The silent 999 call that led to a chilling truth | Forensic Files

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at 11:00 p.m. on Friday March 14 2003 a call was placed to the United Kingdom's emergency services telephone number 999
as per standard procedure the operator answered by requesting which emergency service department the caller required
fire police or ambulance but they received no reply the operator repeated the question multiple times but the line
remained silent she then asked if you are unable to speak but need an emergency service tap the handset there
was no tapping and after a minute of failed attempts to elicit a response from the caller the operator transferred
the call to silent solutions this automated service was introduced by the London Metropolitan Police in 2002 after
the widespread use of mobile phones led to an overwhelming amount of accidental calls being placed to 999 silent
solutions aimed to keep the emergency line free from congestion by filtering out the unintentional pocket dials from
the legitimate crisis calls from those who needed help but weren't in a position to speak out loud when a call
is transferred to silent solutions an automated response instructs the caller to dial five five if they require
emergency assistance if they comply the call is then transferred to the relevant
police response unit if no action is taken by the caller the line is terminated as per protocol the
unresponsive phone call to 999 at 11:00 p.m. on March 14 was transferred to silent solutions and to the system
requested the caller to dial fire 5/5 they needed help still there was no response an automated
message advised nothing has been heard from the caller exchange please disconnect line almost two minutes after
the call was initially placed the phone line was disconnected [Music] seventeen-year-old Hanna Foster was in
good spirits on the evening of Friday March 14 2003 as she prepared for a night out with her best friend Helen the
teens had returned from an exciting day at college where Hanna received the good
news that she was on track to receive straight A's in her upcoming a-levels a fastidious and dedicated student Hanna
had recently been accepted to study medicine at two prestigious universities and her top grades meant she was well on
her way to fulfilling her lifelong dream of becoming a doctor deciding to head downtown that night to
celebrate Hannah and Helen met at the Fosters family home in Southampton a port city in Hampshire on the south
coast of England hannah lived on a tree-lined residential street with her mother hillary father Trevor and
fourteen-year-old sister Sarah the fosters were a close-knit family and two gave Hanna their full support beyond
her academic pursuits she had many other interests including reading drawing and
music with a particular love for Californian rock band the Red Hot Chili Peppers passionate about the environment
and community she helped out with a local Girl Guides organization in her spare time relishing the opportunity to
help teach the young members valuable new skills she studied ballet as a child and was regarded as a graceful dancer
but was forced to give up this hobby after developing knee problems in her adolescence during high school she
participated in the Duke of Edinburgh Awards an international youth program that aims to help young people further
develop their skills fitness levels and community involvement achieving a bronze
and silver award for her efforts despite having a full schedule in the lead-up to
her a-levels Hannah didn't take life too seriously always taking the time to socialise with her many friends
as she prepared for her night out on March 14 2003 Hanna who was five foot seven with short cut brown hair and blue
eyes dressed in a light brown long sleeved polo jumper at sweetie brown skirt knee-high boots and an overcoat
she put the prepaid mobile phone her parents had previously given her as a reward for her good grades into her
khaki colored satchel prior to departing for their night out Hanna and her best friend Helen put music on and danced
around the Fosters kitchen joined by Hanna's mother and sister Hanna remarked that she couldn't wait until 14-year old
Sarah was old enough to join them on their nights out telling her she would be a lot of fun to have around Hanna and
Helen left the house shortly after with Hillary foster waving her oldest daughter off at the front door making
sure to leave a light on for when she returned home later in the night Hanna and Talon made the one-mile journey to
South Hamptons in a City area of Bevis Valley a lively nightlife hotspot popular with students their first stop
was through a particle to the bent brief where Helen met her mother to collect some money for the night ahead
the pair then walk around to the corner to the Hobbit a quaint fantasy thing to Papa
named after the Tolkien novel of the same name where they H ordered a double vodka lemon to lemonade and watched the
live band that was playing the drink at the Hobbit would turn out to be their only alcoholic beverage for the night by
10:30 p.m. they switched to venues to a pub across the street called sober only to leave soon after during their walk to
their fourth destination a bar called a Lenin's the pair lost their motivation and decided to call it a night
Hannah recorded Helen to the bus stop on ports wood roads commercial strip where
the pair waited for Helens bus home the stop was only a 5-minute walk from the foster home and Hannah planned to walk
the short trip alone after seeing off her friend the bus arrived at 10:50 p.m. and Helen climbed aboard and took a seat
as the vehicle drove off she made eye contact with Hannah who was walking towards the high field alene
intersection and the friends shared a final goodbye wave [Music] at 5:00 a.m. the next morning Hilary
foster arose to get ready for an early shift at Southampton General Hospital where she worked as a cardiac nurse as
she made her way through the house she noticed the daughter Hannah's bedroom was open and to the lights that had been
left on in preparation for her return home was still on this resort as Hannah always turned the lights off upon
arriving home and slept with her bedroom door closed upon realizing Hannah wasn't
home Hilary was hit with a wave of panic as she hadn't received a text message or
phone call to indicate she was spending the night at a friend's place Hilary sent Hannah a text message asking
where she was and whether she was okay but by the time she arrived for her shift at Southampton general there had
been no reply by 6:30 a.m. she had tried calling Hannah on her mobile phone several times but each of the calls rang
now Hannah's sister Sarah had gone away for the weekend undertaking activities to complete her own Duke of Edinburgh
reward when she received a concerned phone call from her mother asking if she knew Hannah's whereabouts
Sarah hadn't heard from her older sister either and contacted Helen to check if the two friends were still together
Helen advised she hadn't seen or heard from Hannah since they parted ways that the ports would Road a bus stop at 10:30
the night before hillarie rushed home from work and began making phone calls to Hannah's
Friendship Circle but was unable to locate her her husband Trevor arrived home from work at 10:30 a.m. and
immediately reported his daughters out-of-character disappearance to the police who swiftly arrived to the
Fosters home with sniffer dogs in tow a thorough search of the residence was conducted while Hanna's family and
neighbors were questioned but there had been no sightings of the 17 year old since her night out on the town Hanna's
mobile phone was still on which was good news for police as it meant the device was capable of emitting a signal to any
telecommunications towers within its vicinity enabling its location to be traced after instructing the Fosters to
stop calling the device to preserve its battery life investigators used to telecommunications data to trace the
location of Hanna's phone whenever it received a text message or phone call records showed that while Hillary foster
was attempting to contact Hanna earlier that morning her phone emitted a moving signal
traveling down the m27 five motorway from Southampton to the nearby city of Portsmouth where it had since become
stationary indicating it was somewhere within the area phone records also revealed a 999 call had been made from
Hannah's phone at 11:00 p.m. the night before investigators obtained a recording of this call which captured
the emergency service operator making multiple unsuccessful attempts to elicit a response from the Solent person on the
other end of the line the operator therefore transferred the call to the silent services division but
as the caller did not dial the necessary fire fire to alert the service that they
required assistance the call was terminated audio technicians were able to enhance the 58 second a long audio
fall of the core revealing a muffled conversation occurring between two people in the background a fearful
female voice identified as Hannah fosters was heard conversing with an older male with a south asian accent who
spoke in broken English traffic and mechanical noises indicated they were traveling in a large vehicle possibly a
van some parts of the court were inaudible the technicians were able to construct a partial transcript of the
conversation during which Hannah lied to the man telling him she was 15 years old
and her name was Sarah she was then heard saying that's my Road that's where I live
in response the men ominously instructed her to quote hold your head down please
it was at this point that the call was transferred to silent services with Hannah ignoring the system's requests to
dial fire 5 this failure to act along with the fake identity she had given the man and their muffled foreboding
conversation made it apparent to investigators that Hannah had made the 999 call inconspicuously hoping to raise
the alarm that she was in danger without alerting the man she was doing so at approximately 2:00 p.m. the following
day of Sunday March 16 2003 a woman and her 14 year old son were driving through
West End a village on the northeastern outskirts of Southampton as they traveled along Ellington Lane a rural
road just off the m27 motorway the teenager spotted something in a ditch 15 feet from the edge
the road his mother pulled the car over to have a closer look and tucked beneath
the thick undergrowth and brambles that bordered one of the neighboring pastures
the pair discovered the fully clothed the body of a young female police were called to the scene where they
identified the deceased as Hannah foster a subsequent autopsy concluded that she
had been beaten and sexually assaulted before being strangled to death with toxicology tests revealing she had - no
traces of alcohol or other drugs in her system although she was wearing shoes her feet were caked in dirt and her
clothing was in disarray suggesting she had been stripped and - then redressed by her killer scratch marks on her neck
were believed to be defensive wounds sustained while attempting to loosen her attackers grip traces of semen found on
Hannah's coat presented the most promising lead however when the sample was run through the police database no
match was found as the perpetrator had no prior criminal record meanwhile detectives broke the devastating news to
the foster family who were overcome with grief and his parents Hilary and Trevor
were required to formally identify their daughter with Hilary later stating I couldn't believe what I was seeing there
must be some mistake the cold bruised and battered body certainly looked like Hannah but where
was the sparkle in her eyes the radiant smile the warmth and tenderness of her touch
Hannah was vibrant graceful gentle and so alive I felt numb paralyzed by grief and pain why Hannah she had so much to
live for so much unfulfilled promise so many talents so much humanity and compassion
to share police appealed for any witnesses who were in the Bevis Valley area late on
Friday March 14 to come forward with a widespread media campaign in shooing a police spokesperson warned there have
been no significant incidents reported in the area to date that can be directly linked to Hanna's disappearance but we
would advise the public to exercise caution we would advise lone females walking in this area not to go out alone
at night and to stick to brightly let public roads until we have determined exactly what happened to Hanna CCTV
footage obtained from the area captured the two friends walking along the streets during their night out but
little else of interest speculation arose over the possibility Hanna may have been picked up by a taxi driver
after waving Helen off at the bus stop but this seemed unlikely given the stop was a mere five minute walk from her
home regardless police appealed for any taxi drivers who may picked up a teenager matching Hannah's description
to make contact they obtained Hanna's home computer and began analyzing her online history and mobile phone records
to determine whether she may have arranged the secret rendezvous with someone after leaving her friend but
there was no evidence to support this theory just 24 hours after Hanna's body was found an employee at a recycling
plant in Portsmouth the coastal city where her mobile phone last pinged off nearby telecommunications towers was
looking inside a bottle recycling bin when he spotted a car key colored satchel with a mobile phone inside both
items were confirmed to belong to Hanna this discovery added a third key location to the crime in addition to
Southampton where Hanna disappeared and the West End outskirts where her body was found
two days after the discovery of her body a candlelit vigil was held for Hanna at
South Hamptons high field church with hundreds of a mourners gathering to pray labour haze of flowers and sign a
condolence book with loving messages and too fond memories of the teen the site where her body was found was marked with
flowers and notes from grieving members of the community with one handwritten note reading you were all in our
thoughts at this very sad time what a cruel world we live in by the following day Wednesday March 19
investigators had received over 200 phone calls from the public the case made national news headlines with South
Hamptons shops bus stops and street signs plastered with posters of Hanna and a description of the outfit she was
last seen wearing requesting witnesses to make contact with police Hillary in to Trevor foster held their first public
press conference to make an emotional plea for information regarding their daughter's murder with Trevor saying we
as a family are devastated by the loss of Hannah Hannah was a warm kind-hearted girl who could always see the good in
others she was a gentle and graceful girl what is important now is to catch the person responsible for this cruel
and brutal act so that no other family will have to suffer the trauma we are going through enter the numbing
emptiness that has entered our lives and destroyed our family [Music] investigators collected CCTV footage
from the various locations Hanna's mobile phone was pinged on the night of March 14 as the audio recording of her
999 call had indicated she was being driven in a van they were on the lookout for any matching vehicles traveling in
those areas at the exact time Hanna's mobile phone was positioned to there a total of seven different vans were cited
in the CCTV footage prompting investigators to begin the task of identifying each of the vehicles owners
given the suspected killer heard what sounded like a South Asian accent they were confident the men that were looking
for was not originally from the United Kingdom on March 26 ten days after Hanna's body had been found BBC
television show crime watch aired a segment about the case bringing acting the teenager's
last-known movements and appealing for assistance to identify her killer Hillary and Trevor foster made an
appearance on the show to voice their torment with Hillary explaining quote it's the not knowing what she's been
through and to just knowing how frightened she must have been at some stage and we
can't get beyond that after the episode of crime watch ad close to ninety members of the public phone to the
police including Southampton resident James Dennis who worked as a supervisor for
ready-made meal producer Hazelwood foods James had noticed that one of his employees 35 year old delivery driver
Maninder Pal Singh Kohli had been acting suspiciously around the time of Hannah's
murder furthermore on the night of March 14 Koli had been in possession of one of
hazlewood foods distribution Vance and his delivery route passed through the key locations of the crime police noted
the registration number of Coley's van was already on their list of seven peoples of interest having been captured
on traffic cameras travelling from Southampton along both the m27 and M 275 motorways at the exact time Hanna's
phone was tracked moving on the same course in the early hours of March 15 a petrol station security camera captured
Holly's van traveling three times in different directions around the area where Hanna's body was eventually found
at 3:15 that same morning he entered the petrol station and initiated his scheduled deliveries before travelling
to Portsmouth where Hanna's phone and bag were later recovered this sighting was particularly significant as
Portsmouth was not part of Coley's delivery route and he therefore had a no legitimate reason to be in the area
after completing just half of his deliveries he returned to the Hazelwood of foods Depot telling his boss he had a
sore back and needed to go home to rest within one hour reverse saving James Dennis's phone call police arrived to
Hazelwood foods to seize the delivery vehicle in question a white van with a distinctive refrigeration unit on top
enter the word of Rockfield written across the bonnet forensic analysts found traces of semen on the seats and a
chrome pole covered in blood spatter and several strands of hair as forensic testing of this evidence
commenced detectives made their way to call his home on broad lence Road in Southampton which was less than one mile
away from the Foster's residence upon their arrival they discovered there were no curtains in the window sought
furniture inside indicating the house had been completely abandoned a check of Coley's background revealed he had
relocated from India to the United Kingdom in 1993 as part of an arranged marriage to a uk-based Indian woman
named sherlynda the couple had two sons a six year old and a four year old it didn't appear to
be a happy marriage with neighbors overhearing the couple fired often describing Kaali as a drunk and
self-confessed gambling addict police were able to locate Coley's wife she Linda and to their two children who were
staying at her parents house nearby she explained her husband had traveled back to India to look after his mother who
was in a coma after being hit by a bus while she refused to believe her husband could be responsible for such a heinous
crime she Linder allowed police to extract two DNA samples from one of her sons to test against the forensic
evidence uncovered from the delivery van police examined CCTV footage from London's Heathrow
Airport and spotted Kohli in transit on March 18 two days after Hannah's murder dressed in a lightweight suit and
carrying only a small backpack Cola was filmed as he checked into a direct flight to India's Capital Territory
Delhi with a population of over 18 million people Delhi is the fifth most densely populated city in the world in a
country that boasts an overall population of 1.2 billion finding Kohli was compared to looking for a needle in
a haystack as India shares borders with Nepal China Bhutan Myanmar Pakistan and Bangladesh
investigators also couldn't rule out the possibility that Kohli had already fled
to one of these neighboring countries despite the challenges British police and tannaz family refused to give up on
the search for her killer with Hilary Foster later explaining as parents we had this absolute drive that nobody
could ever get away with doing this to our daughter from England sherlynda contacted her husband's family in
Chandigarh a city in the Punjab region approximately 150 miles north of Delhi colles family confirmed he had recently
been staying in town although admitted his arrival was completely unexpected as his mother had
already been in a coma for three months and he hadn't mentioned any previous plans of visiting her there was a
collective sense of denial running through the family with Coley's police officer brother-ish pre refusing to
consider he was a murderer the morning after she Linda's phone call Friday March 28th colleague shaved his head and
thick beard and fled his hometown allegedly leaving his family with no indication of where he was going next
the abject denial of Coley's possible guilt was also voiced by his wife in England
Celinda told police that someone was attempting to frame her husband revealing that on the day after Hannah's
disappearance he returned home noticeably upset with a visible scratch on his face when she asked him what was
wrong he explained that the night before he had been drinking at a pub and when he returned to his van
someone had gained access to the vehicle and stashed the body of a teenage girl inside he panicked and drove straight
home unsure what to do after telling Schillinger this story Kali slept for a couple of hours before getting into the
van and driving off the window Chahal the general secretary of Southampton's Gurdwara Sikh temple told police that
two days prior to his overseas escape Kaali called him several times in tears requesting a meeting Baal window was
reluctant as he had lent money to Kali in the past and it was nervous he was going to ask for more but he visited the
distraught man regardless as anticipated Kali wanted to borrow money this time to
travel to India to see his sick mother before she passed away he was acting erratically all his
belongings were piled into garbage bags and - there was a distinct scratch under
his eye Bell window asked what was wrong and coldly explained his parents-in-law
had arranged to have someone beat him up Bell window refused to hand over the cash and - the next day he received the
call from Koli telling him not to worry as he had borrowed the money from his father-in-law instead he asked for a
lift to the airport the bull window refused as the evidence mounted against Koli the results of forensic testing
came back revealing the semen found in his delivery van was a match to the DNA profile found on Hannah's coat the blood
spatter and hairs found in the van were also confirmed to have come from the teenager certain they had identified the
men responsible for Hannah's murder on Thursday April 3 an international warrant was issued for Coley's arrest
charging the fugitive with murder manslaughter kidnapping false imprisonment rape and perverting the
course of justice in England a person can be charged simultaneously with both murder and manslaughter with a jury
later deciding which of the two the defendant is guilty of whilst Britain had extradition agreements in place with
India bureaucratic red tape coupled with the fact that Koli was hiding in one of
the most - densely populated countries in the world meant carrying out the arrests would be no easy task on the
morning of Friday April 11 a statement was released by the foster family ahead of Hannah's funeral service which was
scheduled to take place later that day the statement read today family and friends are joining together to give
thanks for the life of Hannah nothing can bring our beautiful daughter back to us and today will not be easy
for any of us but we will find a strength in each other and strength in the continued support given to us by
members of the community in Southampton and beyond seats inside high field church were reserved for hundreds of
Hannah's friends relatives schoolmates teachers enter the detectives working around the clock to solve her case while
the service was also broadcast via video link to an adjacent church center for the many others who were unable to fit
inside loudspeakers outside the building transmitted the service to the crowds of
media and community members who had gathered to pay their respects the service was overseen by Reverend Graham
Archer who told the congregation quote publicity surrounding Hannah's death has elevated her to almost the celebrity
status but those of you who knew her as a friend or a family member should not let anyone rob you of your memories of
how you remember her your memories cannot be taken away they are part of her legacy to you today the
memories will have a painful edge but they didn't when they happened so don't be afraid to talk about her and to those
precious memories her killer has already taken one life in your handling of your
responses make sure he takes no more Hana's eco-friendly woven bamboo coffin was carried out of the church by members
of her family adorned with a wreath of pink flowers especially provided by a local florist where she had once
conducted work experience she was cremated in a private service as students at her former high school
gathered on faculty grounds through at least 200 white balloons into the sky on Wednesday April 30 a trio of Hampshire
investigators flew to India to liaison person with Indian law enforcement the British High Commission and
international police organization Interpol their efforts to locate Kohli were hindered when the Ministry of
External Affairs refused to grant the British law enforcement team entry into the Punjab region rendering them unable
to speak to colleagues family and to gather information although Indian police understood the
urgency of the investigation they had their own overwhelming caseloads to take care of and were unable to prioritize
the murder of a foreign national that occurred 4,000 miles away this restrictive bureaucracy coupled with the
lack of resources available to the British investigators cast serious doubts over whether their suspect would
ever be found by early May with investigators in India struggling to make headway colles wife
she Linda released a public statement pleading for her husband to return to the United Kingdom and surrender to
police for questioning it read for my sake and to the good of your children and your family I urge you
to hand yourself in to police and to come back home so this can be sorted out wherever you are please just go to the
nearest police station and give yourself up if you are innocent this is the only
way you can clear your name so please to come home following this the Hampshire detectives were finally
granted permission to enter the Punjab region and headed straight to Callie's hometown of Chandigarh to interview his
family they maintained - they were not hiding him and insisted they had no idea where he had fled - with his father
jagad Jean telling the press I say if he has committed this crime hang him I will be the last person to protect him
if he has done this brave crime he should be punished and he should face the music he should face the
consequences but I will not protect him and if he's innocent God will protect him after two weeks in
India the Hampshire law enforcement team returned to the United Kingdom with greater support from both Chandigarh
detectives and to the Punjab authorities who were now actively searching for the
suspected killer however the case moved slowly with Chandigarh police criticised
for what the public perceived as a lack of action Detective Inspector Dinko Gupta who was initially leading the
Indian inquiry explained by the time all the paperwork was completed the suspect
had a big head start he had a lot of time to plan his moves I feel confident we should be able to
find him but it's difficult to say how soon Hampshire detectives continued to travel to India over the following
months at one point teaming up with the premier investigating agency in their country the Indian Central Bureau of
Investigation rumors circulated that Kohli had been spotted across the border in the Nepalese city of Kathmandu but
there was no evidence to support this theory month continued to pass by with no major
progress in the investigation and by early 2004 Hampshire police announced the reward of 70,000 parents for anyone
with information that led to Coley's arrest this amounted to roughly 5 million rupees a potentially
life-changing payment but insufficient attention from India's national media limited the populations awareness of the
case which prevented tips from coming in in February Britain's Home Secretary David Blunkett
paid a visit to the Punjab Police Academy where he appealed to the Punjabi people to assist police in capturing
Kohli quote not only in the interests of justice but because he is wanted for questioning for the most heinous of
crimes the tragic murder of young Hannah Foster shows why it is so important we continue to forge even closer policing
links only through continued and even closer cooperation and to joint-working can we catch those who believe they can
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the investigation languished for close to a year with Kohli remaining a free man whose whereabouts were unknown if
Hannah had still been alive she would have since celebrated her 18th birthday and completed her a-level exams
moving on to pursue medical studies at university on Friday March 12 2004 two days prior to the one-year anniversary
of her murder Hilary and Trevor foster released a statement via the media which read this continues to be the worst time
in our lives we miss Hannah terribly the injustice of her death is intensified by the knowledge that her
killer is still at large we remain optimistic that the combined efforts of the Hampshire and Punjab police forces
to secure an arrest will prove successful on Sunday March 14 to mark the one-year anniversary a candlelit
morning prayer service was held in honor of her and her family at Highfield church assistant Reverend Paul Harris
told the 100 strong congregation to send a special prayer to the foster family during what he called a time of
continuing pain and suffering and desire for justice three months later in June 2004 Hilary and Trevor foster fronted a
press conference announcing they would be traveling to India for the first time in an effort to generate media attention
and raise local awareness of the search for their daughter's killer regarding the purpose of their visit
Trevor explained I think there was at the start and issue of vengeance but I think in now that feeling is reducing if
it wasn't that would bring us down to the same level as him what we want now is justice that will mean a lot to us
and a lot to Hannah we are increasingly frustrated that the prime suspect has not been located we
are however beginning to understand the difficulties of finding a fugitive who does not want to be found
in a country as large and populous as India the couple embarked on an 11 day visit to India on Saturday July 10
joined by detective Superintendent Alan Betts who had been leading the British investigation into Hanna's murder
Trevor's employer British multinational oil and gas company BG Group funded a bilingual 24-hour phone lines for
witnesses to provide any information about Coley's whereabouts posters were circulated around the Punjab region
promoting the hotline phone number and the 5 million rupees award along with images of Kohli in different disguises
Hilary and Trevor spent the first few days of their trip attending various meetings with Indian politicians Punjab
police and officials from the British High Commission they held two press conferences where they shared Hannah's
story promoted the hotline number and pleaded for anyone with information to come forward
Trevor said this has been the first time we have felt strong enough for us the grieving process goes on and on but we
now feel we can cope with all this Hilary added we just want people to hear our story see us and hear what we have
to say I hope and pray that they will use the hotline the Fosters ordeal struck a chord with
the Indian people giving Hannah's murder investigation a desperately needed boost
within the first 24 hours of the hotline launch alone 134 calls came through and
by July 15 police had amassed close to a dozen tips they believed could be valuable in the hunt for Coley one of
the calls was placed by a taxi driver named - Jason Letcher who lived in the city of Darjeeling
1,700 kilometers northeast of Chandigarh he had seen the news reports about Hanna's killer and - noticed the suspect
bore a resemblance to one of his customers a man he knew only is Mike Mike had told Jason he was a delivery
driver on vacation from London and - that his family remained in the United Kingdom
each morning without fail Mike purchased the daily newspapers as soon as they went on sale and quickly skimmed through
the headlines before discarding the paper within minutes in addition to Jason lectures witness
account at Darjeeling hotel owner called the tipline to report a previous guest who looked like Koli but went by the
name Mike Dennis a barber and a newsagent in Darjeeling also recognised Koli is one of their customers and a
police officer from a neighboring state reported Koli bore a resemblance to one of his friends and new husband's
according to the officer his 32 year old friend bahar adidas was carrying out humanitarian work at a vaccination
clinic in the town of kalimpong 50 kilometres outside of Darjeeling there she met a doctor for the United Nations
World Health Organisation named Micah Dennis and - the two were married - just three months later the officer handed
investigators all the information he had on Dennis including his mobile number and the residential addresses of his
wife's family members when local police descended on these addresses they found no sign of Kohli at
one property a resident informed police that market Dennis had departed on a bus
to Nepal with his wife the day prior this was bad news for investigators as the United Kingdom had no extradition
treaty with Nepal if Kohli managed to cross the border from India into Nepal there was every
chance he would be out of their grasp for good police informed authorities near the border to be on the lookout for
a man fitting Coley's description who would likely be accompanied by a woman Hilary and Trevor Foster were still in
the midst of their media appealing India when they received a word the man in de
Pal Singh Kohli had been arrested after being cited by an off-duty police officer in the vicinity of the Nepalese
border the couple appeared at a press conference immediately following news of the arrest where the crowds of
journalists cheered upon hearing confirmation that Kohli was finally in custody after 16 months on
the run the Fosters thanked all those involved for their tireless work in bringing hannah's killer to justice with
trevor saying never in our wildest dreams did we expect an arrest to be made while we were in the middle of this
short visit we owe an enormous debt of gratitude to the Indian people not only have they come forward to facilitate the
arrest but they have taken Hilary and dire to their hearts in the short time we have been here the full story of
Coley's evasion was soon revealed upon fleeing England on March 18 2003 he holed up in his hometown of Chandigarh
fleeing once he discovered the British police were on to him he headed south to the city of Bangalore where he operated
under three aliases Mike Denis Mike Davis and Denis Tracy after seven months of maintaining a low
profile he moved to Darjeeling where he claimed to be a doctor for the World Health Organization and earned a job at
a Red Cross camp near kalimpong where he administered hepatitis vaccinations to children it was here that he meant
bahara T das the daughter of the camp's director and to the two soon began dating Kali who was living as Mike
Dennis made a no mention of his wife and children back in the UK after three months the couple were married
celebrating the occasion with a modest reception at a hotel nearby Hardy's family home photos taken at the event
portrayed a happy and relaxed piccoli as he danced in a circle surrounded by guests just three weeks later he
received an anonymous phone call after which he was noticeably on edge he told his new wife to pack a bag and to get
ready to leave town but refused to explain why as the media coverage of Hilary and Trevor Foster's trip to India
began to spread Kohli and by Hardy fled to the home of a relative in a village just half an hour from the border of
Nepal where they were apprehended shortly after the arrest came as a profound shock to be Hardy who had no
idea she was married to an international fugitive wanted for murder in an interview following his arrest
she told journalists I loved him so much I know what the police are saying about
him but I still cannot believe it is true what am I to do I have been married but now I have no husband in our society
no one will ever want to marry me now I'm finished I am old goods who was suspected to Coley's brothers
ish Preet and armor it had been in contact with him throughout his time on the run harboring him during his time in
Chandigarh and supplying him with money and a fake passport to facilitate his new life
police also believed that ish Preet who was a constable in Chandigarh sent Kali emails about the international efforts
that were underway to find him enabling him to get a head start and evade capture one month after the arrest Kohli
made an appearance on Indian television channel New Delhi TV saying he wanted to
unburden himself by revealing the truth about what happened to Hana foster he appeared calm as he made a full
confession sparing no details as he described the night of March 14 2003 which started with a heavy drinking
session at a local pub as he left the venue Kohli saw Hana crossing the road alone and he climbed
into his van conducted a u-turn and grabbed her from behind threatening her to stay quiet he forced her into his
company van driving her to an isolated place and sexually assaulting her afterwards she threatened to tell her
parents and police about the attack which provoked Kali to strangle her to death
quote I was out of my mind it was only later that I realized I had destroyed my life colleague claimed he never told his
wife in England to Linda about the attack instead explaining he was home late that night because he had gotten
into a fight at the pub this contradicted sure Linda's previous statements to police in which she
claimed Kali had informed her there was a teenager's body in his van Colly claimed he fled to India because
he needed his brothers support and wanted to change his life tired of running and ready to face the
consequences Coley remarked I am unburdening myself now because one day I have to face God I want to open my heart
I feel light unburdened when asked if he wanted to say anything to Hannah's family Koli remained silent up until
this point his wife in India the Haredi had been convinced of his innocence praying he would be released for the
crime she believed he was wrongfully accused of committing after seeing the televised confession she told The Times
of India newspaper she felt cheated but also relieved that Koli had not harmed her during their short relationship
quote now I have to learn to live with the fact that I lived with a criminal why did God have to make me live with a
criminal days after the confession was aired Koli retracted his statement claiming the Punjab Police had forced
him to provide the false confession due to the retraction media outlets in Britain were prohibited from publishing
anything about the confession and the extradition process became even more challenging efforts to deport Kaali to
face trial in England began in October 2004 seemingly determined to make the process as difficult as possible he
accused the Hampshire police of being racist and argued he wouldn't receive a fair trial in England due to prejudice
against Asians he claimed to be unwell and failed to show up for court appointments leading to force the
Germans as he had done so from the beginning colas brother-ish preached publicly
spoke out in support of his brother telling the media he had been framed on a count of his race colles first wife sure
Linda traveled to India from the UK to attend the extradition hearing and to testify on her husband's behalf despite
him having since married another woman she claimed the statement she supplied to police during her husband's time on
the run in which he came home the day after Hannah's abduction nervous with a scratch on his face and talking about
the body of a teenage girl being in his van was a complete fabrication coerced by Hampshire police she also filed an
affidavit alleging British officials had held her hostage refusing to let her travel to India until they came under
international pressure to do so colles second wife the herati had another change of heart and once again became
convinced of his innocence speaking out in his defence in a 2005 interview with Times of India
she said she hoped her husband would be cleared of the crimes and returned to live with her the extradition process
continued for several years with Trevor and Hilary foster returning to India on numerous occasions in an attempt to
speed up the legal proceedings and ensure the case remained in the news they spoke publicly about how
emotionally exhausting and frustrating it was that the process was taking so long but acknowledged there was little
that could be done in the indian system to help bring them justice sooner in february 2007 as the four year
anniversary of Hannah's murder approached Hilary foster told the Southern daily echo newspaper everything
is still focused on Hannah's death everything we read and hear is about the night she died we want to focus on the
happy times and we can't do this until all this is over I need to get it all right out of my head and hope that the
lovely memories come back after more than 100 court proceedings and 35 Appeals Delhi's High Court judge
finally determined there was sufficient evidence for Coley to face trial in the UK for Hannah's murder
on Saturday July 28 2007 exactly three years after his arrest Coley was extradited to England where he was
formally charged with the murder manslaughter rape and false imprisonment of Hannah Foster as well as perverting
the course of justice he was the first person successfully extradited from India to the UK
colles trial began on Monday October 13 2008 at the Winchester Crown Court the now 41 year-old had pleaded not guilty
to all charges with the reductant confession he made on Indian television deemed inadmissible in court the
prosecution had to rely on the physical and circumstantial evidence available including the DNA and CCTV footage
Hannah's mobile phone records and the recording of her 999 call an enhanced version of the call was played to the
jury with Hilary and Trevor Foster telling the court the fear in their daughters voice was palpable colles
defence team attempted to pin the crime on their clients former Hazelwood food supervisor James Dennis who in tipped
police off about Kali in the early days of the investigation in the years before
Hannah's murder James had Alan collie 16,000 pounds to help him sort his life out but instead Coley had gambled the
money away when James demanded he repaid the money Kaali ordered the debt be cleared
threatening to go public with a fictitious rumor that he had an affair with the James's wife in response to
this attempt at blackmailing Kaali claimed that James and his brother orchestrated an elaborate revenge plot
against him wherein he was abducted the deploying faltered and to then forced to rape Hannah foster justifying
why his semen had been found in his van and on her clothing James Dennis took the stand to family denied these
allegations with his wife also testifying she barely knew Callie and had never been romantically involved
with him prosecution lawyer Nicholas Hagan accused Coley of being a self-confessed - lawyer saying he had
five and a half years to concoct this wild and elaborate story quote you have told the jury what you did to Hannah
but you substituted yourself instead of her on Tuesday November 25 2008 after six weeks of trial and five hours of
deliberations the jury reached a verdict finding Maninder Pal Singh Kohli guilty
of Hannah Foster's murder he showed a no emotion as the verdict was delivered slightly shaking his head while Hannah's
family openly wept prior to sentencing a victim impact statement prepared by Hilary Foster was read to the court by
Hannah's art moving several members of the jury to tears hilary spoke of the pain her family had
endured upon not only losing hannah under the most violent of circumstances but from the prolonged suffering kali
had caused by purposefully evading police detection fighting extradition proceedings and arguing that his human
rights be respected when he had so callously disregarded her daughter's right to life she said had it not been
for her other daughter Sarah she would have lost the will to live Hilary statement read when a mother gives birth
she has an immediate instinctive need to nurture and protect her child I would give anything to change places with
Hannah to take away the terror and pain she suffered that night for the rest of my life I will feel the guilt that I
wasn't there when she needed me most she died terrified and alone with an evil stranger I feel as though Coley has
ripped out my heart and stamped on it Hannah was a gentle peace-loving girl who was never able to cope with the
raised voices and certainly not any threat of violence she would have been frozen with fear unable to run or fight
the proverbial lamb to the slaughter we cherish every moment we spent with Hannah we have so many happy memories I
can see her near running along the beach with Sarah stopping to practice her ballet exercises so slight and graceful
hardly leaving a footprint in the sand I miss her quiet ways snuggled up with a book in the garden or cuddling up with
her father on the seti to sneak some warmth I missed those intimate chats I miss her so much
the sense of loss is unbearable we are heartbroken and we'll always remain so Hannah your short life enriched the
lives of so many people you'll never be forgotten loved forever my darling little girl may you now rest
in peace presiding judge justice Keith addressed Koli directly as he said it took a long time for you to be brought
to justice but the law caught up with you in the end the jury saw through your lies and
you stand to they're exposed there's a heartless and contemptible man who abducted and raped a 17 year old girl
with everything to live for enter then callously and quite premeditatedly took her life so she would not be able to
point the finger of guilt at you for Hannah's murder Koli was sentenced to life in prison with a minimum term of 24
years to run concurrently with an additional 12 years for rape and six years for false imprisonment and
kidnapping taking into account time served awaiting extradition to the UK the sentence means Koli will be eligible
for parole in 2030 at the age of 63 yah side court the foster family voice to their disappointment in the sentence
saying they believed Coley's should spend the rest of his life in prison Trevor foster said this sentence gives
him the right to a second chance at life a second chance he never gave hannah to
seek Allah's life are valued in this way when he showed such utter disregard for
Hannah's is hurtful beyond measure the punishment should fit the crime in this case it certainly did not the
desperate and discrete 999 call placed by Hannah foster on the night of her abduction was discussed during her
murder trial with prosecution lawyer Nicholas Hagin telling the court Hanna probably thought that the operator would
have listened to the conversation and work out that she was being held against her will and that the operator would
contact the police unfortunately Hanna would not have known that there was a system in place to
prevent accidentally dialed emergency calls from blocking up the system Hanna's call was disconnected after only
a very short time and so there was no response to her attempt to get help to avoid similar situations from happening
again the UK police watchdog launched a campaign to raise awareness of 999 silent solutions feature an instruction
guide released by the independent office for police conduct advised callers to tap a button or cough into the phone if
they find themselves unable to speak directly to the emergency services operator the silent solutions feature
that required callers to dial fire five to receive assistance was also heavily publicized a requisite that may have
impacted Hannah's fate had she been aware following Coley's arrest the reward money was distributed between a
dozen Indian citizens who provided police with pivotal information that led to his capture
taxi driver jason Letcher was one recipient receiving five thousand pounds for alerting police to koley's presence in
Darjeeling Jason had come from a poor family but had benefited from a quality education
and it had always been his dream to open a school that provided free education for underprivileged children using his
portion of the reward money he purchased the plot of land in a small village in a
remote poor area in northeast India and in 2005 opened a free school named the Hana Memorial Academy
Jason stated more than the money it is the feeling of having helped the police NAB such a dangerous criminal that made
me happy a year later Jason picked up two British tourists who were visiting Darjeeling
and told them about the school the couple Christine Browning and Roger Michael Avadi visited the facility and
were inspired to help upon returning to the UK they tracked down the foster family to tell them about the great
efforts Jason was making in honor of their daughter they began collecting charitable donations and books to send
to India with the Hana Memorial Academy soon growing to accommodate 125 students
a new road has since been constructed to gain better access to the school with the mayor of Darjeeling naming it the
Hana Memorial Road a local doctor visits the school regularly to provide free checkups and
treatments to the pupils with the school now serving as a polio vaccination Center making it a fitting tribute to
Hanna who dreamed of one day becoming a doctor a statement from Hillary and Trevor foster on the school's website
reads losing Hanna in such circumstances has made us overly cynical and distrustful finding out that this school
project is a genuine philanthropic gesture from Jason has gone a long way to restoring our faith in human nature
we thank him for naming the school after Hanna which has made us both very grateful and very proud she had a huge
appetite for learning we're sure that will rub off on all those bright idea children who will benefit from this
school in South Hampton at the rear of high field church an 18-inch and bronze statue of a dancing girl titled the
spirit of youth has been erected in Hanna's honor accompanied by a plaque which reads Hannah was a much admired
and respected student bright friendly intelligent and caring not only towards her fellow students but also her love
and respect for the world we live in as a talented dancer herself this figure brimming with energy and
grace is designed to be an inspiration to other young people it's the same church where he is earlier Hannah was
solemnly fair world by her family friends and to the greater South Hampton community during the poignant service
her friend Haley had delivered a poem which read Hannah Hannah softly dream of a Golden Sun in a valley of green I feel
your magic everywhere in the breeze on my face and the Sun in my hair dance through the mountains and skip down the
stream Hannah be free and softly dream [Music] you

Case 117: Hannah Foster

At 11:00 pm on Friday, March 14 2003, a call was placed to the United Kingdom’s emergency services telephone number, 999. As per standard procedure, the operator answered by requesting which emergency service department the caller required – fire, police, or ambulance...

CREDITS

Narration – Anonymous Host Research – Erin Munro Writing – Elsha McGill Production, scoring – Mike Migas and Andrew Joslyn

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RESOURCES

For all credits and sources please visit https://casefilepodcast.com/case-117-hannah-foster

Brief Summary

Hannah Foster's murder and the investigation leading to her killer's capture are detailed in this episode.

Key points

The Dark Web's Threats. The dark web offers a range of illicit products and services, including hitmen.
Hannah's Disappearance. Hannah Foster goes missing after a night out with friends, sparking a frantic search.
Tragic Discovery. Hannah's body is found, leading to an investigation into her murder.
Public Plea for Information. Hannah's parents make an emotional appeal for information regarding their daughter's murder.
Hannah's Funeral Service. Family and friends gather to honor Hannah Foster, reflecting on her life and legacy.
Coley's Father's Statement. Coley's father publicly condemns his son's actions if guilty, emphasizing the need for justice.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

I couldn't believe what I was seeing; there must be some mistake.

Hilary Foster's reaction to identifying her daughter.

18:05WatchJul 13, 2019

Tension

85/ 100High tension

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