Man raped and murdered British mum - then tormented family with 'one last sick twist'
Michelle Gunshon, 38, had been working as a security guard at the Clothes Show Live in Birmingham when she vanished without a trace.
It was a cold December night when Michelle, from Mill Hill in North London, checked into the Dubliner's Pub while she was working at the major event held in the NEC.
Michelle rang her partner and daughter on 4 December - but this contact would be the last her loved ones ever shared with her. The following day, her colleagues noticed that something was amiss and that no one had seen her, so they went into the room she had been staying in at the Digbeth pub, only to find all her important personal items, like her wallet, were chillingly still there.
Within days, Michelle's car was found, having been abandoned near the area, and it contained traces of her blood and a man's DNA.
The police quickly had a suspect when Martin Stafford was spotted on CCTV driving the vehicle after she had disappeared, with "something in the car" strapped into the passenger seat of the Ford Escort.
Other footage showed two people approaching the motor, moving closely together, before it was driven off.
Stafford, who had been working as a glass collector in the pub and had a history of sexual violence, quickly fled to his native Ireland.
It would be seven years before he was discovered, extradited, and brought to justice for her disappearance, with her family living through agony. In 2012, he was convicted of her murder, false imprisonment, and rape.
Despite Stafford's conviction, for over 20 years, the family of Michelle Gunshon has been denied proper closure over the tragedy they have endured, with the sick criminal refusing to give up the location of Michelle's body, leading him to also be convicted of preventing the burial of a body.
Expert criminologist Alex Iszatt explains exclusively to the Mirror that Stafford's refusal to admit where Michelle's remains are was a "last vicious twist of the knife," and a sick power play even from behind bars, and in 2015, when he died in prison, his secret went with him.
"Martin Stafford's refusal to reveal Michelle Gunshon's resting place, even on his deathbed, was a final act of control," the expert explains. "It was a last, vicious twist of the knife. This was never just about concealing a body, it was about using silence as a weapon to prolong the family's grief.
"For offenders like Stafford, withholding information is the ultimate power play. It proves that even when they are locked up and stripped of freedom, they can still inflict pain. There are different reasons why men like this stay quiet. Keeping the secret means Michelle's family remain trapped in uncertainty, still forced to live on his terms.
"Admitting where the body lies might also have risked further forensic scrutiny or even exposed other crimes.
"And for some killers, there is a deep narcissism in being the only one who knows the truth. It allows them to remain at the centre of the story long after they should have faded into nothing."
Tracy Richardson, Michelle's daughter, has campaigned publicly against prisoners being eligible for parole if they refuse to disclose the whereabouts of their victim's body, and has been candid about her struggle with still not knowing her mum's whereabouts after all these years.
"This silence adds another layer of trauma," Alex says about the impact of Stafford's silence on Michelle's heartbroken family.
"Without a grave to visit, without an answer to the most basic question of where her mother rests, the grieving process cannot move forward. The absence of a body mirrors the absence of justice. It shows how cruelty can outlive the offender himself.
"Stafford's silence was not passive. It was deliberate. It was the last act of violence he had left to commit. And that is exactly why he chose it."
Michelle's case is the subject of a new documentary for Channel Five, called Murdered at First Sight: A Mother's Absence. It airs on Tuesday at 10pm.
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Exclusive: Michelle Gunshon, a mother of three, was raped and murdered in 2004 by Martin Stafford. The cold-hearted killer went onto cruelly torment her family by keeping a huge secret Michelle Gunshon, 38, had been working as a security guard at the Clothes Show Live in Birmingham when she vanished without a trace. It was a cold December night when Michelle, from Mill Hill in North London, checked into the Dubliner's Pub while she was working at the major event held in the NEC. Michelle rang her partner and daughter on 4 December - but this contact would be the last her loved ones ever shared with her. The following day, her colleagues noticed that something was amiss and that no one had seen her, so they went into the room she had been staying in at the Digbeth pub, only to find all her important personal items, like her wallet, were chillingly still there. Within days, Michelle's car was found, having been abandoned near the area, and it contained traces of her blood and a man's DNA. The police quickly had a suspect when Martin Stafford was spotted on CCTV driving the vehicle after she had disappeared, with "something in the car" strapped into the passenger seat of the Ford Escort. Other footage showed two people approaching the motor, moving closely together, before it was driven off. Stafford, who had been working as a glass collector in the pub and had a history of sexual violence, quickly fled to his native Ireland. It would be seven years before he was discovered, extradited, and brought to justice for her disappearance, with her family living through agony. In 2012, he was convicted of her murder, false imprisonment, and rape. Despite Stafford's conviction, for over 20 years, the family of Michelle Gunshon has been denied proper closure over the tragedy they have endured, with the sick criminal refusing to give up the location of Michelle's body, leading him to also be convicted of preventing the burial of a body. Expert criminologist Alex Iszatt explains exclusively to the Mirror that Stafford's refusal to admit where Michelle's remains are was a "last vicious twist of the knife," and a sick power play even from behind bars, and in 2015, when he died in prison, his secret went with him. "Martin Stafford's refusal to reveal Michelle Gunshon's resting place, even on his deathbed, was a final act of control," the expert explains. "It was a last, vicious twist of the knife. This was never just about concealing a body, it was about using silence as a weapon to prolong the family's grief. "For offenders like Stafford, withholding information is the ultimate power play. It proves that even when they are locked up and stripped of freedom, they can still inflict pain. There are different reasons why men like this stay quiet. Keeping the secret means Michelle's family remain trapped in uncertainty, still forced to live on his terms. "Admitting where the body lies might also have risked further forensic scrutiny or even exposed other crimes. "And for some killers, there is a deep narcissism in being the only one who knows the truth. It allows them to remain at the centre of the story long after they should have faded into nothing." Tracy Richardson, Michelle's daughter, has campaigned publicly against prisoners being eligible for parole if they refuse to disclose the whereabouts of their victim's body, and has been candid about her struggle with still not knowing her mum's whereabouts after all these years. "This silence adds another layer of trauma," Alex says about the impact of Stafford's silence on Michelle's heartbroken family. "Without a grave to visit, without an answer to the most basic question of where her mother rests, the grieving process cannot move forward. The absence of a body mirrors the absence of justice. It shows how cruelty can outlive the offender himself. "Stafford's silence was not passive. It was deliberate. It was the last act of violence he had left to commit. And that is exactly why he chose it." Michelle's case is the subject of a new documentary for Channel Five, called Murdered at First Sight: A Mother's Absence. It airs on Tuesday at 10pm.
