A new suspect, Raymond Buck, has been identified in the 1996 hammer murders of Lin Russell and her six-year-old daughter, Megan, who were killed while walking home from a school swimming gala in Chillenden, Kent. Buck, a carpenter and plumber with a reported fascination with the occult, was named after family members provided sworn statements to the UK's miscarriage of justice watchdog. A relative of Buck has agreed to provide a DNA sample for testing against evidence from the crime scene.
Michael Stone has been imprisoned for nearly 30 years after his conviction for the murders and the attempted murder of Megan's nine-year-old sister, Josie. Stone has consistently maintained his innocence. Karen Todner, Stone's solicitor, stated that Buck's family members reported he left a suicide note before his own death in 2000, allegedly reading: "I cannot cope with the guilt." Todner has attempted to locate the note through the coroner's office but has been informed it has not been found.
Todner believes the emergence of Buck as a potential suspect strengthens the case for the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) to refer Stone's conviction to the Court of Appeal. She also noted that claims made by serial killer Levi Bellfield, who has previously confessed to the murders, could also contribute to reopening Stone's case. "Bellfield has confessed, and now with Buck, this shows there were suspects who were far more plausible than Michael Stone," Todner said.
Stone's sister, Barbara, welcomed the identification of Buck and Bellfield as potentially stronger suspects than her brother. "There are now two people – Buck and Bellfield – who are better suspects than my brother. If this had been before a jury during his trial, I do not believe for a second he would have been convicted," she stated, emphasizing that DNA testing remains a crucial element.
Sources close to the case indicated that Buck's potential involvement was "common knowledge" within his family. Buck, who lived in the Folkestone area at the time of the killings, was described as a volatile and violent individual. Two witnesses have provided information to the CCRC implicating him. One witness, Ross Shields, who was nine at the time of the murders, reported overhearing Buck allegedly confess to a family member on the day of the killings, saying, "I've done something unforgivable. I've killed three people."
Relatives also described Buck as having a history of erratic behavior and violence. He is believed to have owned a beige car, potentially the vehicle used by the killer. Buck died by suicide at Beachy Head in East Sussex in 2000 at the age of 46. The new claims arise as the CCRC continues to review whether fresh forensic testing can definitively identify the perpetrator. DNA from crime scene exhibits is undergoing re-examination with modern techniques, including samples from Stone and a member of Buck's family. Evidence is also being tested against Levi Bellfield, who confessed to the murders in 2023, though police were reportedly skeptical. A source indicated Bellfield is certain his DNA will be found on murder scene items.
The Russell family was attacked on July 9, 1996, along Cherry Garden Lane near Chillenden. Lin Russell, 45, and Megan, 6, were killed with a hammer, while Josie, then nine, survived with severe injuries. Stone was convicted in 1998, but this conviction was later overturned due to unreliable witness testimony. He was convicted again at a retrial in 2001. His conviction has been controversial, lacking direct forensic evidence linking him to the crime.