The Murder of April Jones – A Crime that Shocked the Nation – True Crime Documentary

April 4th, 2007. April Jones is born to parents Coral and Paul. She was a bright and happy little girl who was the apple of her family’s eye. It was discovered she had cerebral palsy when she was very young and required daily medication, but in spite of this, she lived her life to the absolute fullest, bringing joy to everyone she met. Her family said she ruled the roost with a cheeky nature, whilst also being kind and loving. She loved the outdoors and would often be out riding her bike with her friends. She was also a hard worker in school and was popular amongst her classmates and teachers. On September 30th, 2012, April received a glowing report about how well she was progressing in primary school.

Due to having such a fantastic school report the previous day, April was allowed to have some extra time to play outside. April was out playing with her friends near her home on the Bryn-y-Gog estate.

A Land Rover is seen driving away from Machynlleth at speed. Just 9 minutes later, a frantic 999 call is made.

“Police emergency.”

“Dog, hang on, can you speak to them please? Hello, and what makes you think, um, the daughter’s been…?”

“Apparently, um, she’s gone off in a car with somebody. Somebody picked her up in a car or something.”

“Okay, what’s the name of the child that’s gone missing?”

“April Jones.”

“April? How old is she?”

“Five.”

The 999 dispatcher wasted no time by deploying police straight away, and within 8 minutes, the first officer had arrived on scene. She spoke to a witness, April’s 7-year-old friend who she had been out with. She was able to provide a brief description: the man who had taken April had brown hair, a beard, blue or green eyes, and was wearing a green jacket or jumper, jeans, and trainers. She also described the vehicle, and one thing immediately stood out to investigators. Her friend said that April had gotten to the driver’s side door, meaning the car’s steering wheel must have been on the left-hand side of the car, when most cars in the United Kingdom will have the steering wheel on the right. Following this information, a critical incident was launched by the police as it was an alleged abduction. The police needed to pursue as many lines of inquiry as possible to try and ascertain exactly where April was, knowing time was of the essence.

That day had started like any other. April’s older sister described it as being a normal day. April had gone to her swimming lesson as usual and then skipped out of the changing rooms to head home. Despite it being October, the sun was out and it was a nice warm evening. April’s older sister had gone to the youth club when, at around 7:30 p.m., she received a frantic phone call from her mother screaming down the phone that April was gone. As the sun started to set, panic began to escalate. The response from the community was massive and immediate. As news started to spread on social media that April was missing, people began to come out of their homes to try and assist in any way they could and show support to the Jones family.

But this made door-to-door inquiries for the police incredibly difficult as so many weren’t at their addresses and officers were only able to ask them questions once they returned. When her older sister arrived home from the youth club, she was hoping that April would be home by now. Instead, her distraught mother was out looking for her and police were combing the area. As the search efforts continued to mount, the media became aware that a 5-year-old girl had allegedly been abducted. The eyes of the country were fixated on the small little Welsh community as it had been rocked by something so out of the ordinary. By 10:30 p.m., the police had put out an update saying they were increasingly concerned for April and were appealing for any information that could help find her.

Hundreds of local volunteers gathered to join in the search after the news started to spread on Twitter and Facebook. Also high on the priority for the police was helping to support her devastated family. Police revealed more information about the circumstances of April’s disappearance and said she was last seen wearing a purple coat and her school polo top. Refuse collection was suspended as workers joined in the hunt too. Hour by hour, more people came out to help with the search, culminating in more than 100 local residents. The town, with a population of just over 2,000, was inundated with volunteers, with some traveling from South Wales and the north of England. Police said they wanted to make sure that search volunteers were used in a coordinated and effective way. April’s family weren’t allowed to take part in the searches in case they came across something, so the local community stepped up to help.

One problem the search teams immediately ran into was the terrain. The extensive countryside, mountains, gorges, streams, waterfalls, and uneven ground made it an incredibly difficult place to search. There were slate mines in the area too, and all of these factors mixed with the rain presented a huge challenge for those trying to find April. An area of more than 60 km was searched, and there were more than 300 specific search areas. The police knew that if April had been abducted by a stranger, every second was vital to try and find her safe and well. 8 hours on from the initial 999 call being made, the police and community were still out searching, trying to find April Jones. 120 search officers were out and searched through the night.

The morning after she had gone missing, they decided to activate the child rescue alert, which puts on notice all police forces up and down the United Kingdom to be on the lookout for any unusual sightings of individuals who fit the description of April Jones and the person who had allegedly abducted her. Information was being distributed to other forces, including descriptions of both April and the alleged abductor, as well as the car her friend saw her getting into. This was the first time the child rescue alert had been triggered nationwide.

“April, within minutes of April’s disappearance.”

“Okay, people, let’s go forward.”

The people of Machynlleth had turned out in their hundreds to help in the search alongside professional volunteers. They carried on through the night.

“There’s a large number of people here this morning, and we are very grateful indeed for all of your help and assistance.”

And into the following day. It had now been 14 hours since she had last been seen, and there was still no sighting of the missing 5-year-old. Missing posters started to go up around the area and police began to set up roadblocks to stop vehicles as the investigation continued escalating. The police force found themselves under mounting pressure from the media to release more information. Press conferences were being held every few hours, and sometimes journalists were given very little notice that they were about to take place. As the search continued, it was the task of Andy John, the detective superintendent, to try and find April’s alleged abductor. After the friend of April had been allowed to rest, the police went back to try and get a more detailed description of exactly what she had seen when April went missing. It became clear…

Bridger was described as a pathological and glib liar, a pedophile who harbored sexual and morbid fantasies about young girls. He chose to put witnesses through the ordeal of giving evidence over a lengthy trial that had lasted 4 and a half weeks. He could have avoided all of it by pleading guilty in the first instance to the charges that had been leveled against him. Detective Superintendent Andrew John, who had led the investigation, said:

“Mark Bridger is an evil and manipulative individual who clearly likes to be in control. He has committed the most horrific of crimes: the abduction and murder of a young vulnerable girl. He appears to be somebody who is a fantasist.”

In July 2013, it was reported by the BBC that Mark Bridger had been attacked while in prison. The 47-year-old was attacked with a makeshift blade as he walked along the gangway at Wakefield Prison in West Yorkshire. He was treated in hospital where he required stitches. His injuries were not life-threatening and he was returned to prison the same day.

In September 2013, the family had a burial funeral with many turning up to pay their respects. As they didn’t have a body, the family buried an empty casket pulled on a horse-drawn carriage, with the burial site being the graveyard just yards away from where she had disappeared. They were given ash and bone fragments from the police to bury, and the family also buried personal items alongside. This gave the family a spot they could visit to remember April and be together as a family. April’s coffin made the one-mile journey from the house to the church through the middle of town, passing pink ribbons along the route.

“Last October, the ribbons were the symbol of the search. Today, they are a tribute to her and hundreds of people who had joined that search joined the solemn procession. Parents here holding their children close, too many mourners to fit inside the church.”

In December 2013, the judicial office said that Mark Bridger had lodged an application for permission to appeal, but the following month they confirmed that he had abandoned his attempt just 11 days before the hearing was due to take place. In November 2018, leading search engine companies announced they were going to make it harder to find child abuse images online. As many as 100,000 search terms would now return no results that find illegal material.

Following the horrors that had occurred at Mount Pleasant, the property was later demolished. April’s family were there to watch the demolition.

“For the both of you, what did this house come to represent?”

“The horrific murder of my daughter and a 5-year-old life just taken away, and it’s just nightmares ever since she was taken, yeah.”

“To have this house knocked down today is… it’s just a relief for us. It’s something that isn’t going to be bothering us, isn’t going to be plaguing us for the rest of life. It sits on the back of your mind all the time, Mike, and main road is just there. We drive past that main road about every couple of three days like, and it’s… it’s there. So there’s no worries about us going past, and it’s a relief, and perhaps we can move on a little.”

Tragically, April’s father, Paul, developed a rare brain disease. The family revealed in February 2018 that the diagnosis had left him unable to remember the murder. His wife, Coral, told the Mirror that Paul could not understand why April hadn’t visited him in hospital. Her family are adamant that she will be remembered for the joy and happiness she brought to so many people, and not for the tragic way that she left this earth.