When the bodies of Jessica Chapman and Holly Wells were found in 2002, the Soham community was devastated.
After being convicted guilty of their slayings, Ian Huntley was given a life sentence.
Who were Jessica Chapman and Holly Wells?
The two sisters, who had been friends since nursery school, attended a barbecue at Holly’s house in Soham, Cambridgeshire when they were both 10 years old.
Together, they went to St. Andrew’s Primary School as well.
Holly and Jessica, who are both huge football fans and best friends, had been spending the day together and having fun as usual.
Just hours before they vanished, a picture of them wearing matching Manchester United football jerseys was taken.
The parents of Holly Wells have frequently discussed their loss and their efforts to move on with their lives and put the past in the past.
In 2017, Holly’s dad, Kevin Wells spoke of the loss of his daughter and said: ”We will never forget Holly, but life does move on — it has to — and the intensity of your grief does diminish as the years pass.”
However, after their daughter’s passing, Jessica Chapman’s parents have hardly ever spoken in public.
How did Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman Die?
Jessica went over to Holly’s place on Sunday, August 4, 2002, for the barbecue.
They are thought to have ventured outside to explore the neighbourhood.
Holly’s parents didn’t become aware that they were missing until 8 o’clock that night and then called the police.
Along with hundreds of locals who gave their time and hundreds of officers, including Ian Huntley from the media, the search for the girls lasted all day and night.
The bodies of the 10-year-olds were discovered burned in a ditch about 10 miles from Soham over two weeks later, on August 17, 2002.
They had been enticed into Ian Huntley’s home, where he had first slain Holly and then Jessica, it was revealed.
Holly’s death, according to Huntley, was an accident.
In an effort to stop Jessica from grieving when Holly died, he initially stated that Jessica had also been accidentally slain.
He changed his narrative in 2018 and said he “couldn’t let her leave the house” in leaked audio.