Six unanswered questions over Billie-Jo Jenkins’ murder – from ‘3 minute kill window’ to stranger with ‘bag fetish’
WHEN schoolgirl Billie-Jo Jenkins went to live with a foster family in Hastings, she hoped it was the start of a better life.
Instead the 13-year-old’s life was brutally cut short when she was bludgeoned to death with a 18-inch metal tent peg in the garden of her new home on February 15, 1997.
Foster dad Sion Jenkins was jailed for her murder but, after two retrials, was formally acquitted in 2006.
Now, 25 years on, Sussex police are carrying out a forensic review of exhibits from the scene at the East Sussex house.
On that fateful afternoon in 1997, Billie-Jo was painting the patio doors at the back of the house when she struck at least five times on the head in a shocking attack.
She was found dying, in a pool of blood, when Sion returned to the house following an aborted trip to a DIY store, with his two oldest daughters.
Sion - father to Annie, 12 at the time of the murder, Lottie, 10, Esther, nine and Maya, seven - has always maintained his innocence and claims a prowler could have been responsible for the murder.
Here, as we approach the 25th anniversary of Billie-Jo’s tragic death, we look at the questions that still need to be answered.
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Was there time to kill in 3-minute window?
On the day of the murder, Leon's wife Lois, Esther and Maya were out walking and Annie and Sion were home, before driving to pick up Lottie from her clarinet lesson.
The three were only home for three minutes before Sion took his two daughters out again, saying he wanted to go to a DIY store to buy white spirit, to clean up after Billie-Jo’s painting.
He later claimed her aborted the trip because he forgot his wallet, but the prosecution claimed he was attempting to set up an alibi.
Either way, the prosecution case hung on the theory that Sion murdered his foster daughter in the three minutes he was home, while his daughters were in the house.
Also, Annie told the court she remembered saying goodbye to Billie-Jo - meaning it would have been a matter of seconds.
He would then have had to clean up, as he would have been covered in blood, and get into the car with the girls.
The invisible blood spots
After the murder, 148 tiny spots of Billie-Jo's blood were found on Sion Jenkins' trousers and fleece jacket.
The prosecution argued that their size and distribution were consistent with "impact spatter", sprayed during the frenzied attack on Billie-Jo.
However, the defence argued that a fine spray of blood was breathed out by Billie-Jo on to her foster dad when he went to her aid as she lay dying.
At the second trial, forensic expert Dr Jeremy Skepper said some of the bloodspots contained white particles, which he said could be damaged skin tissue from Billie-Jo's scalp, but defence experts refuted the claim.
Before the third trial, Dr Skepper concluded tiny fragments of bone, paint and metal could be present in the bloodspots on Sion's trousers, which would seem to back the prosecution's version of events.
But the judge said the material had been submitted too late, and it was never heard in court.
Why did Lois stop kids giving evidence?
After police told Lois about the bloodspots on her husband's clothing, she became convinced he was guilty.
She told police that he had "coached" the girls to tell his version of events.
In the original trial, Lois stopped Annie and Lottie from testifying by saying they had "turned against" their father and changed their story, meaning Sion's defence didn't call them to the stand.
In the retrial, she was accused of lying and the defence team claimed the girls could have proved that their father did not have time to kill Billie-Jo.
Why did Lois not give evidence in first trial?
Lois did not appear as a witness for either the prosecution or defence in the first trial or Sion's first failed appeal.
"At the time her silence seemed eloquent," according to the supporters' site Justice For Sion Jenkins.
After his conviction for murder, Lois divorced her husband and fled the country with their four biological daughters.
She has since had a son with her new partner, Vincent Ives, a martial arts expert 11 years her junior, and is now settled in Tasmania.
But she flew back to testify at his retrials, in 2004 and 2006.
Was there a prowler?
At a press conference after Billie-Jo's death, Sion said the family had installed CCTV and security lights after being plagued by prowlers.
"As a family, we have felt uneasy about prowlers," he said.
"On one occasion I was looking out of the back window and I thought I saw movement.
"I switched on the outside security light and got a fleeting glimpse of somebody moving about. Another time I saw somebody in the park staring at the house."
Lottie, who was first to find Billie-Jo's body, told police the gate at the side of the house had been closed when they left for the DIY store but open when they returned, suggesting someone might have gone into the back garden
Was stranger with plastic bag fetish the real killer?
One of the oddest details of the murder is that parts of a black binliner were "forcibly" stuffed into Billie-Jo’s nostrils.
The trial heard that a mentally ill man - known as Man B - had been hanging around the area and was known to have a plastic bag fetish.
He was later arrested, and attempted to strangle the female arresting officer.
Police observed he stuffed scraps of blue plastic bag up his nose, believing he had to block body openings to prevent germs getting in. He was also found to have more bits of bag in his pants.
On the day of the murder, the owner of a guesthouse in the Jenkins' street had turned him away, suggesting he tried the town centre and pointing in the direction of the house.
However, he was ruled out of the investigation on forensic evidence.
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Whatever happened on that day 25 years ago, the family and friends of Billie-Jo will be hoping police can uncover new clues.
It's time this tragic teen got justice.
