The murder of Sophie Louise Hook whilst camping in her Uncle's garden in Wales
Sophie Hook, murdered July 30, 1995, Llandudno, North Wales, U.K.
Sophie Louise Hook was murdered at the age of 7 years in Llandudno, Wales, in the early hours of 30 July 1995. She was from Great Budworth, near Northwich, Cheshire, but was staying at the home of her uncle, Danny Jones, at the Welsh seaside resort when she was snatched.
She had gone missing from a tent where she was camping in her uncle's garden, and her body was found washed up on a nearby beach several hours later.
A local man was arrested for the murder soon afterwards and sentenced to life imprisonment after being found guilty in July 1996.
Following his trial, it was revealed that the man had been linked to multiple sex attacks against children. Still, police had been unable to prosecute either because of a lack of evidence or because the victims' parents had wanted to spare their children further ordeal in court. He had a troubled background, including allegations of abuse at the Bryn Estyn children's home in Wrexham during the 1980s, the site of a major pedophile ring.
The story is a shocking tale of childhood innocence snatched by an evil man obsessed with kidnapping and having sex with young girls. A man who was unable to resist his perversions and took Sophie’s life in the most horrible of circumstances and where even the coroner said it looked like she had been involved in a car accident given the seriousness of her injuries, many of which occurred whilst she was still alive and fighting for life. During the attack, she had been in so much pain that she left teeth marks on both sides of her tongue and inside her lower lip. For the Hook and Jones family, a birthday party turned sour, a night they would never have even thought of in their darkest hour.
Julie Hook, Sophie’s mother, said, “I protected my children so much. They were not allowed to cross the road on their own. We both feel very, very sorry that the one time she needed us most, we were not there for her. That feeling will never go away.”
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