A 63-year-old man will appear in court on Monday charged with the three-decade-old murder of teenager Melanie Road, who was stabbed to death after a night out in Bath.
Christopher John Hampton, of Fishponds, Bristol, is to appear at Bath magistrates court, Avon and Somerset police said.
Melanie, 17, was sexually assaulted and stabbed multiple times in her chest and back during the early hours of 9 June 1984.
Senior investigating officer DI Julie Mackay said: “We’ve been keeping Melanie’s family fully updated on the progress of this investigation and they’re aware of this latest development.”
Last year, detectives began DNA-testing hundreds of men who had been in the city at the time of Melanie’s death.
The teenager was attacked while walking the 15-to-20-minute journey home following a night out with friends in Bath.
Her body was discovered at 5.30am by a milkman and his 10-year-old son, close to a block of garages, a short distance from her home.
The teenager had been out for the evening with her boyfriend and other friends to Beau Nash nightclub. Melanie left the club at 1.30am and was last seen alive by her friends a short time later in Broad Street in the centre of Bath.
Last year, Melanie’s mother Jean, sister Karen and best friend Susie Lecomber spoke about the impact the murder has had on them.
Mrs Road wrote an open letter to coincide with the 30th anniversary of her daughter’s death, appealing for anyone with information to come forward.
The 80-year-old wrote: “We mourn for our daughter and sister Melanie every minute, hour of the day and night.”
Melanie’s sister, Karen Road, added: “As much as this was 30 years ago, for me, it’s every day and it never gets easier, and I can’t move on. The pain remains as strong today as it did when Melanie died.”
Melanie’s best friend, Susie Lecomber, now a mother-of-two who works as an osteopath, said: “I would desperately like to be able to stop thinking about her death and think more about when she was alive and the friendship we had.”
