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A FORMER Beauty and the Geek star has been charged with the murder and decapitation of her boyfriend — as cops desperately search for his missing head.
Julian Story, 39, was repor…
THE devastated parents of a British teenager killed on a school trip claim they’ve been forced to investigate her death themselves.
Jenna Chan, 15, died after being struck by a boat propeller while snorkelling in the Maldives.
Jenna Chan, 15, died in the horror snorkelling accident[/caption]
Her parents say they have been forced to investigate the cause of her death themselves[/caption]
British-Singaporean dual national Jenna was a student at St Joseph’s International Institution and had been assisting the British registered charity, the Maldives Whale Shark Research Programme (MWSRP), in its research expedition.
On November 8 last year, the school girl was allegedly beckoned into the water but within minutes was “sucked under” when the engine was switched on.
Her parents, Alan and Jennifer Chan, have said that more than a month after the tragic incident they are “still waiting for answers” and have “been forced to become their own investigators”.
As a state, the Maldives does not provide post-mortem examinations so the couple are hunting for information about their daughter’s death “completely” on their own.
Jennifer told The Times: “We just want to know why Jenna died. There is no justice and we are completely on our own.”
Alan flew out to the island in March to get hold of the hospital CT scans that were used by police to determine a possible cause of death.
Jennifer, a surgeon, examined the pictures with her colleagues who she said were horrified “because Jenna’s injuries were so horrific”.
The couple said they haven’t even been allowed to speak to any of the teachers who were on board the boat at the time of the incident.
They believe there was “no real investigation” into the accident, adding that there was a “chain of errors” throughout the excursion, they claim.
According to some of the students, Jenna was reportedly instructed to enter the water while the guides tracked dolphins.
The teenager was then allegedly “sucked up” by the engine before reportedly being brought to the nearest hotel instead of hospital.
Michael Johnston, CEO of St Joseph’s International Institution , previously wrote to the parents informing them that efforts to piece together what had happened to Jenna were being impeded by MWSRP.
According to the school’s boss, the company was “refusing” to provide access to their staff and crew for interviews.
“We remain exasperated at their lack of co-operation,” he said.
There has been silence from the Maldivian government and all news about her has ceased
Jenna’s sister, Alice Chan
Jenna’s 17-year-old sister Alice has started a GoFundMe to raise awareness of the teen’s accident and help with legal fees while the family fight for answers.
The caption for the fundraiser reads: “My sister, 15 year old British-Singaporean Jenna Chan, was killed in a propeller accident during a school trip in the Maldives.
“There has been silence from the Maldivian government and all news about her has ceased.
“The circumstances leading to her sudden death and negligence of the company is truly shocking to our family and her teenage friends, who witnessed her death.
“Please help support us during this tough time for our family and loved ones, and spread the word about her case.
“All donations will go towards our fight for Jenna and protection of all future children and tourists, by providing our Maldivian lawyers with the legal fees and financial support to take more cases just like this one.”
We just want to know why Jenna died. There is no justice and we are completely on our own
Jenna’s mum, Jennifer Chan
So far, £6,595 of its £10,000 has been raised.
Jenna was laid to rest on November 15 in Singapore.
A spokesperson for the young girl’s school said that it had been “unrelenting” in its efforts to find out what happened and is still waiting on a report from the Maldivian authorities.
In a statement, the school said: “The school has been unrelenting in our efforts to piece together a full account of what happened.
“The Maldivian authorities investigation is still ongoing and we have yet to receive their report.
“The Maldivian authorities and MWSRP have not given us access to interview the boat captain and crew nor the MWSRP staff. These are critical pieces for all of us.
“I can confirm that the Maldives Police Service was in Singapore and with the support of the Singapore Police Force facilitated interviews with witnesses on May 27 and 28, 2025.
“We continue to actively support the investigation. We have not and will not stop seeking answers and supporting those involved.”
The MWSRP said: “At the time of the incident, Ms Chan was under the supervision of two teaching staff from SJII and an experienced boat crew.
“The emergency response was in accordance with our procedures and Ms Chan was taken directly to a local health centre.”
A TOP CEO was stabbed to death in a horror knife attack during a party packed with teenagers at his luxury mansion – before police arrested a 15-year-old boy.
Australian entrepreneur Greg Josephson was hosting a large gathering of 30…
A NORWEGIAN prince has been charged with three rapes — among a slew of sex and violence allegations involving a “double-digit” number of alleged victims.
Marius Borg Høiby, 28, the son of Crown Princess Mette-Marit and stepson to heir to t…
JAPAN has executed the man who brutally murdered eight women and one man – aged between 15 and 26 – after luring them to his flat.
Takahiro Shiraishi, dubbed the “Twitter killer”, raped, strangled and dismembered his victims – in a chilling case that shook one of the world’s safest countries.
Takahiro Shiraishi was recently executed for murdering nine people in 2017[/caption]
The ‘Twitter killer’ in a 2020 court sketch when he was sentenced to death[/caption]
Japan’s Minister of Justice Keisuke Suzuki announced on Friday that Shiraishi had been executed[/caption]
Shiraishi, who committed the crimes in 2017, was executed by hanging – marking Japan’s first execution since 2022.
Then 27, the serial killer lured young women to his home, where he raped them before murdering them.
Three of the eight women were schoolgirls.
He also killed the boyfriend of one of the women to silence him.
Authorities made the disturbing discovery in October 2017 while investigating the disappearance of a 23-year-old woman last seen walking with Shiraishi.
Cops found the victims’ body parts in Shiraishi’s flat in the Japanese city of Zama, near Tokyo.
One resident told The Japan Times in 2017: “I thought it smelled like sewage. It was something I never smelled before.”
Another neighbour said they noticed a “nasty smell” coming from the flat.
Nine dismembered bodies were found in three coolers and five large storage boxes inside the flat – dubbed the “house of horrors” by the media.
The serial killer had discarded parts of his victims in the bin, which was collected with the recycled garbage.
It later emerged that he had searched online for how to mutilate bodies before buying a saw and a meat cleaver.
Shiraishi pleaded guilty to murdering nine victims in October 2020.
The killer revealed he met them on the social media platform Twitter, now known as X.
He told the victims he could help them die, even claiming in some cases he would kill himself alongside them.
Shiraishi being taken to the prosecutor’s office in November 2017[/caption]
His Twitter profile wrote: “I want to help people who are really in pain. Please DM [direct message] me anytime.”
Prosecutors demanded the death penalty for Shiraishi, while his lawyers argued for a prison sentence, claiming the victims had consented to their deaths and that he should be charged with “murder with consent”.
They also called for his mental state to be assessed.
But Shiraishi later disputed his own defence team’s version of events, revealing he killed without the victims’ consent.
435 people showed up to watch the 2020 verdict sentencing him to death – despite the court having only 16 public seats – Japan’s public broadcaster NHK reported.
As a result of the murders, Twitter changed its rules to state users should not “promote or encourage suicide or self-harm”.
Shiraishi was hanged at the Tokyo Detention House in secrecy.
Japan’s Justice Minister Keisuke Suzuki, who ordered Shiraishi’s execution, announced the news on Friday.
He said Shiraishi acted “for the genuinely selfish reason of satisfying his own sexual and financial desires” and that the case “caused great shock and anxiety to society”, according to AFP.
Japan currently has 105 people on death row, Suzuki added.
The country has one of the lowest crime rates in the world.
If you are having feelings of despair or emotional distress, help is available.
In the UK, you can call Samaritans anytime, free of charge, at 116 123 any time.
In the US, you can call or text the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline – also available 24/7.
JAPAN’S justice system allows the death penalty for serious crimes like murder, typically carried out by hanging.
The nation’s death penalty dates back to the Meiji era – with the current legal framework established under the Penal Code of 1907.
Executions are rare and usually follow a lengthy appeals process.
The justice minister must sign the execution order.
Inmates are often told just hours before, and the executions are carried out in total secrecy.
Between January 2000 and June 2025, 99 inmates have been executed in Japan.
Who was executed before Takahiro Shiraishi?
July 2022: Tomohiro Kato, 39, was executed for a rampage in a Tokyo shopping district in 2018, where he killed seven people in a car crash and stabbing spree.
December 2021: Yasutaka Fujishiro, 65, was executed for killing seven relatives in 2004.
December 2021: Tomoaki Takanezawa, 54, and Mitsunori Onogawa, 44, were executed for the 2003 murders of two employees at separate pachinko parlours.
August 2019: Koichi Shoji, 64, was executed for multiple rape-murders in Kanagawa Prefecture in 2001.
August 2019: Yasunori Suzuki, 50, was executed for murdering three women – and raping one of them – in Fukuoka Prefecture between 2004 and 2005.
THE notorious “Outback killer” is set to make an “explosive” final statement on his deathbed.
Bradley John Murdoch was diagnosed with terminal throat canc…
A BRIT has been told he could face the firing squad in Bali if found guilty of smuggling in 244 grams of cocaine – the same weight as an iPhone.
Elliot Shaw, 50, of Watford,…
WHEN Marlene Warren’s doorbell rang one Saturday morning in May 1990, it sounded the beginnings of a blood-soaked nightmare that would haunt her family forever.
Outside stood a most bizarre sight: a clown, dressed in a colourful jumpsuit, with an orange wig and big, black shoes. But this was to be no celebration.
It was holding two balloons – one with a picture of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs on it, another that read You’re the Greatest – along with a basket of red and white flowers.
“Oh, how pretty,” Marlene said as she opened the door.
Seconds later, there was a loud bang.
Marlene’s son Joe Ahrens says: “It echoed through the house. It seemed like slow motion. It happened so fast. It was wild. It was like another world.”
Marlene, 40, had been shot through the mouth at their home in Wellington Aero Club, Florida – an affluent flying community best known for having its own landing strip.
Just moments before she’d been whipping up a breakfast of eggs and toast for Joe, who was 21 at the time, and three pals.
Joe says: “Blood was coming out of her mouth, and she was gurgling. It was terrible – the worst day of my life.”
As if that wasn’t sickening enough, the clown left the gifts before casually driving off in a white Chrysler LeBaron car parked outside.
Joe says: “After the clown shot my mother they put the flowers down.
“The clown had thick white paint – you couldn’t see its skin. I tried. It had a jumpsuit on, a colourful orange wig and black boot shoes… When they got to the car, they looked around. I saw some big brown eyes.”
Speaking about his ordeal in a new Sky documentary series called Murder On The Doorstep: The Killer Clown, he adds: “All I could think of was to chase that vehicle. I jumped into the car, just driving like a maniac.”
It was too late. The clown was gone.
Marlene was rushed to Palms West Hospital in Loxahatchee, Florida.
Within days, her family made the devastating decision to turn off her life support machine.
Joe says: “It was hell. I kind of knew myself after the third day that we were going to lose my mother, and it was horrible. She was the best person ever. When I lost her, I lost a big part of me.”
Police, now investigating this most bizarre of murder enquiries, quickly turned their attention to Marlene’s husband and Joe’s step-dad, Michael Warren.
Michael, who was 38, had a solid alibi: he’d been travelling with friends to a horse race in Miami when Marlene had been shot.
He appeared to be grief-stricken.
In taped police interviews, featured in the upcoming three-part series, he told detectives: “I’ve never loved anybody as much as I loved my wife.
“We always got along well. You always have your ups and downs but you know, we’ve been together 20 years.”
But it soon became clear to investigators that Marlene was in a turbulent relationship and actually feared her husband.
According to Joe, Marlene intended to leave Michael just days before her death.
She’d threatened to leave him, and he’d threatened to kill her
Debra Hoisington
In June 1990, Marlene’s sister, Debra Hoisington, claimed: “About a year ago, she called me and she said that he beat her up and she’d threatened to leave him, and he’d threatened to kill her.”
Marlene’s step-sister Jamie Twing also told police: “She just kept telling me, if anything happens to me, get Joey out of the house.”
With Marlene out of the picture, Michael now stood to inherit a small fortune from their lucrative family business.
He and Marlene had jointly owned a cut-price, car rental business called Bargain Motors which often leased cars to shady characters, according to employees.
With the profits, the couple had bought several properties worth over $1million – a huge sum for the time. Michael even owned a plane and a racehorse.
Police also spoke to attorney Christopher DeSantis who’d represented the family in an unrelated case.
In a chilling twist, the attorney told how, in April 1989, he’d had a strange conversation with Michael after he’d asked: “Can a husband inherit from his wife if he murdered her?”
DeSantis told him no, unless, he joked, the killer couldn’t be identified because he was dressed like a clown.
DeSantis now believes that his flippant comment in some way led to Marlene’s death.
Police were also tipped off that Mike had been having an affair with an employee called Sheila Keen. She denied the relationship.
But investigators discovered that just two days before the murder, on May 24, 1990, a woman matching her description bought a clown costume from a store called Spotlight Capezio. The owner later identified Sheila as the buyer.
Then the LeBaron car was found dumped at a shopping mall eight miles from Marlene’s house.
Hair and fibres inside matched those found on clown outfits – and were traced back to Bargain Motors.
Yet for all the circumstantial evidence linking Sheila to the crime, there was no concrete forensic evidence to prove her guilt.
The case stalled and the mystery surrounding Marlene’s murder remained.
The clown outfit or weapon were never found.
Michael Warren was arrested in October 1990 – but for 66 auto fraud charges linked to his business, not murder.
Michael Warren took everything. Mike ruined my life
Joe Ahrens
He was later sentenced to nine years in prison but served less than three.
After his 1997 release, Joe spoke to his step-dad for the last time.
Joe says: “When Mike got out of prison, it was a short phone call, but he called me just to say, ‘have a good life’,” he says. “It was just sickening to me. I tried to trace it to find out where he was at, but I never did.”
After Marlene’s death, Michael had promised to share the inheritance money with Joe. Yet Joe never saw a penny of it.
Joe says: “Michael Warren took everything. Mike ruined my life. I had abandonment issues, alcohol issues…
“Mike’s arrest made me feel glad that we did get something, but to not get total justice for my mother – this is not justice to me.
“It really eats me up inside, but I didn’t let it kill me.”
Joe tried to move on with his life, moving over 1,300 miles away to Iowa.
It wasn’t until 2014, 24 years after Marlene’s murder, that, remarkably, the case was reopened thanks to a cold case funding grant and advancements in forensic science.
This time, a lab technician was able to go back over the original evidence from the case – including the balloons the clown had left – and was able to match fibres recovered from the crime scene to Sheila.
For prosecutors, it was the missing link that finally tied everything together.
It didn’t take too much digging for detectives to stumble across more surprising news, either.
They discovered that Michael and Sheila had married in Las Vegas in 2002 – 12 years after Marlene’s death.
Sheila had changed her name to “Debbie”, and the pair had moved to Abingdon, Virginia.
They were running a diner called The Purple Cow, just over the state line in Kingsport, Tennessee.
One former worker even told police that “Debbie” had once dressed up as a spooky clown for Halloween
In September 2017, 27-and-a-half years after Marlene’s murder, Sheila was arrested for first-degree murder.
After she was extradited to Florida, where she potentially faced the death penalty, she pleaded not guilty.
“I didn’t do it, so that’s it,” she said in police interviews, while refusing to answer any questions.
In recorded jailhouse calls between Michael and Sheila, which air in the documentary, Sheila also tells an emotional Michael after her arrest:. “I’m alright. I’m fine. Quit crying.”
While Michael, who has always protested his innocence, replies: “You didn’t do nothing. Don’t worry about nothing.”
Joe moved from Iowa back to Florida expecting a quick trial. Instead, the case began to fall apart.
The one person that did not pay for this crime is Michael Warren. He didn’t do one day of jail
Joe Ahrens
Sheila’s defence team argued that over the decades, the evidence bags had been opened and examined so many times that the forensic material inside them could no longer be considered reliable.
Fearing the whole trial could collapse, prosecutors offered Sheila a plea bargain which, after years in prison awaiting trial, she accepted.
In April 2023, she pleaded guilty to second-degree murder.
She was sentenced to 12 years – but under 1990 Florida law, and with nearly seven years already served since her arrest in 2017, she was freed just 18 months later, in May 2023.
Sheila, 61, moved back in with Michael.
For Joe, the thought of Sheila getting out was “overwhelming” but he admits: “There was a bit of justice for my mother because we did get the killer.”
He has felt the most anger towards his step-dad, who he still believes had his part to play in the murder, despite no charges ever being brought and Michael’s denials.
Joe says: “The one person that did not pay for this crime is Michael Warren. He didn’t do one day of jail.
“But really I have to let go. I have to let it go.”
Instead, Joe, now a dad himself, carries his mother’s spirit with him everyday.
He says: “I know she would be very proud of me today, because I’m proud of myself.
“You know, if I’m in a situation, I always think, ‘what would mum do?’.
“My son is at the age that I was at when I lost my mum. I want my son to grow up knowing his grandmother still lives within me, and I want him to see that through me.”
Murder On The Doorstep: The Killer Clown is available now on Now TV
IRAN executed three more prisoners accused of spying for Israel as it launched a major crackdown in the wake of the 12-Day War.
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Cops have inc…