Man charged with murder of wife who disappeared 40 years ago

Brenda Venables went missing in 1982.

A man in the UK has been charged with the murder of his wife after her remains were found in a septic tank in their former home in Kempsey, Worcestershire. Brenda Venables went missing  in May 1982 when she was 48 years old. Her year of death was recorded as 1982, and her name was added to her parents' gravestone in Rushock. Her husband David Venables, who is 88, was arrested in 2019 after maintenance workers found a bag of bones in their former property during a routine check. He will appear at the Worcester Magistrates Court on Tuesday 15 June. Mr Venables told a newspaper in 1982 that he woke up one morning to find his wife was gone, and that he hoped and prayed she would return safely. He had moved away from that home, but was living in the nearby vicinity. Speaking on the case, Mark Paul, the Head of Complex Casework Unit for the CPS said: "The decision to authorise the charge against the defendant was made after careful consideration of all the available evidence of this complex case and determining that a prosecution is required in the public interest. "The alleged offences occurred between 2 May 1982 and 5 May 1982. "The function of the CPS is not to decide whether a person is guilty of a criminal offence, but to make fair, independent and objective assessments about whether criminal charges are appropriate. "Criminal proceedings are now active, and there must be no reporting, commentary or sharing of information online which could prejudice these proceedings."