UK UK - Billie-Jo Jenkins, 13, Hastings, Sussex, 15 Feb 1997

[ekardh]

It's very telling for me that Sion Jenkins goes and sits in his car. That looks like he's trying to create plausible deniability for potential forensic evidence in the vehicle.
It's such a small window of opportunity.
Katerina Koneva is perhaps the most similar murder. Her dad arrived home as she was being attacked and then chased the killer, who turned out to be suspected serial killer Andrzej Kunowski.
The difference between the Jenkins and Koneva crime scenes is that in the Koneva case, the real killer left hair and fingerprint evidence behind.
It's difficult to believe that an opportunist killer wouldn't leave a fingerprint or any DNA when killing Billie Jo. He also doesn't seem to have ever struck again.

You're also forgetting that, according to Jenkins, the killer was still in the house and posed as a plain clothes officer.

 

[CSIAngus]

I have been reading some more on this case. One of the things that interests me is Sion's natural daughter claiming the gate was closed when they left for the DIY store and that it was open when they returned. It is said that she said this to the neighbour who was at the scene of Billie-Jo's death. I would be interested to know if the neighbour confirmed this and whether the daughter made this comment before having chance to speak with Sion.

I also wonder about the reports of a prowler and the numerous reports of the children feeling unsafe. A creep attacking Billy in a targeted attack after becoming fixated with her would be something I'd believe possible. Who was hanging around the park and who was making the family dog bark of an evening through the window?

The house next to the Jenkins' is of interest to me. I note from photographs that it had boarded windows and was used as a hostel for troubled people. Reports suggest that the Jenkins' garden was not entirely secure, being used by trespassers as a shortcut from the road behind. I am almost certain it would have been easily accessible from the adjacent hostel garden.

I would be interested to hear from neighbours, details of the supposed prowler and if the behaviour stopped after Billie-Jo's death. Was it just the Jenkins' house that was targeted? Or, were others the victim of the prowling?

The day of the attack seems very chaotic for the whole family. Lois forgot her check book at Sainsbury's and then an empty checkbook was brought. There was the forgetting of the clarinet lesson at Nicola Holt's house and then the white spirit shopping trip, where it's alleged that Sion went with no money.

A Word Press article claims that fragments of Billie-Jo's skull and brain tissue were exposed at the scene. It claims that the 999 call handler instructed Sion to move Billie-Jo's body in to a recovery position. The neighbour is said to have tried to stem the blood flow with a bin liner. Were her clothes examined for particles, just as Sion's were? They were at the scene before paramedics and when blood flow could have been at a different level.

What strikes me is that the weapon involved was a tent peg. I feel that it must have taken great force to do the level of damage done with such an instrument. It is fairly lightweight, compared to other weapons and there is potential for a struggle to take place. Would the attacker come away from the event with only microscopic traces of blood? I find it difficult to believe.

If the place was so unsafe with a boarded up property next door, prowlers, trespassers, dogs barking in the night, children worried, creeps hanging around the park, etc, etc. Why leave Billie-Jo home alone for a pointless DIY trip? SJ's account just does not make any sense, and as Judge Judy always says, if it doesn't make sense it's not true.

 

[Westchester76]

It's very telling for me that Sion Jenkins goes and sits in his car. That looks like he's trying to create plausible deniability for potential forensic evidence in the vehicle.
It's such a small window of opportunity.
Katerina Koneva is perhaps the most similar murder. Her dad arrived home as she was being attacked and then chased the killer, who turned out to be suspected serial killer Andrzej Kunowski.
The difference between the Jenkins and Koneva crime scenes is that in the Koneva case, the real killer left hair and fingerprint evidence behind.
It's difficult to believe that an opportunist killer wouldn't leave a fingerprint or any DNA when killing Billie Jo. He also doesn't seem to have ever struck again.

Absolutely. Jenkins seemed to do a lot of peculiar things, post murder. Such as the drive to the DIY shop, the sitting in the car and the story about the murderer disguising himself as a plain clothes policeman. He's guilty as sin for me.

 

[CrackerC119]

The theory about the 'plain clothed policeman' interests me. Unlike some other cases, I cannot see any reason for the police to 'close ranks' and cover up. For me, it is plausible that Billie-Jo's killer could have hid in the house and posed as a policeman. It was a busy street, it's entirely believable that the killer was unable to leave due to people walking past and his whilst they thought of a plan. The reports of a prowler, suggests to me that this could have been a calculated murder, which fits with the theory.

Then again, Sion did have a temper. The thought has crossed my mind that he hit BJ in anger and used the bin liner to stem her blood flow, in an attempt to save her. I am not sure that a tent peg could cause death from one blow though.

The glasses being found neatly placed suggests to me that it was a planned and calculated attack. It's as though this was a mark of completion.

Sion sitting in his car after the alleged discovery, could have been a form of escapism, trying to remove himself from a distressing situation. Then again, can it be ruled out that this was a tactic to distract forensics from the trail? The fact that he, seemingly purposely left his jacket at a neighbouring house also raises suspicions.

I really wish there was more information about the neighbour's statement.

 

[heartandsoul]

Hastings is a surprisingly small town for its size. Having grown up there in that same time period, I know several people who knew Billie and SJ. I completely believe he is both capable of, and guilty of, this crime. There is no doubt in my mind and it's incredibly frustrating that he is no longer in prison.

I find it hard to believe that Billie will now ever have justice, but I still have hope.

 

[CrackerC119]

Hastings is a surprisingly small town for its size. Having grown up there in that same time period, I know several people who knew Billie and SJ. I completely believe he is both capable of, and guilty of, this crime. There is no doubt in my mind and it's incredibly frustrating that he is no longer in prison.

I find it hard to believe that Billie will now ever have justice, but I still have hope.

What makes you believe he is capable of it, just out of interest?

As a side note, I read that SJ has links to Nonnington, Kent, where murdered Megan Russell went to school (Chillenden Murders, 1996). I am not saying the two cases are related but I find it a startling coincidence.

 

[heartandsoul]

What makes you believe he is capable of it, just out of interest?

His character and personality. I’m not sure how much I can say as he’s been acquitted.

Based on the people I know well who knew him at the time, he seems capable to me.