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Thread: Louise Bell 10, Night Abduction From Her Bed, Adelaide, S.Aus -Arrest In 30 Year Cold Case

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    Senior Member blighted star's Avatar
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    Louise Bell 10, Night Abduction From Her Bed, Adelaide, S.Aus -Arrest In 30 Year Cold Case



    http://www.australianmissingpersonsr...LouiseBell.htm

    http://m.adelaidenow.com.au/news/pol...-1226162084616

    ONE of the state's highest-profile murder mysteries - the 1983 abduction of schoolgirl Louise Bell - has been reopened with the questioning of a key suspect and fresh DNA tests now under way.

    Sources have revealed that Major Crime detectives questioned a man on Tuesday in connection with the murder of the 10-year-old Hackham West girl, who vanished from her bedroom on a summer's night 28 years ago.

    The man, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, is a prison inmate serving a lengthy sentence for child-sex offences.

    He has been a suspect in the case for two decades, living two streets from the Bell house, in Meadow Way, when Louise was abducted on January 4, 1983.

    The backyard of the man's house and a shed were excavated in 1991. The floors of two bedrooms were also dug up as part of the search, which failed to find any evidence.

    While it is not known what sparked the fresh inquiries involving the man, it is known that a team of Major Crime detectives started re-examining the case in August.
    As part of the latest inquiry, it is likely many witnesses will be re-interviewed, particularly those who lived around the Bell's home at the time of her disappearance.

    Those interviewed are also expected to include former friends and associates of the key suspect.

    It is understood detectives also will be relying on advances in forensic technology, particularly DNA testing, as part of the renewed investigation.

    Key pieces of forensic evidence found at the abduction scene and other locations will be subjected to new forensic testing.


    Disappearance: Police inspect the suspect's house in 1991 and, right, distraught parents Colin and Diane Bell in 1983

    One is likely to be the pyjama top Louise was wearing when she was abducted. It was placed on the front lawn of a house near the Bell residence almost two months after she vanished.

    Several weeks earlier an anonymous caller had contacted the female owner of the house and left directions to where Louise's earrings could be found.

    The call to the house, the recovery of the earrings and the precise placement of the pyjama top, strengthened the police theory Louise may have been taken by a local resident.

    When contacted by the Sunday Mail, Major Crime officer-in-charge Detective Superintendent Grant Moyle confirmed the renewed investigations in the long-running case, but refused to comment on the suspect "in any form".

    He said Louise's parents, Colin and Diane, had been advised of the new police inquiries "in recent days".

    "I can state that as part of this inquiry we have re-submitted dedicated exhibits to forensic science for fresh DNA testing," he said.

    "We are also conducting further inquiries into forensic testing techniques that are used in overseas jurisdictions that may assist us."

    Supt Moyle would not comment on what prompted the move to interview the suspect or on any new evidence that may have arisen during the fresh investigations.

    "This is a long and drawn-out process and we are committed to taking it as far as possible," he said.

    "I would stress that it is never too late for members of the public with any information on this case to come forward."

    http://mobile.news.com.au/national/m...-1226414564981



    Police in Adelaide are searching a property in connection with the 1983 abduction and murder of schoolgirl Louise Bell, which was formerly occupied by convicted child murderer Dieter Pfennig. AdelaideNow can reveal hi-tech ground-penetrating radar equipment is being used to search the backyard of Pfennig's former house on Holly Rise, Hackham West, in Adelaide's outer southern suburbs. There are more than a dozen police officers from the Major Crime and Forensic branches involved in the search.

    Louise was 10 when she was abducted from her family's Hackham West home on January 4, 1983. Her body has not been found. Known paedophile Raymond John Geesing was convicted of the crime, despite no body being found. He was later acquitted on appeal. Pfennig was jailed for life with a 38-year non-parole period in 1992 for the murder of 10-year-old Murray Bridge schoolboy Michael Black. Michael was abducted on January 18, 1989, from a reserve near Murray Bridge. Pfennig placed the boy's belongings upstream to give the impression he had drowned while swimming, but his body was never found. Pfennig has also admitted abducting and sexually assaulting another boy, 13, in late 1989. Lands Title Office records show Pfennig owned the Holly Rise property from 1977 until he was taken into custody.

    The Louise Bell investigation was re-opened last year because of better DNA technology, police said. The radar equipment being used at the Hackham West search site has been loaned from the Australian Federal Police, who are assisting in the operation. Similar equipment was previously used to search a Salisbury North backyard in the infamous "bodies in the barrels" murder investigation. Police say they could be working at the site for several days. Major Crime officer in charge Superintendent Grant Moyle said the search had been ordered after police re-examined evidence from the 1983 investigation and subsequent investigations in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

    "We are searching for any evidence that might relate to Louise Bell or any other offences that might have been committed," he said. "It's a big commitment. We have examined closely the extent of investigations that were conducted in 1983, when Louise Bell went missing. It is a result of that, that we felt for thoroughness we needed to fully examine the backyard more than they did in 1991." In the mid-1990s, Louise's father, Colin Bell, said his daughter's disappearance was "completely out of character''. "She was a fairly timid girl and slightly immature for her age and fairly shy,'' he said.

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    Senior Member blighted star's Avatar
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    http://au.news.yahoo.com/sa/a/199118...elaide-murder/

    South Australian police have made an arrest in one of state's most baffling murder cases dating back 30 years.

    A 65-year-old man has been arrested in relation to the murder of 10-year-old schoolgirl Louise Bell.

    Louise was last seen on January 4, 1983 when she went to bed at her Hackham West home in Adelaide's southern suburbs.

    She was abducted from her bedroom during the night but her body has never been found.

    Deputy commissioner Grant Stevens says a comprehensive review of the investigation over the past two years identified a number of new lines of enquiry.

    "Murder investigations never close and police do follow up every line of enquiry in the hope that each case is solved and the justice process completed," he said on Tuesday.

    Mr Stevens said police had remained in contact with the Bell family over the past 30 years.

    "Louise's family remain devastated by her disappearance and remain hopeful that her remains will, one day, be found," he said.

    The man charged with murder will appear in the Port Lincoln Magistrates Court on Tuesday
    http://m.adelaidenow.com.au/news/sou...-1226763196736

    POLICE have arrested a man over the 1983 murder of 10-year-old Hackham West schoolgirl Louise Bell.

    The breakthrough came early today when Major Crime detectives travelled to Port Lincoln and arrested Dieter Pfennig, 65, in connection with the 30-year-old abduction and suspected murder.

    The move follows an intensive review of the case initiated in August 2011, which resulted in the excavation of Pfennig's former home in a search for Louise's remains.

    It was second time his house had been searched by officers investigating the case - one of Adelaide's most notorious and enduring mysteries.

    A key part of the review also saw numerous items and exhibits in the case sent to the Netherlands for advanced DNA testing in a bid to uncover further evidence.

    Pfennig has been a suspect in the case for two decades. He lived two streets from the Bell house, in Meadow Way, when Louise was abducted on January 4, 1983

    The backyard of his house and a shed were first excavated in 1991. The floors of two bedrooms were also dug up as part of the search, which failed to find any evidence.

    One of the key exhibits sent overseas for forensic testing was the pyjama top Louise was wearing at the time she was abducted through her bedroom window.

    Weeks after taking Louise, her abductor phoned Kathleen Smith - who lived near the Bells - and asked about medical advice for Louise.

    He told her where to find Louise's earrings - under a brick at the Beach Rd-South Rd intersection. Earrings matching Louise's were discovered.

    Five weeks later he left Louise's pyjama top - neatly folded - on Mrs Smith's front lawn.

    Algae and soil samples found on the pyjama top led police to the estuary area at Noarlunga but no trace of the girl was found.


    Announcing today's arrest, Deputy Commissioner Grant Stevens said the arrest was the "culmination of the relentless work of all those police involved over the years combined with the dedicated efforts of Forensic Science SA personnel".

    The investigation had involved taking 550 statements as detectives pursued Louise's murderer.

    "Murder investigations never close and police do follow up every line of inquiry in the hope that each case is solved and the justice process completed," he said.

    "Police have had ongoing contact with the Bell family during the past 30 years and continue that contact today.

    "Louise's family remain devastated by her disappearance and remain hopeful that her remains will, one day, be found.

    "Police will continue to work hard to meet this expectation. As this case shows it is never too late and police will take action whenever possible."

    Raymond John Geesing, who had lived 500m from the Bell house until two months before her abduction, was initially charged with murdering Louise. Police had spoken to the father-of-four days after the abduction.

    He was convicted using circumstantial evidence, but this was later overturned. The court found some grounds of suspicion but that they fell far short of the proof the law required for conviction of a criminal offence.

    A key witness, a prisoner, was found to have fabricated his statement implicating Geesing, who successfully sued the government for facial injuries sustained during his 16 months in prison.

    Pfennig is due to appear in the Port Lincoln Magistrates Court this afternoon.

    Police will hold a media conference at 1.30pm.

    Can't find pix for Pfennig. The pix that come up are actually for other men who were incorrectly linked with Louise's case, but I'll keep searching ...

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    http://m.adelaidenow.com.au/news/sou...-1226763196736

    ARREST IN 30 YEAR CHILD MURDER COLD CASE


    NEW forensic evidence led to Major Crime detectives charging a former schoolteacher in the Louise Bell murder case.

    The evidence forms the backbone of the case against former schoolteacher Dieter Pfennig, 65, who was today charged with the murder of the 10-year-old schoolgirl.

    In a sensational development in the 30-year old mystery, detectives from the Major Crime Investigation Section descended on Port Lincoln.

    Pfennig, who has been a suspect in the Bell abduction for two decades, was taken to the Port Lincoln police station after being arrested and formally interviewed.



    He was then charged with murder.

    In an Adelaide Magistrates Court hearing before Magistrate Jayanthi McGrath, he appeared via videolink from Port Lincoln Magistrates Court and was remanded to next appear in February. He sat emotionless and silent.

    The arrest was the culmination of a two-year cold-case review in which many pieces of evidence, including the pyjama top worn by Louise, were sent to the Netherlands by police for advanced DNA testing.

    The pyjama top was left on the front lawn of a neighbour's house two months after Louise was abducted from her bedroom on the night of January 4, 1983.

    The DNA testing used new "low-copy'' testing techniques that have been successfully used in other jurisdictions, including the US.

    The low-copy method of DNA testing is a far more sensitive technique than the method used in Australia.

    It can extract a DNA profile from just a few cells of skin or sweat.

    The review also led to police excavating the backyard of a Hackham West house that was occupied by Pfennig when Louise was abducted.

    It was the second time his house had been searched by officers investigating the case.

    Deputy Commissioner Grant Stevens declined to be drawn on the nature of the new evidence against Pfennig, but said police would allege he abducted Louise from her bedroom sometime after 10.30pm on January 4.

    They believe he acted alone and no other suspects are being sought.

    "She has not been seen since and unfortunately her remains have not been located,'' Mr Stevens said.

    "This is a significant step forward in the investigation and is evidence once again that police continue to investigate murders, regardless of their age or the difficulty of those investigations.''

    Mr Stevens paid tribute to the current investigators and others, many of whom have since retired, who also sought to bring Louise's killer to justice.

    "We have also had significant support from Forensic Science SA, who have been instrumental in helping us to bring this case to a point where we have been able to make an arrest,'' he said.

    Louise was snatched from the bedroom of her house on Meadow Way during the night of January 4, 1983.

    Neighbour Pat Golsby, who has lived in Meadow Way since 1971, welcomed news of the arrest.

    "We all had young children at the time, there were a lot of children on the street so it was very distressing,'' she said.

    "It is something that has needed to be solved for a long time and you just wonder all the time who could do such a thing.

    "Our kids used to all play together, it would be nice to know where Louise is for her parents' sake. Hopefully now they can get closure for the parents. It has taken so long.''

    Pfennig has been a suspect in the case for two decades. He lived two streets from the Bell house when Louise was abducted.

    The backyard of his house and a shed were first excavated in 1991. The floors of two bedrooms were also dug up as part of the search, which failed to find any evidence.

    One of the key exhibits sent overseas for forensic testing was the pyjama top Louise was wearing at the time she was abducted through her bedroom window.

    Weeks after taking Louise, her abductor phoned Kathleen Smith - who lived near the Bells - and asked about medical advice for Louise.

    He told her where to find Louise's earrings - under a brick at the Beach Rd-South Rd intersection. Earrings matching Louise's were discovered.

    Five weeks later he left Louise's pyjama top - neatly folded - on Mrs Smith's front lawn.

    Algae and soil samples found on the pyjama top led police to the estuary area at Noarlunga but no trace of the girl was found.



    Deputy Commissioner Stevens said the arrest was the "culmination of the relentless work of all those police involved over the years combined with the dedicated efforts of Forensic Science SA personnel".

    The investigation had involved taking 550 statements as detectives pursued Louise's murderer.

    "Murder investigations never close and police do follow up every line of inquiry in the hope that each case is solved and the justice process completed," he said.

    "Police have had ongoing contact with the Bell family during the past 30 years and continue that contact today.

    "Louise's family remain devastated by her disappearance and remain hopeful that her remains will, one day, be found.

    "Police will continue to work hard to meet this expectation. As this case shows it is never too late and police will take action whenever possible."

    Raymond John Geesing, who had lived 500m from the Bell house until two months before her abduction, was initially charged with murdering Louise. Police had spoken to the father-of-four days after the abduction.

    He was convicted using circumstantial evidence, but this was later overturned. The court found some grounds of suspicion but that they fell far short of the proof the law required for conviction of a criminal offence.

    A key witness, a prisoner, was found to have fabricated his statement implicating Geesing, who successfully sued the government for facial injuries sustained during his 16 months in prison.

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    What do you care? Boston Babe 73's Avatar
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    I hope this asshole gives up where the body is. The Family deserves to take her home and give her a proper burial. RIP Louise.
    Quote Originally Posted by Nic B View Post
    That is too pretty to be shoved up an ass.
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    You can take those Fleets and shove them up your ass



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    Senior Member SuchAClassicGirl's Avatar
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    Am I missing a connection between Bell and Pfennig or is it not mentioned? Also, I wonder if anyone has looked into that neighbor that gets phone calls and magically has articles of clothing appear?

    I mean both the person convicted and the other "considered a suspect for 2 decades" lived closeby
    Last edited by SuchAClassicGirl; 12-10-2013 at 07:02 PM.
    Quote Originally Posted by blighted star
    I was about to be annoyed that this thread was still active, but I see now it's morphed into offers of sex for chilli confectionary, so carry on guys :)

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    Murder accused in coma after heart attack

    The man on trial for the murder of Adelaide schoolgirl Louise Bell in 1983 remains in a coma in hospital after suffering a heart attack, casting doubt over the future of the case.

    Dieter Pfennig was taken from Yatala Jail to hospital on Monday night.

    The Supreme Court has been updated on his situation with an official source telling reporters on Wednesday that Pfennig remains in a coma while medical staff assess his condition.

    The situation remains "fluid" with more likely to be known when the case returns to court next week, the source said.

    Pfennig's trial began in September last year and has reached about the half-way point.

    The defence case has not yet begun with recent hearings concentrating on DNA evidence.

    Louise was taken on the night of January 4, 1983, from the front bedroom of her parents' yellow brick house in Hackham West in Adelaide's south.

    Pfennig has pleaded not guilty to murdering the girl whose body has never been found.

    He was not originally a person of interest, but was charged in 2013 after a comprehensive review was conducted and DNA samples were tested in Australia and the Netherlands.

    Pfennig's lawyer, Craig Caldicott, said it might be possible for the trial, which is being heard by a judge sitting without a jury, to continue, depending on his client's condition and recovery and ability to provide proper instructions.

    "But at this point in time we don't know," he told ABC radio.


    Read more at http://www.9news.com.au/national/201...guf8jQzj6Sw.99

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