Killer Russell Bishop 'should have suffered for longer' says uncle of murdered schoolgirl

  • The uncle of Nicola Fellows says he "won't shed any tears" following killer Russell Bishop's death


The uncle of one of two schoolgirls murdered by Russell Bishop in Sussex in the 1980s says the killer "should have suffered for longer" following his death from cancer.

Nigel Heffron is the uncle of Nicola Fellows who was killed alongside her friend Karen Hadaway in Brighton's Wild Park in October 1986.

He said: "I'm not going to shed any tears over it. He should have suffered a lot longer than he did.

"At the end of the day, that man murdered my niece and her little friend Karen, so don't expect me or my family to shed any tears."

The bodies of Karen Hadaway (left) and Nicola Fellows (right) were discovered in Brighton's Wild Park. Credit: Family handouts

The Ministry of Justice confirmed that Russell Bishop had died of cancer in hospital on Thursday night, January 20.

The 55-year-old was serving a life sentence for sexually assaulting and strangling the nine year-olds when he was aged 20.

He was cleared of their murders on December 10 1987, but within three years went on to kidnap, molest and throttle a seven-year-old girl, leaving her for dead at Devils Dyke.

Russell Bishop died of cancer in hospital on 20 January 2022. Credit: Sussex Police

While serving life for attempted murder, Bishop was ordered to face a fresh trial under the double jeopardy law in light of a DNA breakthrough.

But it was another 32 years before Russell Bishop was convicted at his second trial in 2018.

Nigel Heffron said: "He was given the opportunity several months ago, to come clean with the family, but he refused.

"That's the sort of coward he is, just refusing to put the families mind at rest after going through more than 32 years of hell of trying to find the truth out.

"We all know the truth, that he murdered Nicky and Karen, that was proved in 2018 at the Old Bailey.

"For myself, it destroyed my life, to get the justice I had to go into the sewers to get the justice, to speak to people I never wanted to speak to, to meet people I'd never wanted to meet.

"I'd like to have spent my life differently. My family should never have gone through this, nor should the Hadaway family. No family should face what we've been through."

Russell Bishop was serving a life sentence for sexually assaulting and strangling Nicola Fellows and Karen Hadaway.

Last year, Bishop was given just months to live after it was revealed he was suffering with terminal brain cancer.

A Prison Service spokesperson said: "HMP Frankland prisoner Russell Bishop died in hospital on January 20. The Prisons and Probation Ombudsman has been informed."

Bishop's conviction brought to an end a long fight for justice for the two victims' families.

A policeman stands guard next to a tree surrounded by flowers in Wild Park, Brighton, where Nicola Fellows and Karen Hadaway were found.

Nigel added: "It's just one more chapter closed. In a sense, it's a form of closure for the family but he took the truth with him, that's the most annoying part about it, the truth went with him, it should never have gone with him.

"He could have easily had the decency to tell the truth, but he didn't.

"Before December 2018, the fear of him coming out again was always there.

"He was given 14 year tariff for abducting that young child, he did 28 years before he faced justice.

"Any time in those 14 years he could have been released and another child or children would have suffered.

"To spend the rest of his life in prison and die in prison is exactly where he should have stayed."

A blue Pinto sweatshirt, allegedly worn by Russell Bishop and said to contain vital DNA evidence Credit: Sussex Police/PA

A Pinto sweatshirt discarded on Bishop's route home was linked to the defendant by DNA, while fibre, paint and ivy transfers placed it at the scene. Tests on a sample from Karen's left forearm also revealed a "one in a billion" DNA match to Bishop.

Bishop responded by trying to cast suspicion on Nicola's devastated father Barrie. He tailored his evidence to counter the new forensic evidence, claiming to have touched the bodies to feel for a pulse after they were found by two 18-year-olds.

But jurors saw through the web of lies and convicted Bishop on the "overwhelming" evidence on the 31st anniversary of his acquittal.

Bishop refused to attend court for his sentencing at the Old Bailey.

A court sketch of Russell Bishop in 2018 Credit: Elizabeth Cook/PA

In rare scenes, jurors embraced family members outside court after the hearing.

Sentencing Bishop, Mr Justice Sweeney said: "I have no doubt that you were a predatory paedophile.

"The terror that each girl must have suffered in their final moments is unimaginable."

At the time Karen's mother Michelle Hadaway branded Bishop an "evil monster".

While Sue Eismann, Nicola's mother, said he was a "horrible, wicked man."

Barrie Fellows said the loss of Nicola destroyed his relationship with his wife, saying it "tore us apart".

Their son Jonathan, who died just weeks before the second trial, was "riddled with guilt" that he was not able to look after her as a big brother should, he added.

Nigel said his family takes it "day by day". He said they will come to the memorial in Brighton's Wild Park "every year" to lay flowers for Nicola and Karen.

He said: "It will always be a part of our lives, every year I've been here on the anniversary of their deaths."