Levi Bellfield confesses to murders of Lin and Megan Russell, lawyer says

Serial killer Levi Bellfield has signed a fresh confession saying he murdered Lin Russell and her daughter Megan, a lawyer has said.

Michael Stone is serving three life sentences in prison for the murder of Ms Russell, 45, and her six-year-old daughter who were found bludgeoned to death in Chillenden, Kent, in July 1996.

Ms Russell’s other daughter Josie, then aged nine, suffered severe head injuries but survived.

Stone has always protested his innocence over the attack.

Bellfield is currently serving two whole life terms for the murders of two young women, Marsha McDonnell and Amelie Delagrange, and schoolgirl Milly Dowler.

Bellfield claimed responsibility for the Chillenden murders last year but later retracted the statement.

Stone’s solicitor Paul Bacon has said Bellfield has now written and signed a fresh confession, saying the move “must have taken some courage and considerable soul-searching”.

“It will, hopefully, bring closure to the families involved,” he said.

“Now, the police need to respond and investigate these crimes afresh, to affect closure for these families.”

Bellfield’s solicitor Theresa Clark told the BBC that her client “needs to take responsibility”.

She said that he confessed after engaging with prison psychologists.

“At the end of the day, the instruction from my client is clear. He’s adamant that he did it,” she said.

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“My client says ‘I did it, I need to take responsibility for what I’ve done’.”

It is understood the alleged confession has been referred to the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC).

Kent Police said its position on Stone’s conviction remains unchanged.

Bellfield was given a whole life term for murdering 19-year-old Ms McDonnell in 2003 and 22-year-old Ms Delagrange in 2004, as well as trying to murder 18-year-old Kate Sheedy in the same year.

He was already serving his sentence when he went on trial for killing 13-year-old Milly Dowler, who was snatched while walking home from school in Walton-on-Thames, Surrey, in March 2002.

Bellfield was found guilty of abducting and killing the schoolgirl following a trial at the Old Bailey in 2011.