Cops say 'minds blew' over unexpected evidence found inside Lucy Letby's home
The police team which brought serial child killer Lucy Letby to justice has released a fascinating hour long documentary about the painstaking probe.
Letby, 33, who murdered seven newborn babies and tried to kill six more, will die in prison after receiving a whole life sentence at Manchester crown court on Monday. Now officers from Operation Hummingbird, the investigation into the evil nurse, have provided a behind-the-scenes glimpse into their six-year inquiry, via a Cheshire Police YouTube video.
IN THE BEGINNING...
Det Supt Paul Hughes, who led the investigation: “What we found out was in neonatal infants, if a baby collapses, it is usually expected. And even with the outside chance of it being unexpected, it is always explainable. What separated this collection of events was they were unexpected and unexplained.”
Could there be a killer on the ward? Det Supt Hughes: “Out of choice I’d have wanted the experts to come back and say ‘We’ve found it, it was a bad bug in the water’ and then I could tell parents it was tragic but this is not murder.” Intelligence analyst Claire Hocknell: “With this investigation, your subconscious is constantly searching for a reason for it not to be her. “
Det Supt Paul Hughes led the Lucy Letby probeEVIDENCE MOUNTS...
Darren Riley, retired DC, who investigated one particular case: “It was very quickly obvious that someone, whether it be Letby or not, someone had administered insulin to this particular baby. My opinion was very quickly that yes, there was something not right and yes, the only obvious person was Lucy Letby.”
Baby boy has spent his life in hospital as doctors are 'scared' to discharge him
THE FIRST ARREST IN JULY 2018...
Det Supt Hughes: “I had a difficult decision to make, in fact the hardest decision of my career at that time, do I arrest Lucy Letby for multiple murders and attempted murders?” Det Supt Simon Blackwell: “The ramifications of saying publicly ‘we have a child serial killer’ was not something you want to get wrong.”
INFORMING THE BABIES’ PARENTS...
Family liaison officer Det Con Michelle Birkett: “You are knocking on their door and you are turning their life upside down again. You are knocking on their door and telling them somebody is responsible for their baby not being here any more. Their reactions varied. Disbelief for some of them because some of the families had gone on and raised money for charity, for the unit, and just could not believe that somebody could be responsible for what’s happened to them. And then some of the families: ‘I knew something was wrong, I knew something wasn’t right’.”
EVIDENCE FROM LETBY’S HOUSE...
Det Supt Hughes: “The amount of evidence we recovered from her home address was just not expected. Thousands and thousands of documents, many devices that led to downloads of half a million pages of information that we did not expect to find.” Intelligence analyst Claire Hocknell: “When Lucy Letby was first arrested and the material came back into the investigation room, our minds blew, it was like ‘wow, this is her life’.”
THIRD/FINAL ARREST NOVEMBER 2020...
Det Insp Rob Woods: “Mr Letby opened the door. Miss Letby’s mum was very distressed and Letby herself complied and was very subdued. I do remember the door closing on the BMW that she was going to be driven back up to Chester in, and her pulling away and me phoning and saying ‘Yeah, job done. She’s in the car. She’s on the way’.”
CHARGING LETBY...
Det Sgt Danielle Stonier: “I remember it really well. We were stood in the custody area and Lucy Letby was brought out of her cell and it was another colleague who read out those charges to her in custody. Because of the number of charges it took a while. Hearing those names and hearing each individual charge was a bizarre feeling. It was a feeling of ‘this is happening’.
THE TRIAL STARTS LAST OCTOBER...
Det Chief Insp Nicola Evans: “It felt like a relief that the trial had actually started but also there was just a lot of anticipation as to how it would unfold and also nervousness around assuring that we could properly support the families who were going to listen to some really upsetting and devastating evidence.
LETBY THE WITNESS...
Det Sgt Lucy Kennedy: “When Letby first got in the box and started giving her evidence, there was a real mix of emotions. Some families were relieved that she was actually in the box, giving the evidence, hearing the answers to the questions, and I think some were angry with the answers.”
TRIBUTE TO THE VICTIMS’ FAMILIES...
DCI Evans: “The trial has been challenging for everybody involved, not least the families who I just can’t begin to imagine how they feel. The way in which they’ve sat through the case and they’ve listened in such a dignified, compassionate way. It’s really humbling to be around them. And the way in which they’ve conducted themselves has just really been overwhelming.”
THE AFTERMATH...
DCI Evans: “Many of the people who were at the trial have worked on this investigation since the very early days and although we have a job to do, and it is our job, I also don’t think that anybody will be the same person they were, when this trial was finished, because there’s been such an emotional attachment.”
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