• Support Wokingham Today
  • Get the print edition
  • Sign up for our daily newsletter
Sunday, June 1, 2025
Wokingham.Today
  • HOME
  • MY AREA
    • All
    • Arborfield
    • Barkham
    • Beech Hill
    • Binfield
    • Bracknell
    • Charvil
    • Crowthorne
    • Earley
    • Emmbrook
    • Finchampstead
    • Grazeley
    • Henley
    • Hurst
    • Lower Earley
    • Norreys
    • Reading
    • Remenham
    • Riseley
    • Shinfield
    • Sindlesham
    • Sonning
    • Spencers Wood
    • Swallowfield
    • Three Mile Cross
    • Twyford
    • Wargrave
    • Winnersh
    • Wokingham
    • Wokingham Without
    • Woodley
    • Woosehill
    • Yateley
    Squire's Garden Centres will be celebrating the hydrangea at their month long festival of the blooms. Picture: Squire's Garden Centres

    Mop heads and lace caps: star attractions at Squire’s Garden Centres

    Inner Wheel members take to the catwalk for charity

    Erleigh Cantors will be singing in a concert on Saturday. Picture: Foto-Rabe via Pixabay

    Celebrate 35 years of music with an Earley concert of Sacred music

    Share Wokingham operates at locations across the borough, through the week, providing fresh groceries. Picture: courtesy of Share Wokingham.

    Struggling families can get help with groceries

    Children and carers meet at Kings Kiddies in Wokingham. Picture: Esi Grunhagen via Pixabay

    Fun for toddlers and carers in Wokingham

    Staff and residents from a Wokingham care home enjoyed a memorable day out at Reading Football Club. Picture: West Oak Care Home

    Care home residents enjoy football nostalgia at Reading FC

    Pupils with the new bee hotels.

    Bee happy at Farley Hill

    Cllr Carol Jewell. pic: Stewart Turkington.

    Carol appointed as borough mayor

    Wokingham MP Clive Jones Picture: Andrew Batt

    MP calls for action on ‘dangerous’ delays

  • SPORT
    • All
    • Binfield FC
    • Reading FC
    Reading FC

    Reading FC to enhance matchday experience for fans

    Joe Jacobson Picture: Reading Football Club

    ‘We’re in a position to grow’: Reading FC’s new CEO speaks on his objectives

    Reading FC

    ‘He didn’t get the culture of Reading’: Former controversial Royals CEO appointed at Valencia CF

    Reading FC fans

    ‘Together we can be successful’: CEO thanks Reading FC fans for their support as season tickets go on sale

    Rob Couhig and Todd Trosclair

    Rob Couhig speaks on aspirations of Championship return for Reading FC

    Goalkeeping coach Tony Warner Picture: Luke Adams

    Reading FC coach set to depart to join fellow League One side

    Reading FC

    ‘Reading FC is a sleeping giant’: Club gains new investors just weeks into Couhig’s takeover

    Reading FC owners Todd Trosclair and Rob Couhig

    Rob Couhig speaks on the future of Reading FC’s Academy and Category One status

    The Select Car Leasing Stadium

    Reading FC’s pitch set for major improvements ahead of 2025/26 campaign

  • READING FC
  • COMMUNITY

    Inner Wheel members take to the catwalk for charity

    Erleigh Cantors will be singing in a concert on Saturday. Picture: Foto-Rabe via Pixabay

    Celebrate 35 years of music with an Earley concert of Sacred music

    Share Wokingham operates at locations across the borough, through the week, providing fresh groceries. Picture: courtesy of Share Wokingham.

    Struggling families can get help with groceries

    Children and carers meet at Kings Kiddies in Wokingham. Picture: Esi Grunhagen via Pixabay

    Fun for toddlers and carers in Wokingham

    Staff and residents from a Wokingham care home enjoyed a memorable day out at Reading Football Club. Picture: West Oak Care Home

    Care home residents enjoy football nostalgia at Reading FC

    Pupils with the new bee hotels.

    Bee happy at Farley Hill

    Cllr Carol Jewell. pic: Stewart Turkington.

    Carol appointed as borough mayor

    Wokingham MP Clive Jones Picture: Andrew Batt

    MP calls for action on ‘dangerous’ delays

    Hawkedon pupils and staff celebrated their school?s 40th birthday with a special assembly and learning activities all based on 1984. Picture: Hawkedon Primary School

    Lower Earley pupils turned back the clock for their school’s 40th birthday

  • LIFESTYLE
    • All
    • Food
    • Health
    • Obituaries
    • People
    Share Wokingham operates at locations across the borough, through the week, providing fresh groceries. Picture: courtesy of Share Wokingham.

    Struggling families can get help with groceries

    Wokingham MP Clive Jones Picture: Andrew Batt

    MP calls for action on ‘dangerous’ delays

    Mike's company, Kill A Watt, aims to help households cut down their energy bills and reduce their impact on the environment. PIcture: Dock8 via PIxabay

    Naturally Speaking

    Christen  Forster speaks about the explosion of life in Spring, and at Pentecost. Picture: Christen Forster

    Church Notes: Impossible things to believe?

    Entries are open for this year's event.

    Enter now for Wokingham Bikeathon

    A government push for more radiotherapy machines has been welcomed by ministers as the Royal Berkshire Hospital is among the services to benefit from them.

    Royal Berks one of 28 Trusts to see new radiotherapy machine investment

    A banking hub in Yorkshire. Pic: Murray Scott/Link.

    Banking hub plans for village

    Retrospective plans have been refused. Pic: WBC.

    Vending machine plans refused

    Mind in Berkshire, which provides support, advice, and signposting for mental health services in Berkshire, was commissioned to examine Black people's access to necessary services, as part of a wider drive from the Berkshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust to address inequalities in local services. Picture: PixaBay

    Mind in Berkshire report finds serious deficits in mental health provisions for Black people

  • WHAT’S ON
    • All
    • Arts
    • Entertainment
    Double Standards

    New play ‘Double Standards’ at South Streets Art Centre to explore hypocrisy in dating

    Wokingham Pride

    Could you help Wokingham Pride 2025?

    REVIEW: “Three Hens In A Boat” at The Watermill Theatre

    Siren RG1

    Siren RG1 to mark first anniversary with weekender celebration

    Wellington Farm Shop

    Wellington Farm Shop celebrates its 20th anniversary

    Two concerts in one day from Reading's APO. Picture: Pexels via Pixabay

    An orchestral event in Wokingham promises evening of drama and contrast

    Eva Wong Nava will be at Trinity Hall Church on Monday from 4pm until 5pm. Picture: Eva Wong Nava

    Young writers can meet children’s author Eva Wong Nava

    Crafters can join a project  to decorate Twyford village centre with bunting Picture: Hello I'm Nik on Unsplash

    Get out the bunting for VE Day at Wokingham’s May Fayre

    Crowthorne Symphony Orchestra's performance of American music promises to be a fun and high energy evening. Picture: CSO

    Discounted tickets available for summer concert in Wokingham

  • JOBS
  • ADVERTISE
  • CONTACT
No Result
View All Result
Wokingham.Today
No Result
View All Result
Home Featured

DCI investigating Olly Stephens murder hopes family can start to grieve now killers are sentenced to jail

by Jess Warren
September 24, 2021
in Featured, Reading
Olly Stephens

Olly Stephens

Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

THE SENIOR investigating officer in the Olly Stephens murder case said that he hopes the family can begin to grieve properly for their son.

It comes as the killers were sentenced today at Reading Crown Court.

Two 14-year-old boys have been found guilty of murder, and a 14-year-old girl guilty of manslaughter and perverting the course of justice.

DCI Andy Howard said that he is grateful for the jury’s considered time on the case.

“It must have been very shocking for them,” he said. “The overwhelming emotion around this case is one of sadness, around the situation and circumstances [of Olly’s death].

“In my four years as a senior investigating officer, these are the youngest defendants I have seen, and possibly the youngest Thames Valley Police has seen.”

Related posts

Fire crews tackle wildfire at Eversley Cross

Mop heads and lace caps: star attractions at Squire’s Garden Centres

He said the 13-year-old’s murder sends a message about the impact and “inherent risk” of carrying a knife.

“We all have a duty to this generation, to educate and deter knife crime,” he said.

“This case illustrates the risk of what could happen. The real message is, if you’re carrying a knife, you are only carrying it if you are prepared to use it.

“So many lives changed forever on that night in Bugs Bottom, in Emmer Green.”

Olly was killed on Sunday, January 3, and from then onwards, speculation about the case began spreading on social media.

DCI Howard said this posed a significant challenge for the investigation, due to the number of rumours circulating.

This included one social media post thought to be written by a defendant, but later turned out to be “fake news”, DCI Howard said.

“As soon as this case arrived in the courts, there were very strict reporting restrictions put in place, which seemed to have helped,” he said.

“Social media was a primary part of the investigation and how we went about presenting the case to the jury.

“It meant we didn’t need to call on some young people as live witnesses, but the volume of material we had to deal with was significant.

“Our digital forensics team supported that, and identified 11 different social media platforms being used.”

DCI Howard said he felt it was right that the killers have not been named in the courts, or after sentencing.

“There has to be an exceptional reason [to name them], and as shocking as this case is, I don’t feel it meets this criteria.”

They can be named in four years, when they turn 18.

“I hope there is a sense of justice now,” the DCI added. “And I hope Olly would think that justice has been achieved. For the family, they need this [court case] to finish to move on with the grieving process.

“I hope it is a line in the sand, so they can start to grieve.”

One of the teenage boys has applied for permission to appeal against his conviction.

His lawyers said the judge was wrong to not allow psychiatric evidence about their client’s Asperger’s syndrome diagnosis.

Keep up to date by signing up for our daily newsletter

We don’t spam we only send our newsletter to people who have requested it.

Check your inbox or spam folder to confirm your subscription.

Previous Post

Parents of Olly Stephens say many families have been destroyed by his murder

Next Post

Life sentence for the two teenage boys that murdered Olly Stephens

FOLLOW US

POPULAR THIS WEEK

Young readers can earn rewards for reading six books this summer. Picture: Amore Seymore via Pixabay

Open six books, and step into a world of imagination

May 30, 2025

REVIEW: “Three Hens In A Boat” at The Watermill Theatre

May 28, 2025
AB Walker

VAUGHAN, David Raymond

May 27, 2025
The Forest School U15s football team

The Forest School U15s make history with another National Elite Cup victory

May 29, 2025
Sell Before We Dai

Supporters’ Trust at Reading joins 21-group alliance calling for Football Governance Bill amendment

May 29, 2025
Entries are open for this year's event.

Enter now for Wokingham Bikeathon

May 29, 2025

ABOUT US

Wokingham Today is dedicated to providing news online across the whole of the Borough of Wokingham. It is a Social Enterprise, existing to support the various communities in Wokingham Borough.

Wokingham.Today is a Social Enterprise and aims to ensure that everyone within the Borough has free access to independent and up-to-date news. However, providing this service is not without costs. If you are able to, please make a contribution to support our work.

CONTACT US

[email protected]

Keep up to date with our daily newsletter

We don’t spam we only send our newsletter to people that have subscribed

Check your inbox or spam folder to confirm your subscription.

  • Support Us
  • Book Advertising
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Get the Print Edition
  • Sign up for our daily newsletter

The Wokingham Paper Ltd publications are regulated by IPSO – the Independent Press Standards Organisation.
If you have a complaint about a  The Wokingham Paper Ltd  publication in print or online, you should, in the first instance, contact the publication concerned, email: [email protected], or telephone: 0118 327 2662. If it is not resolved to your satisfaction, you should contact IPSO by telephone: 0300 123 2220, or visit its website: www.ipso.co.uk. Members of the public are welcome to contact IPSO at any time if they are not sure how to proceed, or need advice on how to frame a complaint.

No Result
View All Result
  • HOME
  • MY AREA
    • Arborfield
    • Barkham
    • Beech Hill
    • Binfield
    • Bracknell
    • Charvil
    • Crowthorne
    • Earley
    • Emmbrook
    • Finchampstead
    • Grazeley
    • Henley
    • Hurst
    • Lower Earley
    • Norreys
    • Reading
    • Remenham
  • COMMUNITY
  • LIFESTYLE
  • SPORT
  • READING FC
  • OBITUARIES
  • WHAT’S ON
  • JOBS
  • PHOTOS
  • ADVERTISE WITH US
  • CONTACT US
  • WHERE TO GET THE PRINT EDITION
  • SUPPORT US

© 2022 - The Wokingham Paper Ltd - All Right Reserved.