Hope of finding mum's body 'lost if killer released'

A family could lose "all hope" of finding a woman's remains if a "deeply deceitful" murderer is released from prison, a court was told.

Glyn Razzell from Crewkerne in Somerset was jailed for life in 2003 for the murder of his estranged wife Linda, who vanished in Swindon, Wiltshire, the year before. He has never revealed where he hid her body.

Despite this, the Parole Board concluded in April that Razzell could be released from prison. The Justice Secretary then referred the decision to the High Court.

In a statement, Linda's cousin Judy Westmore said: "If Glyn is released, all hope of ever finding Linda's remains will be lost."

The mum-of-four, who was 41 when she vanished, was last seen parking her car in Alvescot Road while on her way to work at Swindon College in March 2002.

Razzell, a former insurance investment manager, made appeals in the news for her return but was later arrested and charged with her murder.

Linda had been in the midst of divorce proceedings and had visited a bank with a court order to freeze her husband's bank accounts the week before she vanished.

Detectives also found traces of blood in the boot of a car Razzell had used.

He was sentenced to a minimum of 16 years in prison after a trial.

This week's High Court hearing, before Justice Cheema-Grubb, is expected to last two days.

Tristan Jones KC, prosecuting, said Razzell, who is currently in an open prison, had been "compliant with conditions" and had engaged in 20 sessions with a psychologist.

He added: "Professionals involved in his care and assessment have each concluded it would be safe to release him. I don't shy away from any of those points."

But Jones described Razzell as a "deeply deceitful individual" who carried out a "campaign of violence" against Linda.

"Mr Razzell continues to cause harm to victims. This is partly because of his refusal to say where Linda's body is," he added.

The court heard evidence from a domestic abuse report Linda made to police before her death, which showed she feared he would kill her.

Linda said that when she confronted Razzell about an affair he had with a 19-year-old in 2000, he threw her so hard she cracked a rib. He also made threats to kill her, she had told officers.

Razzell was tried and acquitted of two counts of domestic abuse a few months before he killed Linda.

However, a Parole Board hearing in 2023 concluded on the balance of probabilities that he was abusive.

In a victim statement played in court, Linda's cousin Westmore said a "huge chunk of happiness and joy" had been taken from her family's lives.

Linda's mother had died when she was eight and she went to live with Judy, meaning the pair grew up like sisters.

Westmore continued: "The major impact on myself and our family would be a loss of trust in the justice system of this country if he [Razzell] is released without saying where Linda's remains are.

"It's chilling that Glyn Razzell can calmly present as an innocent trustworthy man.

"If Glyn is released, all hope of ever finding Linda's remains will be lost."

Razzell, who wore a black suit in court, has applied for parole four times. When his application was refused in 2021, he became the first prisoner to be denied parole under Helen's Law.

The law requires the Parole Board to take into consideration a killer's refusal to disclose where they hid their victim's body.

The court also heard that he contributes to a website, easily found online, which claims he is innocent.

When the Parole Board approved Razzell's release in April, they said in a statement: "After considering the circumstances of his offending, including... his conduct while in custody and all the evidence presented at the hearing and in the dossier, the panel was satisfied that imprisonment was no longer necessary for the protection of the public."

The board acknowledged the family's concerns and Helen's Law but said: "Denial [to reveal the victim's body's whereabouts] cannot be a bar to release".

Matthew Stanbury, defending, told the court that the Parole Board's decision was "detailed and thorough", and that the prosecution's case "comes close to treating denial as conclusive to risk".

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