Press Association
Saturday 11th February 2012
Ten police officers are under investigation for the way they handled the case of a mother and her disabled daughter who were found dead in a burnt-out car after years of abuse from youths, a watchdog has confirmed.
Police were contacted 33 times in 10 years about yobs bullying Fiona Pilkington and her 18-year-old daughter, Francecca Hardwick, in the street where they lived in Barwell, Leicestershire.
An inquest last September found that, despite repeated pleas for help, 38-year-old Ms Pilkington received only eight visits from police officers.
She was found dead alongside her daughter in her burnt-out car, which was parked in a lay-by on the A47 in nearby Earl Shilton, in October 2007.
Following the inquest, the Independent Police Complaints Commission said it would look into the way Leicestershire Constabulary dealt with the family's complaints in the years before their deaths.
The IPCC said police and council officials had so far "co-operated fully" with its investigation.
The statement added: "We have now served advisory notices on a total of 10 Leicestershire Police officers and this situation is being kept under review.
"Such notices are not judgmental in any way, but are required under police misconduct regulations, and served on officers to advise that their conduct is under investigation."
It added: "This complex inquiry is going back over police contact with Fiona Pilkington, her daughter and neighbours over a period of several years.
"We are progressing this rigorous investigation as swiftly as possible and will make our findings public in due course."
