Coronation Street Joel Deering murder suspects revealed - including those 'missed'

A new mystery is haunting the cobbles as Coronation Street residents and viewers wonder who killed Joel Deering. And many characters have a motive for doing the deed.

Coronation Street viewers have been eager to figure out who killed Joel Deering after the villain's body was found in the canal in recent scenes of the ITV soap.

The duty solicitor portrayed by Calum Lill has made a multitude of enemies on Coronation Street, starting with Lauren Bolton (played by Cait Fitton) and his ex-fiancee Dee-Dee Bailey (Channique Sterling-Brown), who became an advocate for the wayward teen and and helped DS Lisa Swain (Vicky Myers) get the evidence needed to send him behind bars.

But as Joel's vile behaviour continued, leading him to try to kill his own unborn son Frankie, a plethora of residents have grown to resent him, making the list of suspects for the crime, from the most to the least unlikely, seemingly endless.

Dee-Dee Bailey

The beloved solicitor is at the top of our list of suspects as she was thrown into a fury when she found out her beau was not who she once believed he was. After putting two and two together, Dee-Dee was adamant on helping Lauren earn the peace and justice she deserved.

But more importantly, Dee-Dee was eager to see Joel receive comeuppance for his dreadful actions as revenge for betraying her and sabotaging their engagement. Moreover, a recent flashback scene showed Dee-Dee with a crowbar, the alleged murder weapon.

With more than enough reason to go after Joel, Dee-Dee could have tried to square up to her former fiancé, before lashing out against him in a blinded rage to make him pay for his infidelity, leading up to his death. But Dee-Dee hasn't been the only one happy to see Joel go down.

DS Lisa Swain

Lisa was furiously confronted by her own daughter Betsy (Sydney Martin) this week, after the teenager believed her mother was keeping secrets and this was enough for her to spiral, accusing her mother of murder during a brief showdown at the Underworld factory.

In recent months, Lisa has been chasing the evidence against Joel as a detective but with Betsy's connection to Joel coming to light, her professional approach to the investigation on Joel could have turned personal as she may have decided to get rid of the villain herself to keep her daughter.

This week, Lisa was also seen in a flashback scene, facing a running car the same way her later partner Becky once did before being killed on the job. A series of nasty bruises have also highlighted the possibility Lisa may have been embroiled in a brutal confrontation with Joel on September 27, suggesting she was more than capable of murdering him herself.

Betsy Swain

Much like her mother, Betsy is also worthy of being mentioned as a suspect for Joel Deering's murder, due to her own involvement with the duty solicitor. Betsy previously revealed she had helped Joel get his hands on the pills given to Lauren to kill off Frankie and, after a tearful confession, she was rushed to the police station to give an incriminating statement against Joel.

Prior to this, Betsy was happy to blackmail Joel for money, after realising he was attracted to younger girls, but she backed down in fear after facing his wrath and exasperation.

With Joel trying to escape justice, he could have tried to settle an old score with Betsy, particularly due to her statement to the police, which resulted in his arrest. This may have led to a brutal off-screen showdown between him and Betsy and he could have lost his life during the struggle.

Lauren Bolton

While Betsy may have experienced his anger, she was lucky enough to not face the same fate as Lauren Bolton. Vulnerable and lonely, the teen became the perfect target for Joel, who was working as a duty solicitor at Weatherfield Police Station when the pair first met.

After luring her into a cage with promises of financial stability and help, Joel's predilection for young women took over as he forced Lauren to do whatever he wanted, abusing her behind closed door as her friends speculated she was under the grasp of a demanding O-Vidz client.

As viewers will remember, Lauren eventually went missing after she was spotted with bruises of her own on her body and traces of blood in her flat led DS Swain to think she could have been murdered.

The wayward teen then returned to the cobbles in a shock twist, confirming she was alive and well as she paid Roy Cropper a visit - but she was also pregnant with Joel's baby. After finding out she was carrying his child, Joel knew it was only a matter of time before his engagement with Dee-Dee would go down the drain as the unborn baby was the main proof Lauren needed to confirm Joel was once sexually involved with her.

Determined to cover his tracks, and as mentioned, Joel was able to get his hands on abortion pills with Betsy's help, as he planned to get rid of both Lauren and Frankie in cold blood - and this could have sealed his own fate with the young mother's anger overwhelming her to the point of murder.

Ellie Benton

Lauren was not the only girl to have silently endured Joel's predatory behaviour. Last year, the villain was working at Walcott's Solicitors and used his job to get closer to another girl named Ellie (Lola Blue), who was also once presumed dead.

Ellie first appeared on the Manchester-based programme with Nicky Wheatley (Kimberly Hart-Simpson) and, terrified, told Bethany Platt (Lucy Fallon) that Nathan Curtis had been abusing her. This was later revealed to be a lie when she was seen receiving a visit from Joel.

Once he overheard that the police were planning to speak to Ellie, Joel threatened her to stay quiet and many viewers of the soap opera feared she could have been killed. In September, however, Ellie returned to Weatherfield, facing Lauren for the first time to tell her she had gone through the same torment Joel had inflicted upon her.

To make matters worse, Ellie was forced to sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) by Wallcott's when Joel's bosses found out about his behaviour. While the case against Joel was eventually reopened, Ellie hasn't been seen since then - could she have been lurking in the shadows, waiting for the right moment to strike?

Christopher 'Kit' Green

Fans of the long-running show have been keeping a close eye on Kit Green (Jacob Roberts), who was first introduced to them in May, 2024, as Bernie Winter's (Jane Hazlegrove) youngest son, whom she gave up when he was baby.

After unexpectedly reconnecting with his long-lost mother, Kit has been working as a detective on the cobbles and once even planted evidence against Nathan Curtis, as he has the habit of playing fast and loose with the rules - but this allowed Joel to escape justice for a long time.

Joel eventually found out Kit had tricked the authorities into believing Nathan Curtis was responsible for the then-supposed murder of Lauren Bolton, making Kit have a strong motive for killing him. To top it all off, a red car was apparently spotted near Joel's home on the night of his death - the same kind of vehicle Kit was seen driving in recent scenes of the long-running show.

Multiple viewers believe that Kit may be responsible for Joel's death and took to social media to share their thoughts. "Kit killed Joel, he drives a red car just saying", one of them wrote as another echoed: "Did Kit have that red car before????"

Ronnie and Ed Bailey

The pair of brothers were among the first few suspects to be pointed out for Joel's murder and a flashback scene confirmed they had made plans to confront Joel at his home, out of love for their niece and daughter Dee-Dee.

While Ed (Trevor Michael Georges) is known to be a protective father to his children, Ronnie (Vinta Morgan) is a notorious tough man on the cobbles and has proven on numerous occasions that he isn't one to back down from a dodgy deal.

Much like Dee-Dee, the pair have enough of a motive to kill Joel but have yet to be proven guilty due to Dee-Dee's own potential involvement in Joel's death. Could they have followed through with their second-hand anger?

Bobby Crawford

Prior to Lauren's disappearance, Bobby Crawford (Jack Carroll) was happy to be getting closer to her, despite her apparent overbearing "boyfriend." The pair even kissed before Lauren mysteriously vanished from Weatherfield.

Bobby, who was then hopelessly in love with Lauren and keen to get to know her, moved heaven and earth for the police to look into her disappearance, figuring out that her empty flat offered more questions than answers.

The lad, who was introduced as the son of murderous Rob Donovan in the wake of Peter Barlow's departure from Corrie, was one of the first to support and fight for Lauren. But could he have followed in his father's footsteps?

Max Turner

Much like Bobby, Max Turner (Paddy Bever) could have enough of a motive to kill Joel due to his connection to Lauren, which has recently become romantic, leaving Bobby heartbroken. Max, who was sentenced to six months in prison, may have also resorted to his old antics to get rid of Joel.

In a recent scene, Max was also in the company of Lauren when the pair heard a loud noise outside of David Platt's (Jack P Shepherd) home, on the night of Joel's murder.

At the time, Lauren had quickly run back to the family home, while Max hung around, determined to find the cause of the jarring noise. Could Max have gone back out in middle of the night to find Joel and make sure he never hurt Lauren again?

Carla Connor

Unlike Lauren, Betsy or Ellie, Carla (Alison King) has no personal motive to attack of even kill Joel, but her association to Lisa may have been enough for her to commit the crime.

Though she has had her fair share of public brawls and heated fights, Carla has never committed a single murder during her long stint on the cobbles but on Wednesday (October 30), she was named as a suspect for the murder of Joel Deering for the first time.

In this scene, Carla was spotted walking out of the Underworld factory on the night of Joel's death, before an unidentified person caught her eye. Viewers have had a hard time to believe she could be responsible but many of them are certain she may know more than she lets on.

Mason Radcliffe

Initially introduced as Liam Connor's bully, Mason (Luca Toolan) has been focused on his redemption arc in recent weeks with the help of Stu Carpenter (Bill Fellows), who left the cobbles, and Yasmeen Nazir (Shelley King).

While the former homeless man was ready to believe in Mason, Yasmeen was more reluctant to the teen's former antics. Following Joel's murder, Mason was caught by Kit trying to dispose of a crowbar by throwing it in the bin.

Mason, who was then brought to the police station and grilled over what he knew about Joel's death, insisted his brother had demanded he get involved in a robbery but, firmly opposed to it, the lad explained he'd then decided not to take part in the crime and got rid of the crowbar. Could he have been lying and could he have murdered Joel for Betsy?

Roy Cropper

No viewer believed Roy (David Neilson) was capable of murder the first time he was targeted with accusations, shortly after Lauren's disappearance. But could that be the perfect cover for the beloved café owner?

After being released from prison, where he had been thrown when DS Swain became convinced he wasn't as kind as he appeared, Roy tried to return to a normal life and welcomed Lauren back with open arms upon her own return with baby Frankie.

In more recent scenes, Joel paid Roy a visit to apologise for letting him get the blame for Lauren's disappearance and a shocked Roy was found on the floor, unable to cope with the stress, by his pal Carla. Roy may be a fan favourite, but his fiercely protective nature could have pushed him to end Joel once and for all, even by accident. Does Roy have the potential to be a murderer?

Michael Bailey

With his mother Aggie Bailey gone from the cobbles, Michael (Ryan Russell) is the only member of his family that has not yet been suspected of murdering Joel - but he has just as much of a reason as his father and uncle.

Michael has recently been standing on the side-lines, away from all the drama, as his sister tried to recover from Joel's betrayal and misdeeds. But as viewers were brought to focus their attention on the rest of the Baileys, Michael could have decided to take action for his sister.

In a new theory, Michael could have gone after Joel in an attempt to get answers from him about his poor treatment of Dee-Dee. This could have resulted in the pair of men lashing out at one another, before ending in tragedy.

Emily Wilkinson

One character was forgotten from the equation in the aftermath of Joel's death but could his ex-wife Emily Wilkinson (Ellena Vincent) be the real murderer? As regular Corrie fans will remember, Emily made her first appearance on the show on February 9, 2024, when she was introduced as Joel's ex-wife and the mother of his daughter Maeve.

Emily and Joel split when he cheated on her with another woman and, following their separation, he embarked on his relationship with Dee-Dee, neglecting to tell the latter he was married and a father.

After finding this out, Dee-Dee called time on their relationship, believing she was unable to trust him. However, she soon became friendly with Emily, particularly after Lauren resurfaced, as the pair compared notes over Joel.

Dee-Dee was then forced to tell Emily everything he had done, which resulted in her restricting Joel's access to their daughter. Joel could have tried to confront his ex-wife over the matter, before the conversation spiralled and Emily ended the discord altogether. But is she really capable of putting herself in a position to lose Maeve?

Gus Deering

Chris Garner aka Gus Deering was introduced to Coronation Street viewers as Joel's father while the duty solicitor was trying to enjoy his first family dinner with Dee-Dee. He has since been a firm advocate for his son, believing him to be innocent of the crimes he'd been accused of.

Gus was recently seen in a confrontation with Dee-Dee at Weatherfield Police Station and Gus fumed at Dee-Dee, calling her out for suggesting his son had faked his death as he struggled with the claim by police that Joel had taken his own life. He'd revealed the last time he saw Joel was two days before he vanished, with him keen for answers from detectives including DS Swain.

He then told Dee-Dee that in his last conversation with his missing son he was distraught about everything, and that he "talked about ending it all". He then berated Dee-Dee over her claims about Joel, saying: "My son was suicidal. He could be lying dead somewhere." But could this have been a hint he'd gotten rid of Joel himself, unable to handle who he had turned into?

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