Top: Victim Julie Pacey Bottom: 1994 police artist's impression of 'Overalls Man', the man believed to have murdered Pacey. At the time he was described as about 35, chubby, with a notably red face and with rough hands. He would likely be in his 60s as of 2023 | |
| Date | 26 September 1994 |
|---|---|
| Time | Between 3:20 pm and 4:15 pm |
| Location | 30 Longcliffe Road, Grantham, England[1] |
| Coordinates | 52°55′41″N 0°38′15″W / 52.92818°N 0.63757°W |
| Cause | Strangulation |
| Motive | Not fully known,[2] although victim was sexually assaulted |
The murder of Julie Pacey (1955/1956 – 26 September 1994) was a mysterious, and still unsolved, murder of a mother in her own home in Grantham, England on Monday 26 September 1994. 38-year-old 'vivacious mum' Pacey was found strangled to death with a cord in her first-floor bathroom by her 14-year-old daughter on her return home from school. A mysterious figure who became known as the 'Overalls Man', and who remains the prime suspect, was seen by numerous witnesses in the vicinity of Pacey's home in the days around the murder, and this red-faced man had suspiciously turned up at Pacey's home when she was alone three days previously, supposedly asking for directions. Although she had been sexually assaulted, investigators still do not know why she was apparently targeted in what appeared to be a pre-planned attack. The case has twice featured on Crimewatch, on which Pacey's murder was described as a "truly dreadful case".
As well as the mystery surrounding 'Overalls Man', the case is notable for a number of 'bizarre' matters associated with it. Even though Pacey's family car was an Audi, she was witnessed by multiple people in an unknown BMW in the days leading up to the murder, despite her family being adamant she would not have had access to one. A BMW was also reported to have been seen parked on her driveway on occasions, including on the day of the murder, and a BMW was also seen speeding away from the scene after the killing. These sightings of cars have never been explained. In another 'bizarre twist' that was reported on nationally, the (innocent) actor who played the role of the killer in the Crimewatch reconstruction was sensationally investigated as a suspect in September 2015 after the 1994 appeal was re-shown, with some viewers who had watched the appeal mistakenly calling in to state that they recognised him as the killer.
Publicity on the case had returned in 2015 after it was revealed that a full DNA profile of the killer had been identified in what was described as a "landmark forensic breakthrough", although with the killer's DNA not matching any on the UK National DNA Database, police continue to appeal to the public to come forward to provide a name that can be investigated to be eliminated. Pacey's murder has been described as one of the region's "most mysterious crimes".[3]