="Times ears covered"/>{{efn|Brady made more than one copy of the tape recording;{{sfnp|Cowley|2011|p=70|ps=none}} the version played in court was sixteen minutes in length.<ref name="Times ears covered" />}} of Downey, on which the voices of Brady and Hindley were audible, was played in open court. Hindley admitted that her attitude towards Downey was "brusque and cruel", but claimed that was only because she was afraid that someone might hear the child's screams. Hindley claimed that when Downey was being undressed she herself was "downstairs"; when the pornographic photographs were taken she was "looking out the window"; and that when Downey was being strangled she "was running a bath".{{sfnp|Topping|1989|p=39|ps=none}}

On 6 May, after having deliberated for a little over two hours,<ref>{{cite news |title=Life sentences on couple in moors case |url=http://infotrac.galegroup.com/itw/infomark/695/969/71907494w16/purl=rc1_TTDA_0_CS17787559&dyn=3!xrn_3_0_CS17787559&hst_1?sw_aep=mclib |newspaper=The Times |publisher=Times Digital Archive |date=7 May 1966 |access-date=29 July 2009|mode=cs2|url-access=subscription}}</ref> the jury found Brady guilty of all three murders, and Hindley guilty of the murders of Downey and Evans. As the death penalty for murder [[Murder (Abolition of Death Penalty) Act 1965|had been abolished]] six months earlier, the judge passed the only sentence that the law now allowed for murder: [[life imprisonment]]. Brady was sentenced to three concurrent life sentences and Hindley was given two, plus a concurrent seven-year term for harbouring Brady in the knowledge that he had murdered Kilbride.<ref name="HindleyODNB" /> Brady was taken to [[HM Prison Durham]] and Hindley was sent to [[HM Prison Holloway]].{{sfnp|Topping|1989|p=39|ps=none}}

In his closing remarks, Mr Justice Atkinson described the murders as "truly horrible" and the accused as "two sadistic killers of the utmost depravity";{{sfnp|Carmichael|2003|p=2|ps=none}} he recommended they spend "a very long time" in prison before being considered for parole, but did not stipulate a [[tariff (criminal law)|tariff]]. Anyone sentenced to life imprisonment would be liable to spend the rest of his or her natural life in prison, but could be paroled on life licence by the Home Secretary on recommendation of the Parole Board.

He described Brady as "wicked beyond belief" and said he saw no reasonable possibility of reform and suitability for parole for him, though he did not think the same necessarily true of Hindley once "removed from [Brady's] influence".<ref>{{cite news |title=Obituary: Myra Hindley |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/452614.stm |work=BBC News |date=15 November 2002 |access-date=12 June 2007 |mode=cs2}}</ref> Throughout the trial Brady and Hindley "stuck rigidly to their strategy of lying",{{sfnp|Staff|2007|p=229|ps=none}} and Hindley was later described as "a quiet, controlled, impassive witness who lied remorselessly".<ref name="HindleyODNB" />

=== Later investigation ===
Since Brady and Hindley's arrests, newspapers had been keen to connect them to other missing children and teenagers from the area. One such victim was Stephen Jennings, a three-year-old [[West Yorkshire]] boy who was last seen alive in December 1962; his body was found buried in a field in 1988, but the following year his father, William Jennings, was found guilty of his murder.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/news/11916049.Life_for_man_who_killed_son_in_1962/ |title=Life for man who killed son in 1962 |website=Evening Times |date=24 May 1989 |access-date=20 September 2018 |mode=cs2}}</ref> Jennifer Tighe, a 14-year-old girl who disappeared from an [[Oldham]] children's home in December 1964, was mentioned in the press some forty years later but was confirmed by police to be alive.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/moors-murder-victim-is-alive-940525 |title=Moors murder 'victim' is 'alive |last=Linton |first=Deborah |date=20 April 2010 |access-date=20 September 2018|mode=cs2}}</ref> This followed claims in 2004 that Hindley had told another inmate that she and Brady had murdered a sixth victim, a teenage girl.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/myra-told-victim-no-5-1606764|title=Myra told of victim No. 5|last=Chronicle|first=Evening|date=14 February 2004 |access-date=20 September 2018|mode=cs2}}</ref>

In 1985, Brady allegedly told [[Fred Harrison (author)|Fred Harrison]], a journalist working for ''[[The Sunday People]]'', that he had killed Reade and Bennett,{{sfnp|Ritchie|1988|p=252|ps=none}} something the police already suspected as both lived near Brady and Hindley and had disappeared at about the same time as Kilbride and Downey. [[Greater Manchester Police]] (GMP) reopened the investigation, now to be headed by [[Chief superintendent|Detective Chief Superintendent]] Peter Topping, head of GMP's [[Criminal Investigation Department]] (CID).{{sfnp|Topping|1989|p=10|ps=none}}

On 3 July 1985, DCS Topping visited Brady, then being held at [[HM Prison Gartree]] in [[Leicestershire]], but found him "scornful of any suggestion that he had confessed to more murders".{{sfnp|Topping|1989|p=13|ps=none}} Police nevertheless decided to resume their search of Saddleworth Moor, once more using the photographs taken by Brady and Hindley to help them identify possible burial sites. In November 1986, Bennett's mother wrote to Hindley begging to know what had happened to her son, a letter that Hindley seemed to be "genuinely moved" by.{{sfnp|Ritchie|1988|pp=260–261|ps=none}} It ended: "I am a simple woman, I work in the kitchens of [[Christie Hospital|Christie's Hospital]]. It has taken me five weeks labour to write this letter because it is so important to me that it is understood by you for what it is, a plea for help. Please, Miss Hindley, help me."{{sfnp|Topping|1989|pp=42–43|ps=none}}

Police visited Hindley – then being held in [[HM Prison Cookham Wood]] in [[Kent]] – a few days after she received the letter, and although she refused to admit any involvement in the killings, she agreed to help by looking at photographs and maps to try to identify spots she had visited with Brady.{{sfnp|Ritchie|1988|p=262|ps=none}} She showed particular interest in photos of the area around Hollin Brown Knoll and Shiny Brook, but said that it was impossible to be sure of the locations without visiting the moor.{{sfnp|Topping|1989|pp=43–52|ps=none}} Home Secretary [[Douglas Hurd]] agreed with DCS Topping that a visit would be worth risking despite security problems presented by threats against Hindley.{{sfnp|Ritchie|1988|pp=264–265|ps=none}} Writing in 1989, Topping said that he felt "quite cynical" about Hindley's motivation in helping the police. Although Winnie Johnson's letter may have played a part, he believed that Hindley, knowing of Brady's "precarious" mental state, was concerned he might co-operate with the police and reap any available public-approval benefit.{{sfnp|Topping|1989|p=44|ps=none}}

On 16 December 1986, Hindley made the first of two visits to assist the police search of the moor.{{sfnp|Topping|1989|p=55|ps=none}} Police closed all roads onto the moor, which was patrolled by 200 officers, some armed. Hindley and her solicitor left Cookham Wood at 4:30&nbsp;a.m., flew to the moor by helicopter from an airfield near [[Maidstone]], and then were driven, and walked, around the area until 3:00&nbsp;pm. Hindley had difficulty connecting what she saw to her memories, and was apparently nervous of the helicopters flying overhead.{{sfnp|Ritchie|1988|pp=264–265|ps=none}} The press described the visit as a "fiasco", a "publicity stunt", and a "mindless waste of money",{{sfnp|Ritchie|1988|p=266|ps=none}} but DCS Topping defended it, saying "<!--We had taken the view that -->we needed a thorough systematic search of the moor&nbsp;... It would never have been possible to carry out such a search in private."{{sfnp|Ritchie|1988|p=266|ps=none}}

On 19 December, David Smith, then 38, spent about four hours on the moor helping police identify additional areas to be searched.<ref>{{cite news |last=Smith |first=Ian |title=Witness helps in search of moors|url=http://find.galegroup.com/ttda/newspaperRetrieve.do?sgHitCountType=None&sort=DateAscend&tabID=T003&prodId=TTDA&resultListType=RESULT_LIST&searchId=R2&searchType=AdvancedSearchForm&currentPosition=64&qrySerId=Locale%28en%2C%2C%29%3AFQE%3D%28tx%2CNone%2C11%29%22ian+brady%22%3AAnd%3ALQE%3D%28da%2CNone%2C6%29%3E+1970%24&retrieveFormat=MULTIPAGE_DOCUMENT&userGroupName=mclib&inPS=true&contentSet=LTO&&docId=&docLevel=FASCIMILE&workId=&relevancePageBatch=IF500361939&contentSet=TDA&callistoContentSet=TDA&docPage=article&hilite=y |work=The Times |via=find.galegroup.com |date=20 December 1986 |page=3 |issue=62646}} {{subscription required}}</ref> DCS Topping continued to visit Hindley in prison, along with her solicitor Michael Fisher and her spiritual counsellor, Peter Timms, who had been a [[prison governor]] before becoming a [[Methodist]] minister.{{sfnp|Ritchie|1988|p=266|ps=none}} On 10 February 1987 Hindley formally confessed to involvement in all five murders,{{sfnp|Topping|1989|pp=72–75|ps=none}} but this was not made public for more than a month.<!-- because of a Topping clampdown on publicity -->{{sfnp|Ritchie|1988|p=268|ps=none}} The tape recording of her statement was over seventeen hours long; Topping described it as a "very well worked out performance in which, I believe, she told me just as much as she wanted me to know, and no more".{{sfnp|Topping|1989|p=153|ps=none}} He added that he "was struck by the fact that [in Hindley's telling] she was never there when the killings took place. She was in the car, over the brow of the hill, in the bathroom and even, in the case of the Evans murder, in the kitchen"; he felt he "had witnessed a great performance rather than a genuine confession".{{sfnp|Topping|1989|pp=146–147|ps=none}}

[[File:Hollin brown knoll a635.jpg|thumb|right|alt=A flat, desolate, moorland under a cloudy sky, covered in long grass. A road divides the image, from the foreground to the horizon.|During the 1987 search for Pauline Reade and Keith Bennett, Hindley recalled seeing the rocks of Hollin Brown Knoll silhouetted against the night sky.]]

Police visited Brady in prison again and told him of Hindley's confession, which at first he refused to believe. Once presented with some of the details that Hindley had provided of Reade's abduction, Brady decided that he too was prepared to confess, but on one condition: that immediately afterwards he be given the means to commit [[suicide]], a request with which it was impossible for the authorities to comply.{{sfnp|Topping|1989|pp=157–158|ps=none}}

At about the same time, Johnson sent Hindley another letter, again pleading with her to assist the police in finding the body of her son Keith. In the letter, Johnson was sympathetic to Hindley over the criticism surrounding her first visit. Hindley, who had not replied to the first letter, responded by thanking Johnson for both letters, explaining that her decision not to reply to the first resulted from the negative publicity that surrounded it. She claimed that, had Johnson written to her fourteen years earlier, she would have confessed and helped the police. She also paid tribute to DCS Topping, and thanked Johnson for her sincerity.{{sfnp|Ritchie|1988|pp=268–269|ps=none}} Hindley made her second visit to the moor in March 1987. This time, the level of security surrounding her visit was considerably higher. She stayed overnight in Manchester, at the flat of the police chief in charge of GMP training at [[Sedgley Park, Greater Manchester|Sedgley Park, Prestwich]], and visited the moor twice.{{sfnp|Ritchie|1988|p=269|ps=none}} Hindley confirmed to police that the two areas in which they were concentrating their search—Hollin Brown Knoll and Hoe Grain—were correct, although she was unable to locate either of the graves. She did, though, later remember that as Reade was being buried she had been sitting next to her on a patch of grass and could see the rocks of Hollin Brown Knoll silhouetted against the night sky.{{sfnp|Topping|1989|pp=160–164, 171–172|ps=none}}

In April 1987, news of Hindley's confession became public. Amidst strong media interest [[Lord Longford]] pleaded for her release, writing that continuing her detention to satisfy "mob emotion" was not right. Fisher persuaded Hindley to release a public statement, which touched on her reasons for denying her guilt previously, her religious experiences in prison, and the letter from Johnson. She said that she saw no possibility of release, and also exonerated Smith from any part in the murders other than that of Evans.{{sfnp|Ritchie|1988|pp=270–274|ps=none}}

[[File:Moors murders map.jpg|thumb|upright=3|center|alt=A map of the area in which the bodies of three of the children were found|Saddleworth Moor showing where three of the victims' bodies were found, and the general area searched for the body of Keith Bennett]]

Over the next few months interest in the search waned, but Hindley's clue had focused efforts on a specific area. On 1 July, after more than 100&nbsp;days of searching, they found Reade's body {{convert|3|ft|m|1}} below the surface, {{convert|100|yd|m|-1}} from where Downey's had been found.{{sfnp|Ritchie|1988|p=274|ps=none}} Brady had been co-operating with the police for some time, and when this news reached him he made a formal confession to DCS Topping,{{sfnp|Ritchie|1988|p=276|ps=none}} and in a statement to the press said that he too would help police in their search. He was taken to the moor on 3 July but seemed to lose his bearings, blaming changes in the intervening years; the search was called off at 3:00 pm, by which time a large crowd of press and television reporters had gathered on the moor.{{sfnp|Topping|1989|pp=188–196|ps=none}}

[[File:HoeGrain.jpg|thumb|right|alt=A small valley cuts through desolate moorland, under a blue sky|Hoe Grain leading to Shiny Brook, the area in which police believe Bennett's body is buried{{sfnp|Topping|1989|p=253|ps=none}}]]

DCS Topping refused to allow Brady a second visit to the moor{{sfnp|Ritchie|1988|p=276|ps=none}} before police called off their search on 24 August.{{sfnp|Topping|1989|p=223|ps=none}} Brady was taken to the moor a second time on 8 December, and claimed to have located Bennett's burial site,<ref name="GuardianBradySearch2">{{cite news |last1=Lewis |first1=James |title=Ian Brady resumes search for boy's grave |url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/186810484/citation/EFD20ADE3D154A64PQ/17 |access-date=1 September 2019 |work=[[The Guardian]] |date=9 December 1987 |page=3 |mode=cs2 |url-access=subscription}}</ref><ref name="TimesBradySuccessClaim">{{cite news |title=Brady "success" |url=https://gdc.gale.com/gdc/artemis/NewspapersDetailsPage/NewspapersDetailsWindow?documentId=GALE%7CIF0503145794 |access-date=1 September 2019 |work=The Times |issue=62948 |publisher=Times Digital Archive |date=10 December 1987 |page=2 |mode=cs2 |url-access=subscription}}</ref> but the body was never found.{{sfnp|Cummins|Foley|King|2019|p=18}}

Soon after his first visit to the moor, Brady wrote a letter to a [[BBC]] reporter, giving some sketchy details of five additional deaths that he claimed to have been involved in: a man in the [[Piccadilly (ward)|Piccadilly]] area of Manchester, another victim on Saddleworth Moor, two more in Scotland, and a woman whose body was allegedly dumped in a canal.{{sfnp|Topping|1989|p=206|ps=none}} Police, failing to discover any unsolved crimes matching the details that he supplied, decided that there was insufficient evidence to launch an official investigation.{{sfnp|Topping|1989|p=232|ps=none}}<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/august/4/newsid_2491000/2491917.stm |title=1987: Moors murderer claims more killings |date=4 August 1987 |access-date=20 September 2018|via=news.bbc.co.uk|mode=cs2}}</ref> Hindley told Topping that she knew nothing of these killings.{{sfnp|Ritchie|1988|p=276|ps=none}}

Although Brady and Hindley had confessed to the murders of Reade and Bennett, the [[Director of Public Prosecutions (England and Wales)|Director of Public Prosecutions]] (DPP) decided that nothing would be gained by a further trial; as both were already serving life sentences no further punishment could be inflicted.{{sfnp|Topping|1989|p=249|ps=none}}

In 2003, the police launched Operation Maida, and again searched the moor for Bennett's body,<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/police-call-off-search-for-moors-murder-victim-1726527.html|title=Police call off search for Moors murder victim|date=1 July 2009|work=independent.co.uk |access-date=22 September 2017|mode=cs2}}</ref> this time using sophisticated resources such as a US [[reconnaissance satellite]] which could detect soil disturbances.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.standard.co.uk/news/spy-satellite-used-in-fresh-bid-to-reveal-moors-murderers-final-secret-their-last-victims-body-6865470.html|title=Spy satellite used in fresh bid to reveal Moors Murderers final secret|date=6 June 2008|publisher=standard.co.uk |access-date=22 September 2017|mode=cs2}}</ref> In mid-2009, the GMP said they had exhausted all avenues in the search for Bennett, that "only a major scientific breakthrough or fresh evidence would see the hunt for his body restart".<ref name="BBCSearchOff">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/manchester/8127883.stm|title=Moors victim mother's Brady plea|date=1 January 2009|work=BBC News|access-date=1 July 2009|mode=cs2}}</ref> It was stated that any further participation by Brady would be via a "walk through the moors virtually" using 3D modelling, rather than a visit by him to the moor.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.sky.com/story/704613/brady-banned-from-fresh-moors-searches|title=Brady Banned From Fresh Moors Searches|last=Parmenter|first=Tom|date=2 July 2009|work=[[Sky News]]|access-date=24 September 2009|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121005031753/http://news.sky.com/story/704613/brady-banned-from-fresh-moors-searches|archive-date=5 October 2012|mode=cs2}}</ref> Donations from the public funded a search by volunteers from a Welsh search and rescue team in 2010.<ref>{{cite news|title=Moors Murders: Donations fund search for Keith Bennett|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/manchester/8591178.stm|work=BBC News|date=27 March 2010|access-date=27 March 2010|mode=cs2}}</ref> In 2012, it was claimed that Brady may have given details of the location of Bennett's body to a visitor; a woman was subsequently arrested on suspicion of preventing the burial of a body without lawful excuse, but a few months later the [[Crown Prosecution Service]] announced that there was insufficient evidence to press charges.<ref name="location">{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-21415723|title=Ian Brady's mental health advocate will not face charges|date=11 February 2013|work=BBC News|access-date=9 June 2014|mode=cs2}}</ref> In 2017, the police asked a court to order that two locked briefcases owned by Brady be opened, arguing that they might contain clues to the location of Bennett's body; the application was declined on the grounds that no prosecution was likely to result.{{refn|{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-manchester-47217878|title=Moors Murders: 'Unlock Ian Brady's briefcases' plea|date=13 February 2019|access-date=2 February 2020|work=BBC News}} }}

On 30 September 2022, Greater Manchester Police began a search for human remains on the moor after receiving information from amateur investigator and author Russell Edwards,<ref>{{Cite web |date=30 September 2022 |title=Police to begin dig for Moors murder victim 58 years after he went missing |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/moors-murders-keith-bennett-ian-brady-myra-hindley-b2183368.html |access-date=30 September 2022 |website=The Independent }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-63091544|title=Moors Murders: Search for Keith Bennett's body restarts|date=30 September 2022|accessdate=1 October 2022|work=BBC News }}</ref> who had reportedly found a skull.<ref>{{Cite web |date=30 September 2022 |title=Police dig for Moors victim Keith Bennett after skull reportedly found |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2022/sep/30/police-dig-moors-murder-victim-keith-bennett-skull-found |access-date=30 September 2022 |website=The Guardian }}</ref> After seeing a photograph of a jaw bone, a spokesperson for the police said, of the identity of the remains, that it was "far too early to be certain".<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-63091544|title=Moors Murders: Search for Keith Bennett's body restarts|work=BBC News|date=30 September 2020|access-date=30 September 2020}}</ref> On 1 October the police reported that no further remains had been found.<ref>{{Cite news |date=1 October 2022 |title=Moors Murders: No remains yet found in search for Keith Bennett |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-manchester-63101655 |access-date=1 October 2022}}</ref> On 7 October the police announced they had ended their search without finding any sign of human remains.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2022/oct/07/search-ends-saddleworth-moor-keith-bennett-no-remains-found|title=Search ends for Moors murder victim Keith Bennett after no remains found|date=7 October 2022|website=The Guardian}}</ref>