Police 'failed murdered mother'

Marc Chivers, 42, of Chelmsford, was jailed for life for killing Maria Stubbings
12 April 2012

A mother-of-two strangled to death by her convicted murderer ex-boyfriend was failed by police and legislators, a watchdog has said.

Maria Stubbings, 50, was murdered by Marc Chivers at her home in Chelmsford, Essex, in December 2008.

He had been freed from a German prison less than a year earlier after serving 15 years for murdering his then girlfriend Sabine Rappold.

The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) said a gap in the law meant no restrictions were placed on Chivers when he was deported to Britain.

The watchdog also tore into "serious failures" in the response of Essex Police after Miss Stubbings contacted them for help.

It found human error, missed opportunities and individual failures meant officers and staff failed to protect the vulnerable woman.

The IPCC called on the Government to close the legal loophole and said Essex Police must review how it handles calls from victims of domestic violence.

Miss Stubbings' brother Manuel Fernandez said he is "outraged and utterly disappointed" by the IPCC inquiry. He said a few "tickings off" and an appeal to change the law "does not cut it" and he will sue Essex Police.

Mr Fernandez said: "Today I am presented with a report which fails to recognise fully the countless errors the police made - it is scant in detail to say the least.

"I question the time the investigation took, and the capabilities of those conducting it, not to mention the cost to the public purse, for a report which is weak and vague. It is nothing less than an insult to my dead sister."

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