Disclaimer: This article contains mentions of murder and assault. Reader discretion is advised.
Helen McCourt was a 22 years old British insurance clerk who was murdered on February 9, 1988, when she was on her way home to St Helens, Merseyside. On her way home from work, she disappeared and was later found to be killed. Helen’s mother, Marie McCourt reported her disappearance almost immediately. She was reportedly seen getting off a bus before she went missing, according to the Guardian.
Ian Simms was a pub landlord who ran the George and Dragon. The pub was only meters away from Helen McCourt’s home. He became a suspect almost immediately. Wigan Today reported that the police thoroughly searched Simms’ car and house. His discarded items were also studied alongside Helen’s belongings.
A series of interrogations proved Simms’ involvement. He repeatedly lied about where he was at the time of the crime. He also did not have convincing stories to back some of the injuries he sustained at the time, according to court documents. However, despite finding overwhelming evidence and convictions related to the case, Helen McCourt’s remains were never found. Her mother, Marie McCourt expressed her grief over not being able to come to terms with Helen’s death owing to the fact that her remains were never found. She now helps other murder victims’ families to look for their loved ones’ remains and bring justice to them.
Who was convicted of Helen McCourt’s murder?
In February 1988, Ian Simms was found guilty of Helen McCourt’s murder. He was convicted over overwhelming forensic evidence despite the victim’s body never being found. Significant DNA evidence pointed out that he strangled her with ligature as mentioned in court documents. He was then sentenced to life in prison with a minimum term of 16 years and one day.
In November 2019, the Guardian reported that 63-year-old Ian Simms was to be released from prison after serving 31 years. His release was over a considerable change in his behavior. Marie McCourt expressed her rage and disappointment over the court’s decision to release Simms without him disclosing details of where she left Helen McCourt’s remains. She also began campaigning against the release of murderers who do not disclose the details of the victims’ remains. The law came to be known as “Helen’s Law.”
Marie McCourt reportedly crowdfunded over £26,000 to pay for the legal costs of overturning the court’s decision to let Ian Simms free. However, Simms was freed.
The law was enacted in 2021. According to the BBC, the law made the factor of whether the murderer revealed where the victims’ remains were, an important factor to consider when the parole board is reviewing a prisoner’s record. Marie McCourt reportedly now helps families of other victims trace down and locate the remains of their loved ones. Ian Simms died in 2022 and Marie expressed hope that Simms’s death might cause his friends or family to come forward with any knowledge about the whereabouts of Helen McCourt’s remains.
