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Photographer who helped convict Soham killer marks 20 years at weekly

Helen Drake

A photographer who played a role in the conviction of Soham murderer Ian Huntley has marked 20 years at the same paper.

Helen Drake, left, joined The Hunts Post in 1995 after completing a YTS training course at the Peterborough Telegraph.

While at Archant’s Huntingdon office, she spends most of her time covering Huntingdonshire but she also helps out at the Ely Standard, so was on the scene in Soham in 2002 following the disappearance of Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman.

It was then that she took what she describes as her most important photo – an image of Ian Huntley looking suspicious in his car outside his house.

The picture was later looked at by police and used as evidence at the Old Bailey because it showed that he had changed his tyres after dumping the bodies of the 10-year-olds.

Said Helen: “Holly and Jessica had gone missing. Police were lacking evidence. I took a photo of Ian Huntley, looking suspicious, sitting in his car chewing his finger nails outside his house.

“Police rang a couple of days later and wanted my cards from my camera and my computer.

“That pic went to the Old Bailey as evidence because the tyre tread in the photo showed a different tread to what was down a track where he dumped the bodies.

“It gave them a date to go to garages and check whether he had been in to change his tyres, and he had.”

Highlights of Helen’s time at The Hunts Post include being on first-name terms with former PM and Huntingdon MP John Major, meeting ‘the Fonz’ aka Henry Winkler, photographing the tiger cubs used in the Esso ads and being given access to a secret nuclear bunker at RAF Alconbury.

Editor Stefan Bartlett added: “Congratulations to Helen for achieving such a magnificent milestone. She is the face of The Hunts Post and a fantastic ambassador for the business.”

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  • April 10, 2015 at 11:31 am
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    Fascinating bit of criminal history but a pity we can’t see the picture ourselves…

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  • April 10, 2015 at 2:39 pm
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    Congrats Hels – I trust the ‘helicopter’ is still in good working order!

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