In Netflix’s documentary Who Killed Jill Dando? several theories and suspects were investigated and shocking reveals were made about the case.
Summary
- Deemed “The Golden Girl of Television,” Jill Dando’s murder remains unsolved, shocking the UK and leaving her killer potentially at large.
- The documentary explores theories, including a Serbian stalker and a retaliation motive due to NATO bombing, shedding new light on the high-profile case.
- False leads and dead ends plagued the investigation, wasting time and resources, while the wrongfully convicted Barry George spent eight years in prison.
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Netflix’s Who Killed Jill Dando? includes shocking facts about the murder of British television presenter Jill Dando. Deemed “The Golden Girl of Television,” Dando was fatally shot in broad daylight on April 26, 1999, on her own front doorstep. The gruesome crime shocked the UK, as Dando was one of the most well-known TV personalities at the time. Over two decades later, Netflix’s documentary Who Killed Jill Dando? explores the unsolved murder, covering numerous theories and the high-profile trial that unfortunately failed to bring her justice.
Netflix’s documentary Who Killed Jill Dando? dives into the 24-year-old cold case, examining evidence, witnesses, and suspicions that surround Dando’s murder. In three episodes, Netflix’s true crime documentary reveals some surprising facts about the high-profile case. Here are the eight most shocking reveals from the documentary about the tragic and mysterious death of Jill Dando.
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8 Jill Dando’s Business Manager Wrote A Suspicious Book Before Her Death
One of the most bizarre coincidences the investigation discovered was that Dando’s former agent, Jon Roseman, released a fiction book weeks before her murder which included a famous TV anchor being shot. Though the book itself was fiction, there are several parallels that raised suspicions among investigators and viewers alike. Even though Roseman was investigated as a potential suspect, he argues that “anybody who suspected I would cut off a financial revenue like Jill Dando would have to be insane.“
7 A Theory Suggested A Serbian Stalker Killed Jill Dando
One of the first theories explored in the Who Killed Jill Dando? documentary suggested that Dando was killed by a Serbian stalker. During the Balkans conflict in 1992, Dando was vocal in her appeal to help the people of Kosovo. An anonymous Serb called the authorities and claimed that she was killed because she presented the BBC appeal for Kosovo-Albanian refugees during the Kosovo War a few weeks before the murder. This lingering theory suggests that her coverage might have made her a target in the eyes of certain Serbian nationalists.
6 Jill Dando Was Popular With Convicted Killers
Dando was a fascination among convicted killers due to her popular show Crimewatch. The show appealed to the public for help in cracking unsolved crimes and helped to put many serious criminals behind bars. Dando’s ex-boyfriend, Bob Wheaton, a producer at the BBC, mentioned in the documentary that he thought it was not a good idea for her to host Crimewatch as he felt that it would make her a target for dangerous criminals.
5 1 Suspect In Jill Dando’s Murder Was A Major Waste Of Time
Due to the fact that Dando was a well-known celebrity, the inquiry into her death was marred by a number of false leads and dead ends. Her fame meant that numerous people came forward with incorrect theories who were simply looking for attention. The most important of these was an E-fit that was drawn up of a suspect who ultimately did not have any bearing on the investigation at all. This caused the detectives to waste significant time and resources, and the suspect ended up being caught in other murder investigations despite the fact that they had wasted their time.
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4 Another Theory Suggested Jill Dando Was Assassinated After 1999’s NATO Bombing
The Netflix documentary revealed that there is a belief Dando was killed as a kind of retaliation for the bombing of a radio station in Serbia by NATO. The Serbian public broadcaster, RTS, was hit by NATO bombs in 1999, and as a result, 16 people were killed. The documentary did not delve too further into this theory, but it did reveal how the authorities brushed off these claims and did not find strong evidence for it.
3 The Trial Of Barry George Explained
Convicted criminal Barry George lived in proximity to Dando at the time of her death. George has convictions for impersonating Freddie Mercury’s cousin under a fake name and for violence against women. The investigation led to a search of his apartments which uncovered numerous photos and magazine covers featuring famous women, including one of Dando. His initial conviction in 2001 was largely based on a particle of firearm discharge residue found in his coat pocket. After being apprehended and sentenced to time behind bars, he rose to notoriety in all the tabloids, and the public believed that he was the killer.
2 Barry George Spent 8 Years In Prison Despite Not Being The Killer
George’s conviction came under increasing scrutiny for its lack of solid evidence. His sister believed in his innocence and fought to get a strong legal team. Renowned human rights lawyer Michael Mansfield QC took on his appeal, asserting that the firearm discharge residue was not definitive proof of guilt, especially since countries like the U.S. have stopped using this evidence due to its questionable credibility. In 2008, George was acquitted after a retrial, having spent eight years in prison. George’s wrongful imprisonment obviously impacted his whole life, and he ended up moving to Ireland.
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1 Jill Dando’s Killer Has Never Been Found
One of the saddest and most shocking facts of the Dando case is that the journalist’s actual killer has not been found. Despite all the theories presented in the documentary and all the resources and time spent over the years, Dando’s murderer is potentially still at large. Netflix’s Who Killed Jill Dando? is arguably a call to action for viewers to bring her case back to the public eye in order to search again for answers, twenty-four years later.
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