Behind the Crimes
Behind the Crimes with Robert Murphy
Billie-Jo Jenkins and her accused foster father: Wanted man or witch hunt?
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Billie-Jo Jenkins and her accused foster father: Wanted man or witch hunt?

The foster father of a 13-year-old schoolgirl had a three-minute window to kill. Why would he do it? And what evidence divides the experts?
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Billie-Jo Jenkins was a talented 13-year-old schoolgirl who had found what appeared to be the perfect foster family: four daughters, a mum who was a social worker and a dad who was a deputy headteacher.

Sion Jenkins was an upstanding member of an affluent town’s community. But he had secrets. Like the lies about his academic qualifications and the affair with a teenage girl who looked a lot like Billie-Jo.

When Billie-Jo was found dead in her garden in 1997, it was Sion who called 999. Detectives first arrested a mysterious figure, known as Mr B.

But then they turned their attention to Billie-Jo’s own foster father.

He had just a three-minute window to have killed the 13-year-old. Could he have done it? And why?

What followed was a roller-coaster of a police inquiry, prosecution and series of trials.

For her series ‘Who Killed Billie-Jo’ podcaster Naomi Channell has gone back to the schoolgirl’s friends, family and the inquiry team to find out more about what happened.

You can listen to her series here:

To learn more about Naomi and her podcast, click here:

https://linktr.ee/realtruecrimepodcast

Discussion about this podcast

Behind the Crimes
Behind the Crimes with Robert Murphy
### WINNER 'Outstanding Indie Podcast at the True Crime Awards 2024. ###
What makes a criminal? What makes a truly great detective?
Award-winning TV crime correspondent Robert Murphy speaks with people involved with some of the most fascinating true crime cases of recent years: detectives, victims, experts and sometimes even the criminals themselves.
What drives a person to ignore the morals, laws and conventions of normal society and pushes them to perform the darkest acts?
Sex? Money? Revenge? Love? Humiliation?
Are criminals born bad or are they a creation of their circumstances?
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This podcast and newsletter explores some of our biggest crime stories - and some of the lesser-known, compelling cases which deserve a better understanding.
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