EXCLUSIVE: The family of Linda Razzell will this week appeal to the High Court to keep a mum’s killer behind bars as he has refused to tell them where her body is located
The daughter of a murder victim will urge the High Court this week not to release the killer from prison until he reveals where her mum’s body has been hidden.
Mum-of-four Linda Razzell, 41, vanished without trace on her way to work in Swindon, in May 2002 and was last seen parking her car. Her estranged husband Glyn Razzell, now 67, was arrested when traces of her blood were found in the car he was using. He was convicted of murder and sentenced to life with a minimum tariff of 16 years.
Now, the eldest of their four children, Cat, 38, will tell a High Court hearing that her father is not safe to be released. She believes Razzell “still clearly poses a risk to the public” and “demonstrates continuing cruelty” to his children by not telling them where he hid their mum’s body.
In a statement on behalf of the family she said: “We still do not know where our mother’s body is. Our father continues to deny he killed her, has done nothing to address his abusive behaviour, and refuses to tell us what he did with her remains.
“We do not believe a convicted murderer should progress through the prison system while denying the offence, showing no remorse, and withholding the only information that could bring our family any measure of peace or closure.”
She adds: “I don’t have a wish for my dad to die in prison. This is about giving us information that we need and it’s about us, as a society, saying ‘this is unacceptable and there will be repercussions’. Because, currently, failing to disclose a body doesn’t carry meaningful or effective consequences.”
Following their mother’s murder, the four children, all under 14, were lovingly raised by close members of Linda’s family.
Linda and Razzell, originally from Somerset, had been in the middle of divorce proceedings when she went missing. She had visited a local bank with a court order to freeze his bank accounts the week before she vanished.
At first he made a public appeal for her return, before being arrested and charged with her murder.He was found guilty after a trial and sentenced to life in prison, with a minimum term of 16 years, which expired in 2019.
Razzell applied for parole and was refused three times – including in 2021 when he became the first prisoner to be denied parole under Helen’s Law.
Helen’s Law made it a legal requirement for parole judges to consider non-disclosure by a killer of a body’s remains. It was established after a long campaign by Marie McCourt – mother of missing murder victim Helen, who was killed in 1988.
But on the fourth hearing in January 2026, the Parole Board decided to release him, ruling: “…the panel was satisfied that imprisonment was no longer necessary for the protection of the public.”
However, this decision will now be reviewed by the High Court for a second judicial check, after the Secretary of State for Justice used the new parole referral power, established in December last year. It is a discretionary power that can only be used if it is believed that release would undermine public confidence in the Parole Board. This is the first time a referral has resulted in a High Court hearing.
Cat and other family members will attend the two-day hearing in person to read their Victim Impact Statements. Until now, they have endured their grief in private. But finding themselves in the ‘last chance saloon’ has compelled them to speak out.
Cat said: “Having to do this publicly, just in the hopes of getting some kind of justice is very difficult. But I don’t believe the Parole Board has properly taken into consideration the spirit of Helen’s Law in deciding to grant parole to a man who has done nothing to help his victims grieve the whole time he has been detained?’
“It’s a case of ‘You killed your wife. You took away four children’s mother, you’re not going to say what you did. Here’s 16 years, we’ll keep you in prison for a further five or so, and then you’re free to go.’ That’s not alright, is it?
“There is no evidence that my father is any less dangerous now than on the day he committed that crime. So why is it that he is eligible for parole and he’s been provisionally granted it? That’s something that I think represents a real failure.”
Linda, she said, experienced abuse that was physical, emotional and financial after the couple separated. “When you’re 12 years old, you don’t really understand the fullness of what’s happening in this adult scenario that’s really toxic. But what I could understand is that my dad was hurting my mum.
“Twice, she took my dad to court for assault – but he was acquitted, leaving him free to kill her in the ultimate act of control.”
The family were stunned that the Parole Board recommended release – while acknowledging that Razzell has information about where and how his wife’s remains were disposed of which he has not disclosed, had used significant violence against her on several occasions and could reduce the family’s pain ‘in a moment’ by saying what he did after the murder.
Campaigner Marie McCourt, now 83, is also urging the decision to be reversed. In a statement issued by the family, she said: “I was appalled to learn of the decision and urged ministers to challenge it. My daughter’s killer was released, just before Helen’s Law was adopted, despite hiding her body. It almost destroyed me.
“Human rights laws ruled out No Body No Parole that I had originally fought for. I was advised that a legal requirement to consider non-disclosure was the next best thing – and, once in place, could be tightened. Over six years, I have called for set questions to be asked of killers in hearings and the involvement of an independent forensic psychologist – but to no avail.”
Marie is now calling on Westminster to follow the lead of Northern Ireland which is introducing a ‘stronger’ version of Helen’s Law where hiding a body will result in a longer sentence.
Cat told how they have not been able to grieve properly, explaining: “It is a ritual – both to honour who that person was and for the living to remember the dead. Taking that away takes away a piece of the humanity of the person that died and the ability to grieve for the people that remain. And to do that to your own kids… I just can’t fathom how someone can live with the guilt.
“It might have been really difficult and extremely painful to know what happened at the time but it might have meant less suffering in the long term. Because I couldn’t properly grieve, I couldn’t properly think about what happened for a really long time until I was much older.
“The continuing impact of the decision not to tell us what happened has meant that my family’s suffering has been just extended. So aside from the need to lay somebody to rest, which is just fundamental, there’s also this greater harm that continues to ripple out.”
Prior to the time of abuse which left Linda ‘a frightened, anxious’ person, Cat has fond memories of her ‘amazing’ mum. She said: “I remember her being just an amazing, amazing, mother – thinking always of other people, being generous with her time and money. She was a fantastic cook and really emotionally intelligent.
“She understood what it was like to lose a parent. She lost her own mum when she was eight and, I think, wanted to show us how much she loved us. And that’s abundantly clear in the fact that, we’ve worked hard to make successes of our lives, despite the challenges. I think there’s no greater testament to her.”
You must be logged in to post a comment Login