I’ve caught hundreds of murderers like a cop but there’s one that keeps me up at night

AN EX-MET The detective detective who has solved hundreds of murders in the capital has revealed the creepiest killer he’s met.

Former DI Steve Keogh worked in the Metropolitan Police for over a decade, working on some of London’s most famous murder cases.

6

6

He also worked as part of SO13, the counterterrorism force, and faced some of Britain’s worst terrorists.

Steve, 50, stepped down from his role last year – just a week before the publication of a book about hundreds of cases he has dealt with over the years.

His book, Homicide Squad: How Scotland Yard Really Caught a Murderer, is a forensic look at the steps police take to solve their most serious crimes.

The detective has interviewed some of the UK’s most brazen killers since it started in 2009, but has revealed he’s most scared of a female killer.

Nicola Edgington brutally attacked Sally Hodkin, 58, with a street butcher’s knife, nearly decapitating her during the random violent attack in Bexleyheath, in October 2011.

The bloody attack took place six years after she killed her biological mother, and was found guilty of manslaughter and imprisoned indefinitely under the Mental Health Act.

DI Keogh was never able to interview the killer because she was initially deemed unfit to be questioned – but his few encounters with her were etched in his mind for the past few days. a decade.

Speaking to The Sun, he said: “She has no doubt, not including terrorists, whom I have no doubt said that if she was released she would kill again.

“I have no hesitation in saying that if she is released she will do it again.

“Honestly, she scares me, I’ve never felt unsafe arresting anyone or confronting them but she’s scary.”

Edgington begged for a change of hospital on the day of the murder, and managed to escape undetected until the violent assault occurred.

She first attacked 22-year-old Kerry Clark with a knife at a bus stop but fought back and dropped her weapon.

Minutes later, after buying another knife from Asda, she stabbed Mrs. Hodkin with such force that she almost decapitated her head.

Psychologists initially believed that Edgington suffered from schizophrenia, but a police doctor diagnosed her with a personality disorder – meaning she could be charged with murder.

NO GOOD REASONS

Steve added: “When she was assessed, she showed high levels of narcissism. She has a very high sense of self-importance and a complete lack of empathy.

“Psychologists say she kills out of anger, narcissism, attention, and no good reason.

“She killed Sally Hodkin because she didn’t get what she wanted and that angered her.

“All she wanted to do was show people that she was supposed to be heard. The same goes for her mother’s killing.

“I have no doubt that she would do so again if she felt people weren’t taking her seriously.”

This violent double killer was jailed for life, for a minimum of 37 years, in 2013 after Steve’s team worked hard with doctors and specialists.

Since retiring, he debuted a YouTube channel, and plans to discuss the more intricate details of the cop’s work and his cases.

Discussing the horrific crime in his book, he added: “An officer pointed across the street to where I could see a body. There was also blood, a lot of blood.

“He told us that the woman had been killed by someone with a large knife. He then pointed to the other side of the street where I could see a woman in handcuffs.

6

6

“I had to look back just to be sure of what I was seeing. What amazed me was her composure, with a half-smile on her face.

“She looked like someone was waiting for her turn at the cashier.”

The book takes the reader through dozens of cases that DI has previously worked on, and the best way to build a case to take to court.

His team solves hundreds of murder cases each year, but the ones he finds most frustrating are the small numbers they can’t solve.

“We’re going to solve about 90% of the murders that happen on our desks, which is a very methodical logical way,” he said.

“I think it’s only a crime that we don’t trust anyone who did it, which can be frustrating for you, but it’s very difficult when you have the right people but you can’t cross the line.

“The ten percent you don’t solve is worse because you expect to solve it. That’s the biggest disappointment for me, when you get used to it and you don’t find it bothering you.

“But the hardest were the ones that we couldn’t solve, and then explained to the parents that we had exhausted all avenues.

“I had only recently retired so a mother asked me why the resources and time used to find Sarah Everard were not being used to help find her son’s killer.

“It’s one of the hardest things to do. I wish we had the resources to do that for all cases but that’s not possible. “

6

6