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Grief, Shock Over Murders of Holly Wells, Jessica Chapman Turns to Anger

Aired August 21, 2002 - 12:04   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: Now, in London, police have now confirmed that two bodies found over the weekend are indeed those of two 10- year-old girls who disappeared earlier this month. Grief and shock over the murders of Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman has now turned to anger. And the object of that fury, well, one of those charged in the case.
CNN's Diana Muriel takes us to the courthouse.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DIANA MURIEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: They came to see for themselves, after days spent following media reports of every development in the hunt for the two missing 10-year-olds, Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman. A crowd of around 200 onlookers jeered and shouted abuse outside Peterborough Magistrates Court in eastern England, as 25-year-old Maxine Carr left the courtroom. She has been charged with one count of "attempting to pervert the course of justice" in the police investigation into the murder of the two girls, and has been remanded in custody until trial.

The crowd's palpable fury at her alleged part in this terrible crime was obvious.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Just pure anger, just pure hatred for the woman. And I don't use that word lightly. She deserves everything she gets and more.

MURIEL: Their anger further aroused by the news that 28-year-old Ian Huntley, who has been charged with the murder of the two girls, will not appear in court. Instead, he is being held at Rumpton High security Hospital on the recommendation of psychiatrists. The former school caretaker will undergo further tests there over the next 28 days to determine whether he is mentally fit to stand trial.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Pulling the wool over the psychiatrist's eyes is the easiest to do. Sorry, but it is. I just can't believe that. If he is so mentally ill that he can't appear in court, what was he doing in a job in a school?

MURIEL: The need for proper psychiatric evaluation of Ian Huntley will make the time until trial even longer than usual, keeping the case in the public eye.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The anger and hatred displayed outside this court a chilling reminder of the powerful emotions this case has provoked. Although the judicial process is now under way, it may be some time before tempers are calmed.

Diana Muriel, CNN, Peterborough, England.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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