Melanie Hall
Encyclopedia
Melanie Hall was a British
hospital clerical officer from Bradford on Avon
, who went missing on 9 June 1996, following a night out at the Cadillacs nightclub in Bath. It was not until 5 October 2009 that her partial remains were discovered, after a plastic bin bag containing human bones was located by a workman on the M5 motorway
near Thornbury
, South Gloucestershire
. The bones were analysed and identified as belonging to Melanie Hall on 7 October 2009. The bones included a pelvis, thigh bone
and heavily fractured skull
.
in 1995, Hall's mother, Pat Hall, said graduation had been a "cherished" dream of Melanie's for four years. Melanie Hall worked as a clerical officer at Bath's Royal United Hospital
. For three weeks before her disappearance Hall had been dating a German
doctor
, Philip Karlbaum, whom she had met at the Hospital.
Karlbaum described his devastation at her disappearance on 17 June 1996. Avon and Somerset police
launched several searches of the River Avon after her disappearance and interviewed thousands of clubbers and taxi drivers in an operation involving 60 officers. A £
10,000 reward was offered for information, the BBC show Crimewatch
and Crimestoppers
both made appeals to the public for information, as did Hall's sister Dominique, but no trace of Hall was found.
Hall was declared legally dead
on 17 November 2004.
. The bones in the bag included a skull, pelvis and thigh bone and further remains were found buried and spread around the field by the side of the motorway. Police confirmed that the remains were human, and they showed a piece of jewellery found at the site to Mr and Mrs Hall, who confirmed that it had belonged to their daughter. Despite this police refused to confirm that the body was that of Miss Hall until a post-mortem had been carried out. The remains were formally identified as being Hall's through dental records on 7 October. She had suffered fractures to her skull and face. Hall's parents launched a fresh appeal on 8 October for anyone with information to come forward, while Avon and Somerset CID DS Mike Britton stated that he was staying on after his retirement to continue working on the Hall disappearance, having spent 13 years on the case.
On the 29 October 2009 police announced that three keys to a Ford
car, possibly a Transit
, Fiesta
or Escort had been found near the body, and that they were working with Ford to try and identify the vehicle. Crimewatch
also launched a fresh appeal for information, which resulted in more than 200 phone calls from the public. The reward for information leading to arrest was also increased to £20,000.
, but was eliminated from the inquiry after undergoing psychiatric tests
. In July 2010, a 38-year-old man from Bath was arrested on suspicion of Hall's murder and subsequently released on bail
. In August 2010 a 39-year-old man from Wiltshire
was arrested by police on suspicion of murder after handing himself in at a police station in the Avon and Somerset
area. The man was subsequently released on bail.
(who disappeared in July 1986 and whose body has never been found) and the case of a serial sex attacker in Bath, nicknamed the "Batman rapist
" after he left a baseball cap bearing a Batman
logo at the scene of one attack. The unknown assailant is known to have attempted to carjack
a woman at knifepoint, leaving her wounded when she fought back and managed to escape, in the same area of the city a few hours before Hall was abducted. The case has also been compared with the 2010 murder of Joanna Yeates
in Bristol. Police have admitted there were similarities with the cases of Yeates and Claudia Lawrence
, another blonde British woman who disappeared in 2009, but said that they have not yet found direct evidence to link them.In spring of 2011, police investigating the murders of Sian O'Callaghan and Becky Godden-Edwards (whose bodies were both found in Wiltshire
) also began to look for a possible link between those murders and that of Melanie Hall.
(also with Van der Graaf Generator
) had the idea for a song, later released on his album Thin Air
(2009), called "Your Face on the Street" inspired by the disappearance of Melanie Hall. Some of the lyrics of the song were written at the time of the disappearance, and when the album came out, the discovery had yet to be made.
British people
The British are citizens of the United Kingdom, of the Isle of Man, any of the Channel Islands, or of any of the British overseas territories, and their descendants...
hospital clerical officer from Bradford on Avon
Bradford on Avon
Bradford on Avon is a town in west Wiltshire, England with a population of about 9,326. The town's canal, historic buildings, shops, pubs and restaurants make it popular with tourists....
, who went missing on 9 June 1996, following a night out at the Cadillacs nightclub in Bath. It was not until 5 October 2009 that her partial remains were discovered, after a plastic bin bag containing human bones was located by a workman on the M5 motorway
M5 motorway
The M5 is a motorway in England. It runs from a junction with the M6 at West Bromwich near Birmingham to Exeter in Devon. Heading south-west, the M5 runs east of West Bromwich and west of Birmingham through Sandwell Valley...
near Thornbury
Thornbury, South Gloucestershire
Thornbury is a market town in South Gloucestershire, England, approximately 12 miles north of the city of Bristol, with a population of 12,342 at the 2001 UK census. The town hosts South Gloucestershire Council headquarters and is twinned with Bockenem in Germany. Thornbury is a Britain in Bloom...
, South Gloucestershire
South Gloucestershire
South Gloucestershire is a unitary district in the ceremonial county of Gloucestershire, in South West England.-History:The district was created in 1996, when the county of Avon was abolished, by the merger of former area of the districts of Kingswood and Northavon...
. The bones were analysed and identified as belonging to Melanie Hall on 7 October 2009. The bones included a pelvis, thigh bone
Femur
The femur , or thigh bone, is the most proximal bone of the leg in tetrapod vertebrates capable of walking or jumping, such as most land mammals, birds, many reptiles such as lizards, and amphibians such as frogs. In vertebrates with four legs such as dogs and horses, the femur is found only in...
and heavily fractured skull
Human skull
The human skull is a bony structure, skeleton, that is in the human head and which supports the structures of the face and forms a cavity for the brain.In humans, the adult skull is normally made up of 22 bones...
.
Background
Hall was described by her parents as a "young, vibrant daughter". She had graduated from the University of BathUniversity of Bath
The University of Bath is a campus university located in Bath, United Kingdom. It received its Royal Charter in 1966....
in 1995, Hall's mother, Pat Hall, said graduation had been a "cherished" dream of Melanie's for four years. Melanie Hall worked as a clerical officer at Bath's Royal United Hospital
Royal United Hospital
The Royal United Hospital is a major acute hospital, located in the Weston suburb of Bath, England, which lies approximately miles west of the Bath city centre. The hospital currently has 565 beds and occupies a site...
. For three weeks before her disappearance Hall had been dating a German
Germans
The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....
doctor
Physician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
, Philip Karlbaum, whom she had met at the Hospital.
Disappearance
Hall had arranged to stay with her boyfriend Karlbaum on 8 June and her mother dropped her off at his home. On the night of 8 June 1996 Hall went to Cadillacs nightclub in Bath with Karlbaum and another couple. Hall was reported as having had an argument with Karlbaum, and he left the club "upset" after he allegedly saw her dancing with another man. Hall was last seen sitting on a stool in the club at around 1.10am on 9 June 1996. She was reported missing on 11 June 1996 by her parents after she failed to turn up for work.Karlbaum described his devastation at her disappearance on 17 June 1996. Avon and Somerset police
Avon and Somerset Constabulary
Avon & Somerset Constabulary is the territorial police force in England responsible for policing the non-metropolitan county of Somerset, the city & county of Bristol and the unitary authorities of South Gloucestershire, North Somerset and Bath and North East Somerset; before 1996 these districts...
launched several searches of the River Avon after her disappearance and interviewed thousands of clubbers and taxi drivers in an operation involving 60 officers. A £
Pound sterling
The pound sterling , commonly called the pound, is the official currency of the United Kingdom, its Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, British Antarctic Territory and Tristan da Cunha. It is subdivided into 100 pence...
10,000 reward was offered for information, the BBC show Crimewatch
Crimewatch
Crimewatch is a long-running and high-profile British television programme produced by the BBC, that reconstructs major unsolved crimes with a view to gaining information from the members of the public. The programme is usually broadcast once a month on BBC One...
and Crimestoppers
Crimestoppers
Crime Stoppers or Crimestoppers is a program separate from the emergency telephone number system, that allows a member of the community to provide anonymous information about criminal activity. It thereby allows the person to provide crime solving assistance to the authorities without being...
both made appeals to the public for information, as did Hall's sister Dominique, but no trace of Hall was found.
Hall was declared legally dead
Death in absentia
Death in absentia is a legal declaration that a person is deceased in the absence of remains attributable to that person...
on 17 November 2004.
Discovery of remains
On 5 October 2009 a motorway worker found a plastic bin bag containing bones while he was clearing a vegetation patch on a slip road at Junction 14 of the M5 motorwayM5 motorway
The M5 is a motorway in England. It runs from a junction with the M6 at West Bromwich near Birmingham to Exeter in Devon. Heading south-west, the M5 runs east of West Bromwich and west of Birmingham through Sandwell Valley...
. The bones in the bag included a skull, pelvis and thigh bone and further remains were found buried and spread around the field by the side of the motorway. Police confirmed that the remains were human, and they showed a piece of jewellery found at the site to Mr and Mrs Hall, who confirmed that it had belonged to their daughter. Despite this police refused to confirm that the body was that of Miss Hall until a post-mortem had been carried out. The remains were formally identified as being Hall's through dental records on 7 October. She had suffered fractures to her skull and face. Hall's parents launched a fresh appeal on 8 October for anyone with information to come forward, while Avon and Somerset CID DS Mike Britton stated that he was staying on after his retirement to continue working on the Hall disappearance, having spent 13 years on the case.
On the 29 October 2009 police announced that three keys to a Ford
Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company is an American multinational automaker based in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. The automaker was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. In addition to the Ford and Lincoln brands, Ford also owns a small stake in Mazda in Japan and Aston Martin in the UK...
car, possibly a Transit
Ford Transit
The Ford Transit is a range of panel vans, minibuses, and pickup trucks, produced by the Ford Motor Company in Europe.The Transit has been the best-selling light commercial vehicle in Europe for 40 years, and in some countries the term "Transit" has passed into common usage as a generic term...
, Fiesta
Ford Fiesta
The Ford Fiesta is a front wheel drive supermini/subcompact manufactured and marketed by Ford Motor Company and built in Europe, Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, Venezuela, China, India, Thailand and South Africa...
or Escort had been found near the body, and that they were working with Ford to try and identify the vehicle. Crimewatch
Crimewatch
Crimewatch is a long-running and high-profile British television programme produced by the BBC, that reconstructs major unsolved crimes with a view to gaining information from the members of the public. The programme is usually broadcast once a month on BBC One...
also launched a fresh appeal for information, which resulted in more than 200 phone calls from the public. The reward for information leading to arrest was also increased to £20,000.
Arrests
In 2003, police arrested two men in connection with Hall's disappearance but they were released without charge after police searched buildings and a field near Bath, Somerset. In 2009, a 37-year-old man confessed his involvement in Hall's murder to police in Greater ManchesterGreater Manchester
Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 2.6 million. It encompasses one of the largest metropolitan areas in the United Kingdom and comprises ten metropolitan boroughs: Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, Wigan, and the...
, but was eliminated from the inquiry after undergoing psychiatric tests
Psychiatry
Psychiatry is the medical specialty devoted to the study and treatment of mental disorders. These mental disorders include various affective, behavioural, cognitive and perceptual abnormalities...
. In July 2010, a 38-year-old man from Bath was arrested on suspicion of Hall's murder and subsequently released on bail
Bail
Traditionally, bail is some form of property deposited or pledged to a court to persuade it to release a suspect from jail, on the understanding that the suspect will return for trial or forfeit the bail...
. In August 2010 a 39-year-old man from Wiltshire
Wiltshire
Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...
was arrested by police on suspicion of murder after handing himself in at a police station in the Avon and Somerset
Avon and Somerset Constabulary
Avon & Somerset Constabulary is the territorial police force in England responsible for policing the non-metropolitan county of Somerset, the city & county of Bristol and the unitary authorities of South Gloucestershire, North Somerset and Bath and North East Somerset; before 1996 these districts...
area. The man was subsequently released on bail.
Links to other cases
Police have not ruled out links with the murder of estate agent Suzy LamplughSuzy Lamplugh
Susannah "Suzy" Lamplugh was a British estate agent reported missing on 28 July 1986 in Fulham, South West London, England. She was officially declared dead, presumed murdered, in 1994. The last clue of her whereabouts was an appointment to show a house in Shorrolds Road to someone she referred...
(who disappeared in July 1986 and whose body has never been found) and the case of a serial sex attacker in Bath, nicknamed the "Batman rapist
Batman rapist
The Batman rapist is an English serial sex offender who has committed at least 17 attacks on women in the city of Bath, Somerset. He is the subject of Britain's longest–running serial rape investigation, codenamed Operation Eagle, and has eluded capture since 1991...
" after he left a baseball cap bearing a Batman
Batman
Batman is a fictional character created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger. A comic book superhero, Batman first appeared in Detective Comics #27 , and since then has appeared primarily in publications by DC Comics...
logo at the scene of one attack. The unknown assailant is known to have attempted to carjack
Carjacking
Carjacking is a form of hijacking, where the crime is of stealing a motor vehicle and so also armed assault when the vehicle is occupied. Historically, such as in the rash of semi-trailer truck hijackings during the 1960s, the general term hijacking was used for that type of vehicle abduction,...
a woman at knifepoint, leaving her wounded when she fought back and managed to escape, in the same area of the city a few hours before Hall was abducted. The case has also been compared with the 2010 murder of Joanna Yeates
Murder of Joanna Yeates
Joanna Clare "Jo" Yeates was a landscape architect from Hampshire, England, who went missing on 17 December 2010 in Bristol after an evening out with colleagues...
in Bristol. Police have admitted there were similarities with the cases of Yeates and Claudia Lawrence
Disappearance of Claudia Lawrence
The disappearance of Claudia Lawrence is a missing person case concerning a then-35 year old British chef at the University of York. The last confirmed sighting of her was on 18 March 2009, in Melrosegate, Heworth, York.-Last known whereabouts:...
, another blonde British woman who disappeared in 2009, but said that they have not yet found direct evidence to link them.In spring of 2011, police investigating the murders of Sian O'Callaghan and Becky Godden-Edwards (whose bodies were both found in Wiltshire
Wiltshire
Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...
) also began to look for a possible link between those murders and that of Melanie Hall.
Popular culture
While living in Bath, singer/songwriter Peter HammillPeter Hammill
Peter Joseph Andrew Hammill is an English singer-songwriter, and a founding member of the progressive rock band Van der Graaf Generator. Most noted for his vocal abilities, his main instruments are guitar and piano...
(also with Van der Graaf Generator
Van der Graaf Generator
Van der Graaf Generator are an English progressive rock band, formed in 1967 in Manchester. They were the first act signed to Charisma Records. The band achieved considerable success in Italy during the 1970s...
) had the idea for a song, later released on his album Thin Air
Thin Air (album)
Thin Air is British singer-songwriter Peter Hammill's 30th solo album, released on his own Fie! Records label in June 2009. It was additionally made available as digital download through Burning Shed Records....
(2009), called "Your Face on the Street" inspired by the disappearance of Melanie Hall. Some of the lyrics of the song were written at the time of the disappearance, and when the album came out, the discovery had yet to be made.
External links
- Timeline: Melanie Hall disappearance from BBC NewsBBC NewsBBC News is the department of the British Broadcasting Corporation responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs. The department is the world's largest broadcast news organisation and generates about 120 hours of radio and television output each day, as well as online...