The Arrest

"These appalling crimes left a community, a county and a nation in a state of profound shock." Detective Chief Inspector Stewart Gull BBC Online 21 February 2008‘A MADMAN GRIPPED BY MURDER LUST’ The Mirror, 13 December 2006Newspaper headlines in the days after Wright’s victims are discovered would echo the nation’s horror reaction to the killings.Concerned at the mounting death toll, police decide to put Steve Wright, known to be a user of Ipswich prostitutes, under round-the-clock surveillance, before he is arrested.Wright’s arrest is meticulously planned; giving forensic experts time to search for vital evidence. Senior officers know they are taking a risk delaying bringing him in but are aware they would be against the clock once they make the arrest.On 19 December 2006 at 05.00am, Suffolk Police arrest Steve Wright at his home in Ipswich, close to the red light district where the dead women worked. Wright’s arrest would come a little over two weeks since the body of the first victim; Gemma Adams is discovered in a brook.During an intense police investigation, detectives establish that 48-year-old Wright moved into his Ipswich home just months before the killing spree started. With Wright safely off the streets, the police erect a scaffolding cover outside his flat so they can search for evidence to link him to the murders.Steve Wright is questioned by detectives for eight hours. He simply replies ‘no comment’ to all questions.Nevertheless, on 21 December 2006, police and prosecutors make a joint statement: Steve Wright is charged with the murder of all five women.