Schoolboy unlawfully killed, new inquest concludes

A schoolboy who was last seen when he left his home on his bike to fly a kite in September 1984 was unlawfully killed, a coroner has concluded.

The body of 15-year-old Mark Billington was found two months later hanging in a tree in woodland on the edge of Meriden, near Coventry, nearly seven miles (11km) from his home in South Yardley, Birmingham.

Police at the time treated the death as a suicide, but it became a murder inquiry in 2002. No-one has ever been charged. Mark's family has fought for four decades for answers.

Following a two-day inquest, senior coroner Louise Hunt told the court on Tuesday she was "satisfied that Mark was murdered and there was no evidence that he took his own life".

"It remains an unsolved murder", the court heard.

Warning: This story contains distressing details

Delivering her conclusion at Birmingham and Solihull Coroner's Court, Hunt said she was satisfied the evidence provided showed that the teenager went missing on 1 September 1984 and would have died at some point that day.

Addressing his family, Hunt displayed a picture of the smiling schoolboy as she described Mark as a "quiet" and "happy" boy who loved going to Butlins, his stamp collection and model railway kits.

The inquest heard the teenager had a "keen interest in cooking, and cheesecake was a regular on the menu" and was looking ahead to his future by writing to caterers about employment opportunities once he left school.

His father and mother Royston and Winifred Billington, who adopted Mark as a baby in 1971, had no concerns about any mental health issues and said going missing was "completely out of character"

The court heard the boy's body was found on 11 November by four men who were ferreting in the woodland in Meriden.

The court previously heard from consultant forensic pathologist Dr Brett Lockyer who said the rope found at the scene was "tied unusually" in an "elaborate arrangement" and it was unlikely that Mark would have been able to secure the knot himself.

Describing the last time he was seen, Hunt told the court Mark carried out his usual morning paper round, before he returned home where his parents last saw him sitting on their kitchen step before they left to go shopping at around 09:30.

He said goodbye to his grandfather and brother Russell Billington at about 11:00, before heading to The Rec, a park near their family home, with his bike and a blue kite with a crimson pink tail.

Witness sightings placed him in a number of locations near his neighbourhood that morning, including the Birmingham and Bridgewater Building Society on Church Road where he deposited his £8 wages.

A "comprehensive" missing persons investigation was launched when his parents called police after the newsagent where he worked alerted them he had not turned up for his evening shift at Allen's News.

That day, his jumper and building society passbook were found in the shed where his bike and kite were normally kept, the court heard. His kite was found in a hedge behind the family home two weeks later.

During the relaunched police investigation, three people were arrested but later released due to a lack of evidence.

The coroner's court heard West Midlands Police was satisfied Mark Billington was unlawfully killed.

Detectives continue to have a theory that Mark's death was linked to a bottle scam in which people took fizzy drink glass bottles to shops in exchange for a deposit, then stole them back to return again.

It is thought the teenager uncovered the involvement of one or more of the suspects and they "were trying to scare him".

The coroner told the court this remained West Midlands Police's main theory.

Hunt said Mark was "either a willing or duped victim or murdered".

She added that "it was extremely unlikely that he tied the knot" in the way he was found at the scene.

Due to the condition of his body it was not able to determine how he died and his medical cause of death was recorded as unascertained due to decomposition.

As the conclusion was delivered, Mark's family were tearful following a 42-year battle for answers.

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