Bedgebury Forest Woman

The Bedgebury Forest Woman refers to an unknown female whose body was found in Bedgebury Forest, Kent, England, on 23 October 1979. Despite multiple investigations, an arrest and a trial, the woman has never been identified.

Discovery of the victim The body was found by a woman riding on horseback through Bedgebury Forest on Tuesday, 23 October 1979. The forest floor was dry as the weather had been dry and sunny for a few weeks. The body had been battered, mutilated, murdered and dumped but little attempt had been made to conceal the body and it was apparent in the undergrowth from the rider's position. No handbag or means of identification were found with the body.

Description of the victim The severity of the injuries to the woman's head and body prevented identification. The woman was aged between 30 and 35, she was quite short at and she had a thin build. The dress had been purchased at a charity, or second hand shop. The victim would have been in severe pain and may have visited a doctor suspecting appendicitis as the pain would have occurred on her right side. No nicotine staining was found on the victim's hands, teeth or lungs.

Initial investigation After the discovery the police searched the missing persons databases at New Scotland Yard and the UK Social Services. then 73, of Ticehurst, East Sussex, was charged with the victim's murder. Crimewatch U.K - February 1999 (23.02.99)|float=right

On 22 February 1999, the victim's case was featured on Crimewatch for a second time. It was revealed that after the original Crimewatch appeal in 1984, the person who made the black-and-white dress had made contact. The woman, who was from Stratford-upon-Avon, stated that she had given the dress to a charity shop in Evesham, Worcestershire after which police could not trace it. It appeared to have been subsequently altered to shorten the length, remove the zip from the back and add a black lace ruff to the collar. An appeal was made for the person who made these alterations to come forward.

Trial The trial started on 4 May 2000 at Maidstone Crown Court. Pennells was accused of picking up the victim at Spitalfields Market on 19 October 1979, taking her in his lorry to a delivery in Keighley, West Yorkshire, then back to drop her off in South London on the morning of 20 October and beating the victim to death with a wooden stake. Pennells told the court that he had picked up a female hitchhiker. He admitted that the hitchhiker may have been the victim, but claimed that he had dropped her off alive and was innocent of her murder.

Witnesses called by the prosecution stated that they had seen a woman matching the victim's description in Bedgebury Forest on 21 October 1979, the day after some estimations placed the murder. Two witnesses who were at the Keighley lorry depot stated that they saw, and spoke to, a young woman who was with Pennells. Staff at the Henley Transport's Rochdale depot also stated that they saw Pennells with a woman with a similar appearance to an artist's impression made of the victim.

Samples of blood and flakes of hair found in a sleeping bag on the passenger seat of the lorry matched the DNA profile of the victim. Additionally, particles of foam from a mattress in the cab of the lorry were found on the victim's dress.

The trial lasted for four weeks, after which Pennells was found not guilty in a unanimous decision made after the jury deliberated for 1 hour and 15 minutes.

Subsequent appeals to identify the victim In October 2007, the charity Missing People appealed to the public for someone to come forward and identify the woman.