INVESTIGATION: Could DNA advances overturn one of Britain's most famous murder cases?

调查:DNA技术的进步能否颠覆英国最著名的谋杀案之一?

The Story

2026-01-21

37 分钟
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In 1996, mother and daughter Lin and Megan Russell were brutally murdered in a picturesque village in Kent. It was a case that shocked 90s Britain, and after a year of searching for the killer, a man called Michael Stone was convicted for their murders. But nearly three decades later, he remains in prison, protesting his innocence. So did he really do it? New advancements in DNA testing may yet reopen the case, in a story which could become one of the UK’s biggest ever miscarriages of justice. This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory Guests:  Emily Dugan, special correspondent, The Sunday Times.Mark McDonald, Michael Stone’s barrister.Jim Fraser, forensic scientist who originally worked on the case.Barbara Stone, Michael Stone’s sister. Host: Luke Jones. Producer: Harry Stott. We want to hear from you - email: thestory@thetimes.com Read more: Who killed Lin and Megan Russell? DNA advances may end doubt Further listening: Seventeen Years - The Andrew Malkinson story Clips: BBC. Photo: Shaun Russell. This podcast was brought to you thanks to subscribers of The Times and The Sunday Times. To enjoy unlimited digital access to all our journalism subscribe here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  • From The Times and The Sunday Times, this is the story.

  • I'm Lou Jones.

  • If you can imagine almost a stereotypical beautiful summer English scene of golden fields and a little cops of trees and a path running through it,

  • this murder happened in the most picturesque part of England.

  • My Sunday Times colleague Emily Dugan has been investigating a horrific 30-year-old murder which took place in the small village of Chillenden in Kent.

  • Lynn Russell and her two daughters Megan and Josie.

  • Megan was six and Josie was nine.

  • We're walking home from school.

  • They were also walking their dog Lucy.

  • Probably feeling very safe in a very ordinary afternoon as far as they're concerned.

  • A car pulled up in front of them on a kind of dirt track,

  • and a man came out with a hammer and attacked the three of them.

  • They were dragged into the cops of trees, tied up,

  • bludgeoned with the hammer, and they were all left for dead.

  • It was the most vicious attack.

  • Lynn and Megan both died.

  • When police arrived at the scene, they assumed Josie was dead,

  • and indeed her father, Sean, was told that everybody had died.

  • But in fact later when she did show signs of movement she was rushed to hospital and she did survive with catastrophic brain injuries but she did survive nonetheless.

  • This brutal story became an infamous case in the 1990s.