with the murder of Molseed that had taken place in 1975. DNA evidence was alleged to have shown a 'direct hit' with a sample found at the scene of the murder. Ronald Castree (born 18 October 1953 in Littleborough, near Rochdale), a Shaw and Crompton comic book dealer, was charged with murder and made his first court appearance on 7 November 2006 where he was remanded in custody. At a court hearing on 19 April 2007, Castree pleaded not guilty. On 23 April 2007 he was refused bail. A DNA sample from Castree, taken on 1 October 2005 when he was arrested but not charged in connection with another sex attack, was a direct match with a semen sample found on her underwear, when run through the national DNA Database. Originally from the Turf Hill estate of Rochdale, Castree lived in nearby Shaw and Crompton and was a taxi driver]for many years. He was unpopular with his neighbours, who said he had a very nasty temper. His former wife said 'he was foul with his mouth, and foul with his fists'. Two weeks before Castree killed Lesley, his wife had given birth to a son. Castree was not the baby's biological father; his wife had had an affair. On 3 October 1975, Castree's wife went back into hospital with deep vein thrombosis, leaving Castree home alone on the day of the murder. She remained there for the following week. The birth of the illegitimate child may have been a trigger for Castree's murder of Lesley. Castree and his wife had two more children together, but they split in 1996 and divorced a year later. On 3 July 1976, Castree abducted and sexually assaulted a nine-year-old girl. On 12 July, he pleaded guilty and was fined £25 on both counts against him, which were indecent assault and incitement to commit an act of gross indecency. On 17 July 1978, Castree was fined £50 after indecently assaulting a seven-year-old boy. Trial and conviction Castree's trial began at Bradford Crown Court on 22 October 2007. During the trial, a scientist told a jury how DNA taken from the underwear of Lesley was linked to Castree. Forensic expert Gemma Escott explained to Bradford Crown Court the chances of the semen samples belonging to anyone other than Castree were one in a billion. Castree was found guilty on 12 November 2007. He was sentenced to