David Fuller killed two women and, as a mortuary worker in Britain, abused the bodies of at least 100 more he had access to through his job. His ability to go at it unchecked for 15 years represents another institutional failing along grimly routine lines in the U.K. He will spend the rest of his life behind bars, reports The Guardian.
During his trial in 2021, Fuller admitted to having murdered 25-year-old Wendy Knell and 20-year-old Caroline Pierce in separate attacks in Tunbridge Wells, Kent, in 1987. He subsequently admitted to sexually abusing the bodies of dead women and girls aged between nine and 100 years while working for Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS trust between 2005 and 2020. The later crimes were uncovered after police raided his home and found more than 800,000 images and 500 videos of his abuse – as well as evidence of his "persistent interest" in rape, abuse and murder of women.
On Tuesday, Michael said: "The offences that Fuller committed were truly shocking and he will never be released from prison.
"Failures of management, of governance, of regulation, failure to follow standard policies and procedures, together with a persistent lack of curiosity, all contributed to the creation of the environment in which he was able to offend, and to do so for 15 years without ever being suspected or caught."
There was "little regard" given to who was accessing the mortuary, with Fuller visiting 444 times in a year – something that went "unnoticed and unchecked", reporters were told. And senior bosses were said to be "aware of problems in the running of the mortuary from as early as 2008".
"Persistent lack of curiosity" is a very British fractal. Cameras everwhere, but never in the same room as liabilities. See also: The Reckoning, the BBC and ITV's docudrama about national treasure Jimmy Savile.
According to the Evening Standard, Fuller was an "unofficial photographer" for the band Cutting Crew, famed for the hit single "Died in Your Arms."
