Outraged Shannon Matthews documentary viewers still ‘can’t comprehend’ how ‘disturbing’ mum could kidnap own daughter
OUTRAGED viewers who watched a Channel 5 Shannon Matthews documentary have blasted her "disturbing" mum Karen.
Furious Brits took to social media to voice their disgust at the twisted mother, who was jailed for a kidnap plot after nine-year-old Shannon vanished in 2008.
She was found almost a month later after being hidden in a bed base in a grotty flat by Karen and Michael Donovan.
Last night's Channel 5 documentary The Disappearance of Shannon Matthews revisited how the desperate search for the missing girl unfolded, leaving TV viewers unable to "comprehend" Karen Matthews' actions.
One said: "Shocking story of on Channel 5.
'HIDEOUS BETRAYAL'
"How a parent could do that to not just their child, but all the volunteers and media and police. Absolutely vile human beings."
Another wrote: "What mother worth her salt would ever let themselves think this was a good idea...and for what? Money?!"
A third wrote: "These hideous betrayals of trust always stay in the minds of so many."
And one posted: "The sheer amount of money and resources that went into the search for Shannon was unbelievable!
"Still hard to comprehend what sort of mother would do this."
Karen Matthews, along with Donovan, her partner's uncle, cooked up the evil plot to make cash from the publicity when Shannon vanished.
They dreamt up the twisted scheme less than a year after Madeleine McCann's disappearance became international news.
After a vast £3.2million manhunt, cops found Shannon drugged and hidden in the base of a divan bed at Donovan's flat.
Two hero cops this week revealed how they discovered nine-year-old Shannon.
Detective Constables Nick Townsend and Paul Kettlewell told the new Channel 5 documentary they have “bonded like brothers” since finding Shannon.
Nick, 61, was one of the first on the scene.
The two cops sobbed with relief after Shannon was safe.
Paul, 68, said: "I was elated. I couldn’t believe we’d found her and she was alive.
"As we went down the stairs it was like carrying my own child.
"I passed Nick on the stairs and said, ‘I’ve got her!’ I still get emotional about that moment now.”
Nick added: “Nobody ever thought we’d see Shannon Matthews alive again, so to see her in the arms of PK…
“It’s hard to describe the emotion. You just want to cheer. I can’t describe anything other than euphoric.”
Hundreds of neighbours and friends joined the mission to find Shannon, with her mum Matthews seen sobbing on TV as she pleaded for her daughter to come home.
I was elated. I couldn’t believe we’d found her and she was alive
DC Nick Townseand
She was found tethered and drugged almost a month after she disappeared.
Matthews had drugged her daughter and hidden her in a divan bed in a callous bid to claim the £50,000 reward.
Nick and Paul cracked the case after visiting Dononvan's flat on day 23 of the investigation.
Downstairs neighbour June Batley told officers she had heard "tiny footsteps".
Nick said: “That’s when my spidey senses really started tingling. I couldn’t believe what I had heard.”
The officers called for back-up and used a door rammer to smash their way into the flat.
Paul recalled: “There was a deathly silence, then I heard a little girl’s voice."
An elasticated strap with a noose on the end was found in the loft and used as a method of restraint when Donovan went out.
With it around her waist, Shannon would have been able to use the toilet and certain rooms, but not get out of the flat.
KIDNAP PLOT
Matthews was going out with Donovan’s nephew Craig Meehan at the time.
They had planned to release the schoolgirl, "discover her", then take her to a police station and claim the £50,000 reward before splitting the cash.
Matthews broke down and admitted to the cruel plot when questioned by her friends in front of a police liaison officer.
On December 4, 2008, mum-of-seven Karen and Donovan were found guilty of kidnapping, false imprisonment and perverting the course of justice.
Both were sentenced at Leeds Crown Court to eight years behind bars.
Meehan was jailed for 20 weeks after unrelated child sex abuse material was discovered on his computer.
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Matthews, who has been dubbed Britain’s Most Hated Mum, was released from prison in 2012 after serving just half her sentence.
She has since found love with a convicted paedophile and is living a new life under a different name.