Fred West hung himself on January 1 1995, but his body wasn't disposed of until three months later.
The serial killer, husband of Rose West, was responsible for the murders of at least twelve young women. Nine of them were buried within the walls, floors and beneath the patio the couple's sprawling Gloucester home.
The couple lived at 25 Cromwell Street with their three daughters, Heather (the couple's final victim in 1987), Mae, Louise and their two sons, Stephen and Barry. Rose also had three younger children, Tara, Rosemary Junior and Lucyanna by one of her sex work clients, although Fred raised them as his own. Fred's step-daughter, Charmaine, was murdered by Rose as as child while Fred was in prison. Charmaine's mother, Catherine 'Rena' Costello, was also murdered by the pair. Rena and Fred's daughter, Anne-Marie, was raised by Rose as her own.
Speaking about how he killed Heather, Fred told police: "I cut her legs off with that and I'm not telling you I have lived that a million times doing that since then and then I cut her head off and then I put her in the bin and put the lid on and rolled it down to the bottom of the garden behind the Wendy house."
While he awaited trial for murder, West hung himself with a noose made from sheets in his cell at Winson Green prison in Birmingham. There was outrage that he had not faced justice for his two-decades long killing and sex torture spree. He even admitted to police that he had killed close to thirty women, whose identities will now never been known, nor their remains ever found.
What happened to Fred West's body?
But there was more anger to come three months later when it emerged that he had been secretly cremated at Canley Crematorium in Coventry. People were sickened that he had had his remains destroyed in the same furnace as innocent people.
One mourner said it "undermines the reputation of Coventry" and another raged "I do not think this is the place for people accused of mass murder. My heart goes out to the poor families who were having funeral services there yesterday. It undermines the reputation of Coventry."
When was Fred West cremated?
Fred West was cremated at Canley Crematorium in Coventry on Wednesday March 29 1995. Before that, his body was kept at a mortuary in Birmingham, the city where he hanged himself on New Year's Day.
What happened at Fred West's funeral?
Reports at the time revealed that there were no hymns or music at the cremation service. It was led by a member of the clergy from his home city of Gloucester.
Who attended Fred West's funeral?
Despite him admitting to killing their sister and chopping her up before burying her in their garden - as well as subjecting all of his kids to sexual and physical abuse, two of Fred West's children attended the funeral. It was reported that one son and one daughter were in attendance.
Where is Fred West buried? What happened to Fred West's ashes?
Fred West doesn't have a gravestone or monument. It is believed that his ashes were scattered at the Gavin and Stacy-famed seaside town Barry Island in Wales.
