An inquest at Somerset Coroner's Court has ruled that Kelly Faiers, a 61-year-old mother-of-three, was unlawfully killed by her partner Richard Scatchard, a convicted serial sex offender who coerced her into taking excessive quantities of sleeping tablets so he could have sex with her while she was unconscious. Ms Faiers was found by paramedics at a property in Minehead, Somerset, on 15 October 2023 after the 70-year-old called an ambulance. The case matters because police failed to arrest Scatchard at the scene, allowing him to disappear the following day.

Scatchard had been convicted of a string of offences during the 1980s and 1990s, including rape, indecent assault, attempted kidnap and drugging his victims, and was on life licence. The court heard that the first uniformed officers wanted to arrest him on suspicion of manslaughter but were overruled by a duty detective sergeant, leaving them 'confused, angry and frustrated'. Scatchard fled the next day, prompting a manhunt that ended weeks later when his body was found in a caravan. The police watchdog previously found Avon and Somerset Police had provided an 'unacceptable' level of service to the family, and the coroner said she would write to the force to raise concerns.