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Serial Rapist Given Life Sentence
A serial sex attacker who terrorised women in the Chichester area for a period of at least 6 years was jailed for life yesterday (15th October).
Mark Campbell, a 38 year old welder from Chichester, was found guilty at Chichester crown court of thirteen of the fifteen charges brought against him.
Campbell was convicted of four counts of indecent assault, two counts of false imprisonment, three counts of rape, one count of attempted indecent assault, one count of sexual assault and two counts of burglary. The attacks for which Campbell was convicted began in February 1998 and ended in August 2004.
Judge William Wood QC said Campbell would have to serve at least ten years before he became eligible for parole. He said:
"In each case the victim has been profoundly affected by the trauma. None of the victims will forget what you have done to them."
The investigation in to the Chichester attacks, Operation Bobcat, was re-launched in October 2006 under the leadership of Detective Chief Inspector Graham Pratt. The investigation linked a total of 24 offences dating from 1995 to 2004, all of which occurred within Sussex.
Campbell voluntarily gave a DNA sample to Sussex Police in October 2002 after his arrest during an investigation into a 'Peeping Tom' incident in Chichester, for which there was insufficient evidence to charge him.
Due to a procedural error the DNA sample provided by Campbell wasn't sent away for analysis until October 2006, its existence only coming to light as a direct result of an internal review of the case by the Major Crime Branch. The results of the DNA analysis showed a match with Campbell and he was arrested within 48 hours.
Assistant Chief Constable Jeremy Paine said:
"There are no excuses. Having taken this particular sample, we didn't send it off for processing. That had serious consequences in that Campbell was at large for four years longer than he should have been.
"It should not have happened and we are very sorry that it did. We have done everything we can to learn the lessons so that nothing like it can happen again."
Following an internal investigation, a senior police officer and a member of police staff received formal words of advice regarding the failure to send the DNA sample for analysis in 2002.
The chances of a similar procedural error occurring again have been minimised for two reasons. Firstly, when Campbell's DNA was taken in 2002, it could not be placed on the national database because he was not charged with any offence. Were he to be arrested in similar circumstances now, his DNA would automatically be added to the database and the match would be made at once.
Secondly, since 2002 Sussex Police has created a dedicated Major Crime Branch with modern, purpose-built Major Incident Suites located at four centres across Sussex. Improved systems have been developed for the proper closure of major crime investigations that remain unsolved, and then for regular review to ensure that any outstanding actions are properly dealt with.
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20/11/2009
