BBC3 has reportedly commissioned a new crime documentary about the death and disappearance of Gaia Pope.
Gaia Pope is the subject of an upcoming BBC3 documentary
The 19-year-old girl was found dead in November 2017 - 11 days after she went missing in Swanage, Dorset - and her body was discovered in undergrowth near clifftops after a major search operation was underway.
A post-mortem conducted on the corpse revealed she died of hypothermia, while an inquest concluded there were massive failings in the police force leading up to her disappearance.
The jury at Dorset’s Coroner’s Court came to a unanimous decision that failure to provide Gaia with proper follow up care after she was discharged from hospital weeks before her disappearance was a contributing factor to her death.
Miss Pope suffered a mental health crisis and was diagnosed with post traumatic-stress after she was drugged and raped by a man at 16, which was not pursued properly when reported to the police.
Close relatives believe that if she had initially been “treated with kindness and dignity” she would still be alive today.
Gaia was sectioned in hospital in February 2017 after developing psychosis. She was further assessed in October before being discharged without support.
The jury heard how on the day of Miss Pope’s disappearance she suffered a bout of anxiety after she was told her rapist was being released from jail.
As friends and family are appealing for justice, BBC are hoping the documentary will be an important part of the campaign.
A source told The Sun newspaper's TV Biz column: “The police have since apologised for their failings, but the work goes on and a documentary will help throw a spotlight on these holes in British policing that must be plugged.
“This is kind of informative, campaign work is what the Beeb does best.”
They added: “It’s a sad, sad tale but one that needs telling.
“Gaia’s story epitomises all that is wrong with the British policing and cuts to the heart of why public confidence in it has never been so low.
“Like Zara McDermott’s hit documentaries, the one-off feature about Gaia and her family’s campaign for truth and justice should really make a mark on viewers.”
The documentary is being made by the same team who worked on Zara McDermott’s 'Revenge Porn' and James Arthurs’ ‘Out of Our Minds’, and will be broadcast later this year.
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