Shannon Matthews' kidnapper now from prison pen pal to 'bizarre' public sighting
Michael Donovan kept nine-year-old Shannon Matthews sedated under his bed in a hoax abduction that sickened the nation.
The warped kidnapper insisted he was only "looking after" the terrified schoolgirl but he had in fact plotted, along with her twisted mother, Karen, to claim the staggering reward money for her safe return.
Shannon's neighbours in Dewsbury went into a frenzy trying to find her after she was reported missing, while her disappearance sparked one of the UK's biggest manhunts, costing West Yorkshire Police £3.2million. Shannon disappeared on her way home from a swimming lesson at Westmoor Primary School, Dewsbury, in 2008.
She was discovered 24 days later, hidden under Donovan's bed in Batley Carr. Donovan and Karen Matthews were jailed for eight years in 2009. He was found guilty of kidnapping, false imprisonment and perverting the course of justice for his role in the stunt.
Michael Donovan was found guilty of the kidnap and false imprisonment of Shannon Matthews (PA)
Karen Matthews was also sentenced to eight years in 2009 (MDM)Channel 5 documentary, The Man Who Took Shannon Matthews, airs this evening and hears from family members, neighbours and professionals who knew Michael Donovan. Using dramatic reconstruction, it tells the story of the man who abducted the young schoolgirl and kept her in his flat for almost a month - until a dramatic rescue by police.
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But what happened to Donovan? In the documentary, the kidnapper's sister, who wished not to be named, alleges her "check out my brother" pleas were ignored by police at the beginning of the costly search for Shannon. The police denied her claims.
She said: "The day Shannon went missing, I was listening to the radio and it said a child's gone missing, named her. I knew he had her."
"I called the police and said, 'Check out my brother, please'. I got no response whatsoever from them… they didn't care or believe me." His sister was referring to Donovan's own family.
Donovan is known to have learning difficulties and an IQ less than half the average. During psychiatric treatment, he met his wife Susan Bird, whom he had two daughters with, reports The Sun.
They claim the children were taken off them and put into care, and when he failed to get them back during legal proceedings, he picked up his daughter from school and took her to Blackpool. He was accused of kidnapping then, but the case was dropped, the paper added.
Shannon Matthews was found drugged under Donavan's bed (PA)Shannon was eventually found after a relative told officers visiting his home: "You want to go see Mick Donovan… he's related to Craig Meehan [Karen's ex]." The next day police found Donovan cowering under his bed with Shannon.
She had been tethered by a lead to a roof beam with an elastic strap to stop her from escaping. She was also drugged with Temazepam and travel sickness pills to "subdue her" and given a list of rules to follow when Donovan went out.
It was revealed he had plotted with Karen in a bid to claim a £50,000 reward. They had planned to release her and 'discover her', before handing her into the police station and accepting the reward. They had agreed to split the sum.
Yet he wrote from behind bars that his ex-lover Matthews – then living with his nephew Craig Meehan – "knew I was looking after her…" He added: "There's always two sides to the story and if only I could say my side then people will understand why I had to look after Shannon."
The Sunday Mirror revealed the letters were sent - while he was on remand - to a female pen pal he never met. They were published as a new picture emerged of the kidnapper in September 2012 following his release from HMP Leeds after serving half his sentence. The MoJ said his full sentence expired in 2016.
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A base of a bed shown as evidence by the prosecution in the kidnap and false imprisonment trial of Karen Matthews (PA)In one of the letters from behind bars, shared with Sunday Mirror, before his 2012 release, he penned: "I am trying to cope in prison, but other things are getting me down. I'm on a safe wing. I only get out once a day."
He also said his solicitor was making a bail application for him at a private hostel "so no-one will know where I am living. But I will let you know about this first." He added: "Please don't get worried, I will not let anyone know about you and me.
"If I do get bail I would like to meet up with you and take you out for a meal and stroll in the park. I would like to take you out to Blackpool and Scarborough for a day. I am really missing someone like you and I hope one day I would like to be with you.
"My family don't want to know me. I am glad I have you now." Elsewhere, he spoke about education classes he was taking. "They do drawing, writing, maths and IT computer course. It’s something for me to do, but it’s not like the real thing on the outside," he wrote.
He was later snapped outside a coffee shop and was then allegedly seen acting 'bizarrely' on a bench in Leeds marketplace. He had been spending six hours a day there and police picked him up after a request from parole officials. In 2022 his family, who have disowned him, said he had been locked up again and moved to a psychiatric facility.
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