| Flowers in Gods Garden
- Articles |
01/11/92
- We cage beast who killed the bmx boy
by Gary Jones
News of the World
POLICE have praised the News of the World for nailing
the sex monster who brutally murdered BMX bike boy Paul
Pearson. Evil Richard Blenkey, 33, confessed his guilt
in a letter to a reader who joined forces with us in a
bid to solve the case.
And after his defence lawyers were shown the letter, Blenkey
dramatically changed his plea to guilty at the last minute.
The trial at Teesside Crown Court, expected to last a
week, was over in less than an hour.
Security guard Bernard O'Mahoney had turned detective
and pretended to befriend Blenkey, who was in jail awaiting
trial. Bernard contacted us with his ingenious plan to
become Blenkey's pen-pal in the hope of coaxing him into
a confession. With our encouragement, Bernard exchanged
letters with Blenkey for 14 months.
The ploy finally paid off. And on Monday Blenkey was jailed
for life with a recommendation that he serve at least
20 years. Paul's mum Julie, now a voluntary worker for
the charity Parents Of Murdered Children, said: "I
can't thank the News of the World enough for what you've
done." Blenkey had lured seven-year-old Paul into
a chicken hut on his allotment.
The boy was stripped, beaten and probably sexually abused
before being throttled with garden twine. His body and
BMX bike were then dumped in a ravine. Jobless chef Blenkey
protested his innocence. But Bernard, of Basildon, Essex,
was convinced he was lying.
And, together with the News of the World, he set out to
prove it. Bernard, who has a son the same age as Paul,
said: "I knew Blenkey was guilty. I wanted him to
crack. "He's an evil man. I was aware of that from
his first letters. People like him shouldn't be on this
planet."
Bernard, 32, who helps some prisoners cope with their
jail sentences, added: "As far as I'm concerned anyone
who kills a child is public enemy number one. I was determined
to put Blenkey away for life." Armed with our evidence,
we contacted Det Chief Insp Alan Walls, who led the murder
inquiry, and handed over nearly 50 letters from Blenkey
including the final one, in which he confessed.
The detective's reaction was summed up in two words: "Thank
God ..." Julie, 31, of Saltburn, Cleveland, said:
"It makes things a lot easier knowing it was definitely
him. I know the police had a very strong case, but it
was good to hear there was no doubt. "I gasped when
he pleaded guilty in court. It was such a shock. It meant
a great deal to us."
Ken, 31, said: "We'd have had a week of torment if
he hadn't changed his plea though that's nothing to what
Paul went through. "I never had any doubt in my mind
that he did it, but you never know how trials will go.
"I'm pleased Blenkey's been sent down for a long
time. I'd hate to think another child would have to go
through what Paul did.
"It's been a long time to wait. But on Monday it
was worth It. "I have maximum faith in the police.
I used to run a neighbourhood watch and realise what a
good job they do. "But i had to hear, from Blenkey's
own mouth, the word guilty." The couple have three
other children Kevin, 11, Clare, seven, and five-year-old
Christopher.
Mr Justice Blofeld told Blenkey: 'Paul Pearson was seven
years old and had the whole of his life before him. "In
your hands he suffered a terrifying experience which ended
with his death. "There is strong evidence that, at
some stage, his trousers and underpants were removed by
you and that could only have been done by you for sexual
gratification."
Blenkey had originally claimed that a man he knew as Mr
Punk had committed the murder. He had even sent letters
to Bernard O'Mahoney which he said had been written by
Mr Punk. But the letters, which we handed to police along
with those signed by Blenkey were proved by forensic tests
to have been written by the same hand.
"It was a clever ploy inventing this Mr Punk character
as the man behind it all," said Det Chief Insp Walls.
"But the Mr Punk letters you handed over proved it
was Blenkey all along. The letters you gave us certainly
sealed his fate. "Blenkey is a particulary evil man,
who befriended young Paul with the intention of sexually
assaulting him."
Loner Blenkey had never had a girlfriend and was regarded
as a "friendly oddball" by those who knew him.
He had never been able to hold down a job for long and
spent most of his spare time looking after his chickens
and vegetable patch. Blenkey was obsessed with his chickens,
even giving them names.
He told friends he found it difficult killing them. But
he hid a secret past which only a few knew. In 1978 he
had been convicted of breaching the peace after forcing
a young boy to go with him up a hill. The boy kicked him
in the shin and ran to his father, who reported him to
the police.
Blenkey pleaded not guilty, but he was convicted. It was
in 1988 that Blenkey's interest in young boys surfaced
again. He molested local youngsters, but instead of the
police being told their parents gave him a hiding and
Kept their mouths shut. It was a mistake, according to
Det Insp Kevin Watson, which may have cost little Paul
Pearson his life.
Det Insp Watson said: "Blenkey touched up boys near
his allotment. But their parents decided to hand out their
owe summary justice. Blenkey should have been dealt with
by us. It's tragic we weren't told. The man was always
a danger to children. We need help from the public if
we are to keep the streets safe.
"It's no good people saying to us now, 'I gave Blenkey
a good hiding over him touching up a boy of mine,' "I'd
advise any member of the public to come forward with any
information or suspicions about an abuser of children.
You can't afford to take the risk of ignoring these evi!
men.
"Because Blenkey was a friendly sort, and very few
knew about him messing around with children he was accepted
by local people, "He even organised security for
the allotments and would take his turn at staying overnight
to keep intruders away. "Even though Blenkey was
educationally subnormal, he was intelligent enough to
think up his alibi in the form of Mr Punk.
"Blenkey convinced himself he had nothing to do with
Paul's murder. "The letters supposed to be from Mr
Punk were sent to a forensic science laboratory in Birmingham
last week. They proved Blenkey was the author. "The
action of the News of the World in handing evidence to
police came completely out of the blue.
It lent considerable weight to the prosecution case. "The
News of the World has saved the taxpayer thousands of
pounds in getting him to plead guilty. It also helped
ease the suffering of the victim's family. "
We are very grateful to Mr O'Mahoney for co-operating
with the News of the world. "It's an excellent example
of how the public, the press and the police can effectively
work together". |
| Contact : bernard.omahoney@bernardomahoney.com |
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