April Jones' mum says 'I still want to put my daughter to rest properly'

April Jones' mum has said she still dreams of being able to put he daughter to rest in a grave, 14 years after the five-year-old was murdered.

Coral Jones' words were used in a debate in the Senedd, as politicians discussed proposals to make a new criminal offence of desecrating a body.

Plaid Cymru MS Cefin Campbell read words from Coral Jones. "As she said, 'My little girl is still missing in the eyes of the law'. The funeral took place, but the coffin was almost empty. Inside were only a few small pieces of bone and some personal items that Coral placed there herself. There was no body to lay to rest, no real goodbye."

He explained how she avoids visiting her daughter's grave, knowing she is not there.

"Instead, she has created a garden at home, a place where she can feel close to her child, because the law cannot give her that peace. She lives every day with the knowledge of what was done to her daughter's body after death, knowledge that continues to haunt her. It shapes her grief and damages her health."

"The offences that the daughter's killer was convicted of do not reflect the true horror of what he did and Coral conveyed to me last night that she supports the creation of a new offence of desecrating a body, because while her daughter's killer will never be released, others will be," said Mr Campbell. 

"Families should not be forced to live with this added cruelty, unrecognised and unnamed in law. Now, Coral's words are simple and devastating: 'I still want to put April to rest properly'.

Helen's Law requires the parole board to consider whether offenders have disclosed the location of a victim’s remains or identified child victims when making parole decisions, but there is a call for it to go further and reform burial and sentencing laws, including the creation of a new criminal offence of desecrating a body.

The law is named after Helen McCourt, a 22-year-old, who disappeared in 1988 and whose body has never been found.

Mr Campbell also spoke about Mike O'Leary, from Carmarthenshire, whose sister Lesley is also backing the law.

"Mike O'Leary, who I knew as a kind and colourful character, full of life, was murdered in a planned deliberate attack six years ago yesterday, as it happens. His killer lured him to a remote location, caused his death and took steps to conceal the body.

"As Lesley says, all we have at the grave is the 6cm of Mike's lower intestine that was found at the murderer's property. There was no proper burial, no way to say goodbye and no closure," he said.

The family are impacted every day, he said.

Mr Campbell said: "I've met Lesley on many occasions and she's spoken about how this continues to affect the family every day.

"They live with the severe trauma, anxiety and grief. Sleep is disrupted, daily life is overshadowed by memories of what happened, and the emotional burden is a constant. The mental health impact is profound and ongoing but as the law does not recognise the deliberate destruction and desecration of a body, it leaves the suffering it causes invisible to the system."

The law was debated in the Senedd today (January 28). The area is not devolved, but there was a call for the Welsh Government to work with the UK Government on the new proposals.

Senedd members from across political parties agreed the motion, without any objections. Welsh Government minister Julie James said she would write to the UK Government, spelling out the Senedd debate.