Operation Sumac was a linked series investigation conducted by Suffolk Constabulary into the murders of five women whose bodies were found in various locations around Ipswich during December 2006
Feb 23, 2016
Operation Sumac was a linked series investigation conducted by Suffolk Constabulary into the murders of five women whose bodies were found in various locations around Ipswich during December 2006
Crime Linking Assessment
• Victimology
• Deposition Sites
• Pathology
• Other Additional Feature
Victimology
• All victims female;• All similar ages, early twenties;• All reported to be drug abusers;• All worked as street prostitutes;• All operated from the same confined catchment
area;• Each victim was know to travel in the vehicle driven
by the client;• There was an association between each victim;
Pathology
• Cause of deaths similar• No evidence of sexual assault• No evidence of defence wounds• No sign of trauma to the body
Other additional features
• Not possible to establish the place of death• Some victims continued to operate after the
discovery of earlier victims; coupled with the absence of defence wounds may indicate victims were comfortable in the presence of the offender[s]
Evidence Search
Forensic Evidence
Verdict
21 February 2008, after eight hours of deliberation, the jury returned a unanimous guilty verdict against Steve Wright on all five
counts of murder22nd February he was sentenced to five terms of
life imprisonment