THE FORMER girlfriend of a double child murderer said she fell in love with a monster who forced her to lie in court to protect him.

Russell Bishop was acquitted in 1987 of the Babes in the Wood murders in Brighton after former partner Jenny Johnson lied under oath.

He was released and attacked another young girl from Whitehawk in 1990 and was then jailed for life.

New forensic techniques led to his conviction in 2018 over the murders of nine-year-olds Nicola Fellows and Karen Hadaway at Wild Park.

Sussex Police interviewed Johnson in 2019.

Johnson, who had three children with Bishop, now admits lying in court to protect Bishop at his first trial in 1987.

The 55-year-old is on trial at Lewes Crown Court accused of perverting the course of justice.

She told police she knew Bishop would kill her if he ever got out of prison.

“It’s a nightmare and I’m still living it,” Johnson told police after Bishop was given a second life sentence following his retrial in 2018.

“He’s a monster,” Johnson said in a police interview. “I lived my life in fear. I’m still living my life in fear. I met a monster, I didn’t even know but I was young. Young, naive and weak.

“This nightmare will never end, it will never end. They should’ve brought back hanging.”

The Argus: The scene in Wild Park in 1986 when the girls' bodies were foundThe scene in Wild Park in 1986 when the girls' bodies were found

Johnson told police Bishop blamed her for his arrest in 1986 and his conviction in 1990.

“I put him inside and he said he would come after me and kill me.

“I used to be petrified. I knew he was coming after me. The day I heard he was never coming out, I thought this is when my life starts.

“I know he used to batter me but I didn’t and I still don’t understand how he could do what he done.

“He controlled me but you couldn’t say it in those days. Police just said it was domestic.”

The Argus: The blue Pinto sweatshirt linked Bishop to the crime sceneThe blue Pinto sweatshirt linked Bishop to the crime scene

Bishop told her to lie about a blue Pinto sweatshirt which linked him to the Babes in the Wood murder scene at his trial in 1987, Johnson said.

“He told me to say it wasn’t his. I had no choice back then. That’s all he said. I knew what the consequences would be. I put him in there, that’s what he used to say, because I said it was his Pinto. He always said he would come out and get me.

“I had to survive to save my own children. No-one has lived my life. No-one has lived my hell. My life is a disaster because I met the wrong person when I was young.”

A jury at Lewes Crown Court heard Ms Johnson wrote to Bishop in prison while he was on remand waiting to be tried for the attack on a young girl in 1990.

In a February 1990 letter to Bishop before his trial, Johnson wrote: “Can’t wait till you are home, darling.

“I miss you in bed and your snoring. I’m not going to leave you and I love you very much.

“Can we get married quite soon?”

The Argus: Babes in the Wood killer Russell Bishop pictured in the 1980sBabes in the Wood killer Russell Bishop pictured in the 1980s

Three days later, Johnson wrote: “I’ve been thinking how nasty you’ve been to me and all the nasty things you’ve done to me. We will get married as soon as possible. I’m sorry for what I’ve put you through. I’m waiting for you. Love you darling.”

In an April letter the same year, Johnson wrote: “We have not got a sex life no more.

“Everyone knows what we do, so we might as well not do it no more.

“If they ask me about my sex life in court, I’ll tell them where to go.

“I’ve not got a life no more.

“When I come to see you it’s just a front because I know you are happy.”

The Argus: Lewes Crown CourtLewes Crown Court

In a second April letter, Johnson wrote: “You’ve hurt me. I miss you. Won’t be long now till we are together again. Really wish you were next to me.”

On May 24, Johnson wrote: “Great visit. What we do in our bedroom is our business.

“Please don’t tell the papers.”

Two days later, Johnson wrote: “Great to see you. Really missing your sexy body. I still love you. We’ll have a big party when you come home.”

On July 1, Johnson wrote to Bishop in prison saying: “I really want to have sex with you all night. You looked really good.”

In September, weeks before Bishop was jailed for life, Johnson wrote to tell him she would stand up for him in court.

Johnson supported Bishop in a civil action against Sussex Police.

The Argus: Nicola Fellows and Karen Hadaway were murdered in BrightonNicola Fellows and Karen Hadaway were murdered in Brighton (Image: The Argus)

He eventually dropped a claim for wrongful arrest and malicious prosecution in relation to the murders of Nicola Fellows and Karen Hadaway.

In her 2019 police interview, Johnson said: “If I made a mistake all them years ago, I thought I was freed from him.

“I still have the nightmares.

“Sorry if I did wrong in those days but I didn’t have a choice.

“Sorry, I really am sorry.

“Sorry for the parents and sorry for the kids but there was nobody out there to help me.

“I still fear for them and my grandkids.

“My life was hell and I’m still living it.

“I still get it now.”

Johnson said she had been brought up to believe if she made her bed, she had to lay in it.

“I don’t understand how I fell for someone like him,” she told police in interview.

“He was my first boyfriend.”

Bishop was violent and controlling throughout their relationship, Johnson said.

“The amount of battering I’ve had, I changed the statement to save my and my children’s lives.

“I didn’t have a choice.

“He ain’t a human being is he?

“He’s a monster.”

Johnson has admitted lying in court to protect him at his first trial in 1987.

But Johnson, of Saunders Park View, Brighton, denies perjury and perverting the course of justice.

The trial at Lewes Crown Court continues.

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