IT was a chilling case that left the nation without answers for 27 years.
But today serial killer Steve Wright, known as the Suffolk Strangler, confessed to the horrifying murder of teenager Vicky Hall.
And Wright’s half-brother Keith told The Sun he fears tragic Victoria may be the tip of the iceberg.
Vicky was just 17-years-old when she disappeared on a night out in Felixstowe, Suffolk on September 19, 1999.
Wright today pleaded guilty to kidnapping and murdering the teenager at the Old Bailey, in London.
He also admitted to trying to snatch a 22-year-old woman the night before Victoria’s death.
The serial killer is already serving a whole life jail sentence for murdering five women in the Ipswich area in 2006 – although today’s plea is the first time he has ever confessed to a crime.
Keith, 57, told The Sun: “It’s time he did the right thing and told the police everything
“There’s still so much we don’t know, so many unanswered questions.
“How many more victims are there?
“I’d like to say that this is it, but I’m not convinced anymore.
“I just hope he comes clean about the whole lot for the families of everyone involved.”
Married dock worker Keith, of Felixstowe, Suffolk, said Wright was living with him just months after he murdered tragic Vicky.
He said: “There were no outward signs of what he had just done.
“To know that he was living under my roof having done something like that makes me feel sick.
“People want answers, an explanation, a reason, not just a guilty plea.
“We want to know why. What possesses someone to do these things? Vicky Hall was just 17 years old.
“He’s an animal.”
Wright’s guilty plea proves his killing spree started much earlier than 2006 when he was arrested for murdering five prostitutes in Ipswich.
Dad-of-one Keith said: “There’s a seven-year gap between the murders.
“What was he doing before 1999 and in the years that followed?
“Was Vicky the first or the latest and did he stop or carry on?
“Only he knows the answers and it’s time he came forward. It’s time we got the truth.”
Wright’s confession today tragically came just weeks after Victoria’s mum Lorinda Hall passed away without ever getting justice for her daughter.
The terrifying case unfolded on the evening of September 18, 1999, when Victoria left home for a night out with friend Gemma Algar.
The pair partied at the Bandbox nightclub in Bent Hill, Felixstowe, until around 1am on the morning of September 19.
They went to get some food at the Bodrum Grill in Undercliff Road West, and left each other to go to their respective homes at around 2.20am.
Victoria was just yards away from her house when she vanished.
Her parents raised the alarm when they woke up in the morning and realised she hadn’t returned.
A dog walker tragically uncovered the teenager’s naked body in a ditch in Creeting St Peter five days later.
Wright had been living in the area at the time but was never questioned – despite his licence plate coming up as a partial match to one spotted following another girl in the area the night before Victoria disappeared.
Wright was also reported to have been living in Runnacles Way, Felixstowe – just half a mile away from Victoria’s home between 1997 and 2000.
A local businessman, Adrian Bradshaw, was instead charged with Victoria’s murder but he was cleared by a jury in less than 90 minutes.
TEN DAY KILLING SPREE
Wright was finally taken off the streets in 2008 when he was convicted of the murders of Anneli Alderton, Paula Clennell, Gemma Adams, Tania Nicol and Annette Nicholls.
The forklift driver’s ten-day killing spree left women in Ipswich terrified to go out alone and led to one of the country’s biggest police investigations.
Wright targeted prostitutes in the area – luring them into his car then driving them to secluded areas.
The monster strangled them to death – leading to his macabre moniker – then removed their clothing in a final act of humiliation.
Their naked bodies were found dumped around the town – two in a stream and the other three in woods – over a ten-day period in December 2006.
Two of the victims were left with their arms sprawled out to the side in the shape of a crucifix.
During a trial at Ipswich Crown Court, Wright admitted having sex with the women but denied murdering them.
COLD CASE RE-OPENED
Victoria’s murder was re-investigated by a new team of cold case detectives on the 20th anniversary of her death in 2019.
Operation Avon was launched when Suffolk Police confirmed they had received new “information from witnesses” which they described at the time as “significant”.
Wright was first arrested on suspicion of murdering Victoria two years later but no charges were ever brought.
He was further held in December that year but was not charged until May 2024 – 24 years after the teen was discovered dead.
It came after police uncovered new DNA evidence linking him to her body, due to advances in DNA technology.
The monster will be sentenced for the murder of Victoria Hall at the Old Bailey on Friday.
