Devon & Cornwall Police News site

In 1997 police pieced together Kate’s final movements with witnesses reporting various sightings of a blue vehicle and two unidentified men. These sightings remain key lines of enquiry for the investigation along with tracing unidentified orange fibres found at the scene.

Kate began her final day like many other Saturdays. She went into Exeter shopping with her mum Suzanne buying a CD at Virgin Megastore and a comic book for her older brother Tim’s birthday, which she never had the chance to give him.

She spent the afternoon at her home in Burrator Drive before setting off around 4.30pm to walk a neighbour’s Jack Russell, Gemma, while her owners were away.

She was last seen alive at 4.50pm by a layby towards the Whitestone Cross end of Exwick Lane. Witnesses remember seeing her and Gemma but also spotting a small blue car parked in the nearby stables layby with a man stood with it.

The man was described as white, aged between 30 and 40, of average build and height, clean shaven with dark collar length hair.

Several witnesses also saw a man running fast in the Farm Hill/Cornflower Hill area of Exwick between 5pm and 7pm. This man has never been traced.

DI Back said: “The sightings of these two men are just as important now as they were in 1997. Who are they and why have they never come forward? If you know who they are or if it was you and you were there for a genuine reason then please contact us.

“The man next to the blue vehicle is highly likely to have seen Kate in the lane but has never contacted us despite repeated appeals.”

At 5.30pm a small dog was seen running loose from a gateway in Exwick Lane at the base of the field where Kate’s body was subsequently found.

Kate’s body was discovered around 7.30pm following enquiries and searches of the area by police and her family.

The schoolgirl had died from a catastrophic injury to her neck caused by a blade at least six inches long. The knife used in the crime is another key line of enquiry for detectives.

DI Back said: “Who carried a knife like that around Exwick in 1997? There had to be some kind of pre-meditation; you only carry a knife like that to inflict harm, or worse, on somebody.”

A critical piece of evidence was the presence of orange clothing fibres, more than 100 of which were found on Kate’s body and one on a nearby country stile.

Detectives have carried out substantial work on the fibres which are from a bright orange azoic-dyed cotton material predominately used in non-fluorescent workwear such as boiler suits, aprons and gloves.

“Does anyone remember someone with orange non-florescent clothing who was acting strangely around the time of the murder? If someone does have suspicions then please give us a name,” said DI Back.

Detectives remain convinced that the offender has local connections due to the isolated location of the murder which was mainly used then as a cut through to Nadderwater and Whitestone, and frequented by local dog walkers.

“The murder location has huge significance because it is not common to anyone from outside of the area,” said DI Back. “We believe that the killer may have lived locally or had links to friends and family members there.

“Kate’s body was found in a field which leads to Kinnerton Way and she would have gone down a country path and across two stiles to get there.

“I remain convinced that either somebody knows or suspects who is responsible for Kate’s death but for whatever reason they have not come forward.

“Maybe someone had suspicions about someone in their life back then and has been protecting them out of misplaced loyalty. It is time for those allegiances to change.”

The murder shook the local community and prompted a huge murder enquiry named Operation Deakin, which has continued for two decades.

More than 800 mourners attended Kate’s funeral and a memorial water garden was opened at St Thomas High School, now West Exe School, by her friends on the first anniversary of her death in November 1998.

“We must never forget that this was the murder of a child in the most horrific circumstances. Kate was a popular and very bright girl with aspirations to go to Oxford University. She loved playing basketball and was heavily involved with the church. She was also extremely musical; she played the saxophone, the clarinet and the piano,” added DI Back.

“It has now been 25 years since this truly terrible murder but we have never forgotten Kate. We are as committed as ever to bringing the person responsible to justice and to ease the suffering of her family who have felt this terrible pain for a quarter of a century.”

You can report information through the Major Incident Public Portal: Public Portal (mipp.police.uk)

Information can also be passed to Crimestoppers on 0800 555111 or via their non-traceable online form at www.crimestoppers-uk.org

A substantial reward of £20,000 has been offered by independent charity Crimestoppers for information they receive which leads to the arrest and conviction of the offender.

The death of the St Thomas High School pupil prompted Operation Deakin, one of the largest and longest running unsolved murder enquiries by Devon and Cornwall Police.  

More than 160 detectives and staff were initially deployed to the case in 1997, with more than 5,000 house-to-house interviews conducted and over 5,000 DNA samples taken from individuals in the Exwick and Exeter area. Three suspects have been interviewed and released without charge.

On the 20th anniversary of Kate’s death in 2017 the Force launched an investigative review alongside a major public appeal for the information.

The review, led by Detective Superintendent Paul Burgan [featured in the 2017 appeal video opposite], generated 204 calls and messages into the incident room, identifying 10 new lines of enquiry.

The information received still plays a part in the investigation today but police need that vital clue on which to build the case.