Overview
- Patricia Lashley was last seen in about September 1998 and was reported missing by her sister in June 1999, leaving her family and children without answers for decades.
- Trevor Dunkley told police on July 7, 2026 that he killed Lashley, described repeatedly striking her, hiding her body in a cellar and later disposing of bones, and he was arrested after the admission.
- Police carried out extensive excavation of the Hall Street cellar after the confession but reported that no human remains were recovered.
- On Friday at Wolverhampton Crown Court Judge Michael Chambers KC sentenced Dunkley to life with a minimum term of 130 months and said Dunkley’s deception over the baby was a major aggravating factor.
- Investigators credit long-running cold-case review and repeated re-examination of files for prompting the July interview and confession, but Lashley’s family remain without a body or full closure.