MUM-OF-TWO Patricia Hall vanished without a trace after a bitter row with her husband 33 years ago.
Patricia, aged 39, was the victim of a cold case when she went missing from her semi-detached home in Pudsey, West Yorkshire, on January 27, 1992.
Shockingly, the missing woman’s spouse Keith confessed to a covert cop that he had “strangled” her and dumped the body.
Adding to the intrigue, a trial judge refused to allow a secret recording of the suspect’s confession as evidence in court after he was acquitted of any wrongdoing.
Keith was found not guilty by the jury but the judge of the case made the surprise decision of allowing Keith’s confession to be aired publicly.
Following the not-guilty verdict, the judge decided to make the revelation public.
Now, The Sun can reveal that West Yorkshire Police have opened a cold case review in a bid to discover what happened to Patricia.
This second look at Patricia’s disappearance is, like all cold case reviews, not a reinvestigation.
Detectives are now reexamining witness testimonies from the initial investigation and collaborating with forensic experts to determine if advancements in technology could reveal new leads.
A case becomes cold when all viable leads have been exhausted and the senior investigating officer considers nothing further can be done.
“Our Major Investigation Review Team is currently conducting a ‘cold case’ review into the disappearance of Patricia Hall, which is a process that we carry out periodically as standard procedure for unsolved cases,” Assistant Chief Constable Pat Twiggs, West Yorkshire Police lead for Specialist Crime and Criminal Justice, said.
“That review is likely to conclude in the next few months.
“We are maintaining contact with Patricia’s family and doing everything we can to support them and keep them informed, and we would still welcome any new information that could assist in getting her family the answers they need.”
The case has been the subject of media attention, including the Amazon Prime documentary “The Confession,” which explores the circumstances surrounding Patricia’s disappearance.
SISTER’S AGONY
Patricia’s younger sister, Christine Weatherhead — who believes her sibling is dead — has welcomed news the case will be re-examined.
The 63-year-old, who helps husband Robert on their North Yorkshire farm, : “I want to get justice for Pat before I die.
“I cannot accept that she remains a missing person when she has never contacted me or her lads, who she adored, and has never touched her bank account or passport. Nothing.
“Only a fool would believe she was still alive, so for me it is important to have on record how she died and who was responsible for that.
“Without a doubt, Pat’s disappearance has taken its toll emotionally and mentally on me. But while I can keep finding the strength to fight on, I will, for Pat.”
Former nurse Christine told how, once a week, she would meet Patricia in Leeds for a catch up with their brother, Brian, over a cuppa.
The Saturday before, she and her children had spent the day at Christine’s farm with her family.
Christine said: “She told me she was planning to start a new life with the lads in Scotland, one of her favourite places.
“She had decided to divorce Keith due to his volatile temper.
“She was happy and I just thank God that is my final memory of her.”
Keith has said that on the evening of January 26, Patricia told him she wanted a divorce.
He feared losing half their home, his sons and his grocery business.
We are maintaining contact with Patricia’s family and doing everything we can to support them and keep them informed, and we would still welcome any new information that could assist in getting her family the answers they need
Assistant Chief Constable Pat Twiggs
The sisters were due to meet on January 28, but Christine rang Patricia that morning to cancel their regular get-together.
She said: “I left a message but Pat, unusually, never called me back. Keith rang me that evening and told me she had left their home the day before and he did not know where she was.
“I asked if he’d reported her missing to the police, but he hadn’t.
“I knew Pat would never leave her boys with him, so my brothers and I were suspicious from the start.
“A police officer cousin reported her missing the next day.”
The family car, a blue Ford Sierra, was found abandoned a mile from her home.
A witness told officers that, on the night Patricia disappeared, he saw a man lifting something into or out of the car on the same road, climb over a fence into a field and walk towards a nearby pond.
Police were convinced that man was Keith Hall.
Months earlier, Christine had had a heartbreaking chat with Patricia.
She recalled: “She said, ‘If anything happens to me, will you look after the boys?’.
“I said of course, and thought she meant anything happening due to the depression she had previously suffered — but had recovered from.
“How those words haunt me to this day.”
