POLICE hunting a ‘dangerous’ man wanted in connection with a West Somerset murder inquiry are no nearer to finding him with the search now well into its third week.
Richard Scatchard went on the run after a woman with whom he was in a relationship was found dead in his flat in Minehead on October 15.
Police who spoke to him at the time did not detain him but returned the following day to find he had disappeared.
The public have been warned Scatchard posed a danger to them, especially to women, and people should call 999 immediately if they spotted him.
Scatchard moved to Minehead in September, 2020, seven years after he was released from a life sentence for sex crimes, including drugging women with whom he was in a relationship.
One of the conditions of his prison licence was that he told the probation service of any intimate relationship he intended to form, which he failed to do in the case of Weston-super-Mare woman Kelly Faiers, who died in his Minehead home in Blenheim Road.
Police are treating as ‘suspicious’ the death of Mis Faiers, aged 61, and a post mortem has failed to find a cause for her death.
More than 50 possible sightings of Scatchard have been reported to police, including one at Dunster Beach on Tuesday (October 31) when officers searched the site’s 250 chalets in an unsuccessful effort to find him.
Now, detectives believe somebody may be harbouring Scatchard, who is 70 years old and speaks with a Scottish accent.
They are aware that he was a prolific user of dating apps and had been in contact with ‘many, many women from all over the country’.
Senior investigating officer Det Chief Insp Jess Aston said: “One of our hypotheses is that someone may be harbouring him, and I would be very, very concerned if that was a female harbouring him.”
DCI Aston said Scatchard posed a ‘serious risk’ to any woman with whom he formed a relationship.
She said he was now wanted on recall to prison for breaching his licence conditions and police were ‘very keen’ to speak to him in connection with the death of Ms Faiers.
DCI Aston said: “He may be living outdoors, or in an outbuilding.
“We would urge people to check if they have an outbuilding on their property and there are any signs of it being disturbed.”
DCI Aston said police were putting in a lot of work in the background to find Scatchard but their best chance of finding him would be with the help of the public.
She said: “The local neighbourhood team are also carrying out extra high-visibility patrols in the area.
“A community letter and a poster with Scatchard’s photo on it are being distributed, too, in a bid to further encourage people with information to come forward.
“We are also working with other police forces across the country.
“We know he has recent links to Cornwall, Gwent, and South Wales while previous links include the Cheshire and Leicestershire areas.”
DCI Aston said the circumstances of Ms Faiers’ death remained unclear and the results of further tests were awaited which she hoped would provide answers for the family.
She said: “A specially-trained family liaison officer is supporting them at this difficult time and ensuring they are updated.”
DCI Aston defended a decision by police not to tell the public for nearly a week that Scatchard was a dangerous sex offender when he disappeared.
She said although people might be angry at the decision, the police were more concerned with Scatchard’s welfare.
DCI Aston said no decision had yet been taken on whether to refer the constabulary to the Independent Office for Police Conduct over the way Scatchard was allowed to disappear.
Scatchard is described as white, about 5 ft 11 ins tall, of average build with short grey hair.
He has previously also used the name Richard Dunlop.
Given the amount of time since his last sighting on October 16, police believe he may now look ‘dishevelled’.
DCI Aston said although police were told early in the inquiry that Scatchard might be using a grey Gepida Alboin Curve electric bike, they now thought it could be ‘a normal push bike’.
She said anybody who saw Scatchard should not approach him but instead call 999 and give the call handler the reference number 5223259285.
Anybody who might know where he was should call 101 and give the same reference number, or use the police website online form.
Alternatively, they could contact the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or via its anonymous online form.