lollytruecrimeworld
Lolly True Crime World
Bringing you all things True Crime
13 posts
Don't wanna be here? Send us removal request.
Last Seen Blogs
Text
Gloucestershire Unsolved
Why Are These Cases Cold & Forgotten
Twenty days ago we began the arduous task of a deep-dive review of four unsolved murder cases in Cheltenham, Stroud, Coleford and Stonehouse.
The first of these murders that need our attention is that of Constance “Little Granny” Aris.
On February 28th 1985, the pensioner in her 70s was found by her son Keith and daughter-in-law Vanessa in her armchair, she had been battered to death with what was believed to have been an axe, the TV was still on.
Connie had been out in the early evening of February 27th 1985 to attend a Friendly Society meeting at St Marks Community Centre in Cheltenham. Sometime between 6.30 pm that evening and 9 am on 28th February she was murdered.
Now one thing that we need to clarify is the date of the killing as the national database for deaths clearly shows Constance E E Aris of Cheltenham deceased in 1986.
This is the copy of the record taken from Findmypast.com
Death quarter 2, Registration Month 4
Death year 1986, District Cheltenham
Register number 486, County Gloucestershire
Volume 22, Page 1441
So this is something we are currently exploring and have contacted witnesses to further explore this. Obviously, I will report back when we have clarification.
Links to this investigation
Since we began to review this case we have identified two possible links to other unsolved killings, one in Bristol and one in Plymouth but we cannot go into any detail on this just at the moment, as enquiries are ongoing.
Carmel Gamble
The fire brigade attended the cottage after a fire was reported at the Rodborough address. As part of the search discovered the body of severely anorexic Carmel Gamble who was 43 years old.
The worrying thing was that she had not died as a result of the fire, she had been beaten to death with several severe blows to her skull. She had been badly mutilated and then piles of clothes set around the body and set alight using paraffin as an accelerant.
There has never been any sign of this case being solved despite evidence from a woman who came forward a few years later.
In the relatively few days since we began looking at these cases we have been able to speak to two people who recall the case and are willing to talk to us. We will bring an update as we get it.
Courtney Davies
This murder was pretty horrific with the victim being a well-known gangster. His badly burned body was found frozen by wildlife rangers Neil Sollis and Ray Beasley in High Meadow Woods near Coleford Gloucestershire, it was around 9 am December 21st 2004.
The post-mortem revealed that he had been stabbed some 70 times and his throat had been cut. There was a strong smell f petrol which may well have caused the woodland fire.
Courtney Davies was a well known criminal from Cardiff with convictions for drugs, firearms and violence. In 1986 he had been sent to prison for 15 years for a violent robbery of the home of a Welsh businessman. Davies had been released in 1994 having served eight years of the sentence.
This murder is believed to have been a gangland killing it is our early opinion that this is correct.
Police appealed for the drivers of a red Ford Escort, a white Lexus, amd a red & white motorcycle seen along the A4136 between 1050 pm and 1150 pm on the night of December 19th 2004 but to no avail.
DNA found on a cigarette butt led to some arrests and 32-year-old Malcolm Martin was put on trial at Bristol Crown Court, however, the trial collapsed before it could begin and Mr Martin who had been deaf and mute since the age of 12 when he had meningitis said the arrest ruined his life.
Gloucestershire Police say that there is really very little chance of a conviction but regardless of this man’s convictions, I feel that the case needs to be reviewed, not just written off.
Richard Miles
The last case I want to bring to you as we review is that of 29-year-old Richard Miles who was stabbed to death in the back garden of his home in Newtown Near Stonehouse Gloucestershire on March 10th 1993.
He was by all accounts a well liked man and there seems to have been no explanation for the stabbing.
Over 40 police officers were drafted in to work on the case, stopping 1,140 cars and questioning 277 people that had passed through the area on the day of the killing but to no avail.
Three men were arrested in November 2013 in connection with the case, two on suspicion of murder and the third on suspicion of perverting the course of justice, they were released on bail pending further enquiries but nothing has ever come of it and the case was discontinued.
Several mystery persons have never been identified including an ‘attractive woman’ pushing a buggy near Richard’s home on the day of the killing despite police interviewing mums at Eastington Nursery School and two men seen in a nearby field.
Mr Miles was a chronic cannabis smoker but police said at the time there was no evidence to suggest any link between his drug taking and his death. It is possible that this could have been the link but I somehow doubt it as he worked full time and had no other debts so it is unlikely he would have had a ‘drugs debt’.
Richard’s mother was the person who found her son’s lifeless body with a knife buried in his chest and his father said that she will never recover from that day.
Why was this man killed? He worked full time as a panel beater and police were unable to find anyone who even had a bad word to say about him so what caused his murder? Hopefully we can start to get some answers to these questions, as despite the passage of time someone out there knows what happened and who was responsible.
Ongoing Enquiries
We are spending time speaking to people in each area, taking photographs and video footage as well as making enquiries into the victim’s lifestyles and backgrounds.
We will keep updating this blog or post new ones as time passes and the investigations continue, obviously if we find evidence that could lead to a conviction the information will be passed immediately to the police.
Look forward to bringing you more as we get it.
Please wish us luck and help us to fund our daily enquiries by clicking the link to Buy Me A Coffee
If you’d like to discuss the case or indeed any part of our work please do get in touch.
Email:
or
9 notes
·
View notes
Text
Missing too long — a life of drugs & exploitation
Missing Carmel Fenech
Carmel grew up in North Peckham, a rough area of London, England.
Her father left home when she was just a small child less than 2 years old and she grew up with her mother as head of the household.
When Carmel was 14 years old she met a 40-year-old Jamaican man who introduced her to crack cocaine. She believed this man was her boyfriend and that he loved her. Sadly this was far from the truth, in fact, he exploited her along with several other vulnerable underage girls.
As a result of her involvement with class-A drugs, Carmel began to wander off from home spending nights and days in drug dens or with undesirable people. When she did return home to see her family and to wash the man would wait in his car mostly out of sight around the corner somewhere.
Carmel’s family begged her not to go with him but she really had become transfixed with him and just ignored her family, repeatedly leaving with him as if he were her boyfriend.
Malcolm was of course questioned by police at the time of Carmel’s disappearance but was not charged with anything, he denied any relationship at all
You can read about him in more recent years by clicking the link HERE this will demonstrate just what kind of nasty person he is.
Eventually, in desperation, Carmel’s mother Elaine made a difficult decision to move the entire family away from their relatives and friends in order to try to help Carmel get away from drugs and the gangs in which she had become embroiled. They made the move to Broadfield, Crawley, West Sussex just a year before Carmel disappeared.
Sadly the teenage addict still returned regularly to Peckham, Brixton, Luton, Watford, Croydon and Crawley.
There seems to be some discrepancy about the date that Carmel disappeared, the dates 1st May 1998 and 21st May 1998 but it seems pretty certain that the 16-year-old was last seen at Camberwell Green Magistrates Court on May 21st 1998.
Most media stories seem to indicate that she was in the company of a male when she left the court, but one of my colleagues says that in a recent conversation with Carmel’s mother, Elaine he was told that Carmel was alone and the male some reported seeing was a court officer releasing her from the court. This could be a very important point and one that I would like to have confirmation on, if anyone can clarify this please do let me know.
One point that has been made on forums is that it was a month after Carmel was last seen before she was reported missing. I do understand that Carmel’s mother had become used to her daughter going off for periods of time and she states this was the reason that she waited a while but having done what she did many times and trawled the streets looking for her daughter, Elaine eventually contacted the police and formerly reported Carmel missing.
Carmel had a lot of friends and was well-known in both Brixton and Peckham. Her friends were made up of a variety of drug users and non-users, but it seems the majority that she regularly associated with were addicts.
Carmel was mixed race, half Maltese and a very beautiful girl and is described as having a beautiful smile. She apparently spent a lot of time in the Turkish community on Meeting House Lane, especially the cafe.
It has been suggested that Carmel may well have been murdered but I am not so sure, I feel there is a lot to indicate that she may well be alive too. I have a feeling that she may well have been taken out of the area and made to work in the world of drugs and/or prostitution and has become wrapped in a new and probably dangerous life.
From some recent research, I have discovered that Carmel was known to frequent a flat in Loampit Lane, Lewisham and I would like to know more about this as it doesn’t seem that police have followed this up. In fact, the whole thing in respect of the police investigation is of concern. It seems that despite Carmel last being seen at Camberwell Green in southeast London it seems that a great deal of the investigation surrounding the disappearance has been investigated by Sussex Police.
I really do feel that the people that Carmel’s mum rightly believed were the people that the police needed to approach, there could well have been others who no one has ever spoken with that may hold a lot of answers in the case. I will say that if there does happen to be anyone reading this then please come forward and share anything that you have to tell.
Loyalties change, and time moves on, if you were scared or worried about telling the police something 25 years ago it doesn't mean you have to stay silent now. I know that Carmel’s mother has said that she feels her life has been ‘on hold’ ever since so, it is NOT too late, if you know something speak up and let's find out what happened to Carmel.
It is noteworthy here that Carmel had evident scars on her face, in particular the one on her forehead and although they may have faded they almost certainly will not have disappeared.
There have been quite recent reports of potential sightings of a homeless woman of a very similar appearance to Carmel in the above pictures, but the police do not seem to have followed up reports. The main sightings seem to be around London railway stations, particularly the smaller outskirts ones and some on the line between Brighton Sussex which runs through London and terminates in the town of Bedford, East Anglia. This is the Thameslink line I believe so do keep your eyes open.
I will leave this one there and hopefully be able to bring you updates as we investigate further. There are a small Facebook Page and group that have recently been set up if you’d like to speak to one of the people that run it, they are very keen to help to find out what happened to Carmel. Just click on the links above to visit them.
I will be back with another case very soon, this is one that I am very passionate about and keen to see solved, so you will be hearing more from me soon.
As my regular readers know I love to hear from you so do get in touch if you would like to discuss this case or any other.
Contact me
Email: [email protected]
Twitter: https://twitter.com/LollyTrueCrime
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LollyTrueCrime
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lollytruecrimeworld/?hl=en
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lolly-true-c-43937a201/
Buy me a coffee: buymeacoffee.com/?via=lollytruecK
10 notes
·
View notes
Text
The disappearance of Linda Millard
Is this case linked to gangland murders?
48-year-old Linda Millard was from Swanage in Dorset and had been staying with some friends in the Bristol area of the UK when she disappeared on March 1st 1996. She had last been seen by her friends at around 9.30 am and was reported missing at 10 pm on the same day.
Her car was found parked on a cliff top at Battery Point, Portishead near Bristol with her shoes and purse in the boot of her white Rover Metro car. Although at first look this may look like a suicide, even from the outset Avon & Somerset Police said that they could not rule out foul play.
In more recent times, a police report has come to light that suggests that there may be a serious link to a famous crime, The Rettendon Murders.
According to a police report, Linda had left her partner after a strange incident on 7 December 1995. The couple had been watching the evening news on TV the day after Craig Rolfe, Tony Tucker and Pat Tate, a gang of drug dealers known as ‘the Essex boys’, were murdered in Rettendon, close to Chelmsford.
The report says that when the news item finished, the couple’s home phone started to ring and Linda said that she was locked out of the lounge of her own home for four hours while her partner, whom we are not able to name for legal reasons, took various telephone calls.
Linda believed that her partner, who was originally from Essex was involved in funding drugs, counterfeit perfume and porn videos. She feared that he may have had some knowledge or even involvement in the Rettendon killings. She was so upset and worried by this that she left him.
Linda went to stay with other friends in Portishead and had dinner with her friend, Jo Hook on the evening before she disappeared, Before Linda arrived Jo’s dad explained to the family that “Linda needed to leave where she was and she was coming to stay with them while working out what she was going to do with her future.”
When Linda’s car was found on the headland at Battery Point, Portishead, Avon & Somerset Police quickly decided that Linda must have committed suicide but, Jo’s father and stepmother never believed that theory and instantly thought something was suspicious.
Patricia said “suicide is highly unlikely, just not possible. She was not suicidal. There was no suicide note, she just went missing.” Both Patricia and Richard Hook were interviewed by the police as witnesses and potential suspects but Jo, who was 19 at the time of the disappearance was never spoken to.
According to more recent police reports, Linda Millard said that her partner was involved in the funding of illegal drugs, counterfeit perfumes and pornography. She was so upset and disgusted by what she had discovered she knew that she simply had to get away from him and contacted her friend Patricia.
The police report indicates that Linda’s ex-partner was originally from Essex and had four of five houses each valued at more than half a million pounds yet he had no obvious means of income but was often jetting off abroad to Portugal, saying that he was going to “sort out business”. So what sort of “business” was he doing in Portugal? Drugs, pornography, we may never know.
It is believed that Linda’s ex-partner may well have found out where she was on February 28th and just two days later she vanished without a trace, so this almost certainly rules out suicide,
Avon & Somerset Police said: “We’re treating Linda Millard’s disappearance as a missing person inquiry however, we continue to keep an open mind about the circumstances of her disappearance and we cannot rule out foul play.
“The case has never been closed and several reviews have taken place in the time since the original investigation, with the most recent being carried out last year.
“As with all unsolved investigations, any new information will be assessed and if new lines of enquiry are identified they will be explored.”
The strange thing is that when it comes to anyone that may have been connected to the Rettendon murders, the police seem to grow deaf or blind and the men who were convicted of the murder, Jack Arthur Whomes and Michael John Steele remain with their names not cleared of the murders.
The Rettendon Murders — A brief overview
On December 6th 1995 three drug dealers, Tony Tucker aged 38, Patrick Tate aged 37 and Craig Rolfe aged 26 were shot dead in a black Range Rover in a farm track gateway in the village of Rettendon near Chelmsford, Essex UK. Their bodies were discovered by a local farmer Peter Theobald and his mate Ken Jiggins.
It is believed that there may be a possible connection between the murders and the death of 18-year-old Leah Betts who died after taking the drug MDMA followed by 7 litres of water in just over an hour and failed to urinate due to the effects of the drug in November 1995.
Was Linda’s ex-partner connected to the murder and ultimately the drug dealing that killed Leah Betts? Had Linda discovered things that he could not risk her talking about? It certainly seems likely that whatever Linda knew, her then-partner was not prepared to risk her telling the police or indeed anyone else,
Whatever happened, Linda’s family that is left behind deserve to know what happened to her and the men who may have been wrongly convicted of the Rettendon Murders need their names cleared and those that were responsible for the killings need to be dealt with.
I will leave it there and bring you another case very soon, Until then please leave me a comment below or get in touch via email or social media.
Email me:
Email my team:
Find me on social media:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/LollyTrueCrime
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LollyTrueCrime
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lollytruecrimeworld/?hl=en
4 notes
·
View notes
Text
Murder to even baffle Sherlock Holmes
The unexplained death of an Oxford University Doctor
It was Saturday 10th December 1994, and Dr Michael ‘Spike’ Meenaghan was settling down for the football results programme on TV. He stepped into his kitchen to make a cup of tea and was shot through the window.
The gunman had crept through the garden within about 10 feet of Michael’s kitchen window and fired a shot from a double-barrelled shotgun. Michael was hit in the chest and was severely wounded. He crawled to the phone and managed to dial 999 but could only groan.
The call handler at the emergency services traced the call and sent out police and an ambulance, sadly they were too late as they found Michael dead from his injuries and no sign of the perpetrator.
Dr Meenaghan worked at the Sir William Dunn School of Pathology, a department within Oxford University. The research programme there includes the cellular and molecular biology of pathogens, the immune response, cancer and cardiovascular disease. I will come back to this.
Glasgow-born Michael chose to live on a pretty rough housing estate and so although the shot was heard, no one came out to see what was going on and “no-one saw anything”.
When police began knocking on doors on the Blackbird Leys Estate in Oxford one witness recalled hearing what he described as the sound of “a light bulb exploding” whilst others said they thought it was “just a car backfiring”. Nobody saw anyone running away or indeed anyone carrying a gun, at least if they did they didn't tell the police.
The estate where Michael chose to live was not the best of places and had a pretty bad reputation with a period of severe unrest in 1991 when a mass of youths attacked police officers after Oxford Constabulary clamped down on car thieves and joy riders.
Michael liked it on the estate because he was of a working-class background originally and felt comfortable there. He was not a particularly house-proud man or anything he neglected the garden and had bed sheets hanging at all of the windows, except for the kitchen, in place of curtains.
Dr Meenaghan had a bit of confusing love life. He had been married and divorced, then lived with a girlfriend, Jenny who was a psychology student until the previous Easter. By all accounts, the relationship had not ended well after the police were called on more than one occasion, could this present a connection to the killing? It seems unlikely but every possible lead must be explored.
In the time leading up to his murder, Michael had been involved in a relationship with a lady named Denise and was in the process of trying to sell his house in order to move in with his new love. Jenny was married and had been expecting to meet Michael for a music gig at a local pub on the night of his murder. When he didn’t show up she drove to his home to find police officers there.
So let’s come back to Michael’s work for a moment:
So was Michael working on something or close to bringing forth a discovery that could have made a major change in science? Something that someone really didn’t want the world to know about?
It is interesting that Michael worked in a branch of medical research and another lady who was also a victim of a cruel murder, namely Janet Brown worked in a public health and primary care research unit at Oxford University. Her husband was in the pharmaceutical industry and worked in Switzerland, the couple were planning to move to live in Switzerland.
You can read about the Janet Brown murder in a well-researched blog by clicking HERE
This case was mentioned by a writer as “A murder to baffle even Morse’s mind”, it certainly is a very confusing matter but it is my opinion that this case firstly can still be solved and secondly I feel that by carefully re-examining the evidence a whole “can of worms” would be opened for sure.
I always say that I would love to hear from you but, more so than ever in this case. I am sure I have some sleuths and of coursed qualified readers and I would truly value your opinion on this one so please leave me a comment or write me an email.
This is one case that I hope the team and I can take forward to a documentary so any input would be greatly appreciated.
Email me:
Email the team:
7 notes
·
View notes
Text
The Beast of Farley Mount
A violent predator never identified
The “Farley Mount Rapist” is an unidentified English serial rapist who has committed at least 5 sex attacks at gunpoint on women in Winchester between 1991 and 1998 that we know of. This is Hampshire’s longest-running unsolved serial rape investigation, codenamed Operation Kayak. He has now eluded capture for 30 years.
The dark, unknown perpetrator was nick-named by the press due to all of his violent attacks taking place around Farley Mount, a beauty spot with an unusual monument on a mound in the middle of the Hampshire countryside.
Farley Mount is a popular area with dog walkers and naturalists. After hours of darkness, it is now a popular ‘dogging’ site. In the 1990’s it was a popular area frequented by courting lovers and it was them that were subjected to horrendous attacks by the depraved individual, who to date has never been identified.
Unsuspecting lovers would park in the car park and be subjected to frighteningly vicious attacks by a maniac armed with a gun when they least expected it.
The evil perpetrator always struck at night under the cover of darkness, where he would target couples in cars on isolated, quiet country roads. He would begin the attacks by acting as if he intended to rob them at gunpoint, then having gained entry to a car he tied up his victims, and forced the male into the boot of the car.
He then proceeded to abduct the female in his S registered long wheel-based Land Rover drive them away and rape them before dumping them somewhere isolated.
There is no obvious preference in age groups targeted by the monster, just that he always attacked innocent courting couples. Most of them were most likely late teens to early 20s as that was the typical age for courting couples looking to enjoy some late-night passion and solitude in what they presumed to be dark isolated areas.
The monster is described as:
5ft 8 to 6 feet tall, described as taller than average. He was aged between his late 20s to 30s, medium/stocky build with short, dark brown, wavy hair. He always wore either a black ski mask or a balaclava with his hood up. He was also described as of scruffy appearance and wore either black or surgical gloves. No obvious accent was ever identified.
He had a blue/grey shoulder bag or cream satchel which contained black quarter-inch plastic ties and two-inch wide, silver masking tape along with a black Maglite torch
During the sexual attacks, he always wore a condom and always reassured victims that he just intended to rob them before launching a vile attack on the female.
Victims of the Farley Mount Rapist
Attack 1 took place on 25th January 1991
A couple, both aged 23 years old were in their car at Beech Clump car park when a masked attacker with a handgun pulled the passenger door open demanding cash.
He proceeded to tie them up using a seatbelt and plastic garden ties. He put plastic bags over both of their heads before launching a vile sexual assault on the female. When his attack was over, the victims say that their attacker removed the plastic bags from their heads and calmly strolled off into the night.
Attack 2 took place on 3rd November 1992
10 months later, a 20-year-old female and her 23-year-old married boyfriend were cuddling in a Renault in Spindle Trees car park at 10:30 pm.
They were subjected to an attack where a torch was suddenly shone through the window before the door was pulled open and a hooded man in a black ski mask with a handgun demanded money.
The couple were both forced to kneel in the back seat of their car. The 23-year-old male was tied up and forced to get into the boot of the car. His 20-year-old girlfriend was stripped from the waist down, and had masking tape wrapped around her head “like a mummy”.
The attacker carried her to his ‘Land Rover-type car, where she was assaulted and then driven around country lanes for around 45 minutes before stopping his vehicle at an empty building.
She was then carried up two flights of stairs just inside the front door of the building and taken to a room upstairs with a single bed where he then raped her twice. Whilst being raped, she recalled hearing a refrigeration unit running but couldn’t be sure whether it was in or near the building.
He then tied her up again, and took her to his vehicle, drove around for another 30 minutes before dumping her 10 miles away in a layby near the village of Cheriton.
After the monster drove off the victim managed to bang on the door of a nearby house just before 1 am and begged the 40-year-old male householder, Jim McNab for help. Jim McNab said, “the female was standing on my doorstep in a terrible state”. The boyfriend was found by police still tied up in the boot of the car.
Attack 3 on 29th November 1994
Slightly over 2 years later, a couple was in Forest View car park, when their attack started. A man knocked on their car window waving a gun and demanding money. They gave him money through a crack in the window but then he told them to open their door. The attacker snatched their car keys and the boyfriend made a rapid movement to get out of the car. The attacker fled to his vehicle and raced away.
Attack 4 happened on 22nd April 1996
17 months later two teenagers, a female aged 16 and a male aged 18, presumed to be a couple, were in Hawthorn’s car park when the attacker struck.
He was described as wearing a balaclava and had his hood pulled up over his head. He flung the car door open and shoved a gun in their faces, demanding cash.
The couple were then tied up with the female’s handbag put over the male’s head. The female was taped around the head with masking tape and marched to a nearby vehicle and driven out past Sparsholt where the attacker sexually assaulted her before dumping her by the road.
Detectives did question a 40-year-old man in regard to the attack but he was released without further action being taken.
Reports were made on 16th June 1996 of a man in the Thicket Bottom, Rowlands Castle area stripped to the waist and wearing camouflage trousers had been seen hanging around in the woods. He was never found.
Attack 5 came on 17th June 1996
A 16-year-old female was abducted and attacked whilst out for a walk with her 28-year-old boyfriend.
The attacker who was armed with a handgun and a long-bladed hunting knife passed the couple walking in the opposite direction. The attacker turned, produced his weapons and grabbed the female at gunpoint. He subjected her to a 60-minute ordeal in woods near Havant, Hampshire.
The boyfriend trailed them through the woods in the best way he could at a discreet distance but after losing sight of them he ran to a house near the woods at Thicket Bottom, Rowland’s Castle, Havant.
He was able to alert police that his girlfriend had been snatched whilst they were out for a walk and they immediately launched a search of the woodland area just north of Havant.
Armed officers searched the entire area with the assistance of a helicopter equipped with thermal imaging cameras and sniffer dogs. The young female was found in a distressed state still in the company of her attacker about an hour later. The attacker fled through the trees and managed to give the police the slip.
The female ran towards the police sobbing, it is not known if she was injured. This happened during the evening but it was still daylight. This case was considered to possibly be linked to the Farley Mount rapes.
Officers surrounded a house in Leigh Park, Havant at 3 am on the 19th of June, they raided the house and arrested a local man who was questioned at Havant police station. A police spokesperson said a gun and knife were found during a search of the house. He was later released with no further action.
Attack 6 came on 28th May 1998 — A failed attempt
A couple both aged 19 years old were in Spindle Trees car park between 10:30 pm and 11:22 pm, an attacker tried the door handle of their car. Before he could demand any cash from them, the male started the car engine and drive off, leaving the attacker standing alone.
Final possible attempted attack 2002
A man reported that he believed he and his girlfriend had been targeted by the beast at the beauty spot. He managed to scare the attacker and the attacker fled.
The intended victims heard the man drive off and decided to follow him. They witnessed him at the wheel of an S registration Series Three Land Rover with a canvas roof. A 40-year-old man was arrested later that year, but due to a lack of hard evidence, no prosecution was brought against him.
These seem to be the only recorded cases thought to be linked to the beast of Farley Mount. There were no further reported attacks, what happened to this dangerous individual? Judging by his description he would be around 60 years old now. Why did the attacks happen? More to the point how did they stop just as quickly?
I would like to dig deeper into this investigation, there has to be more to it. Where did the man get the weapons? What happened to the vehicle? Quite an unusual vehicle to be running around Hampshire, was it maybe used by a farm or country house gardener?
If you would like to discuss this case or any aspect of my work with me, I would love to hear from you. If you enjoy my work and would be willing to Buy Me A Coffee please click here.
To contact me you can:
Email me: [email protected]
or
Email my team: [email protected]
Social Media:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/LollyTrueCrime
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LollyTrueCrime
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lollytruecrimeworld/?hl=en
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lolly-true-c-43937a201/
3 notes
·
View notes
Text
RIP Peter Baglin
Just by way of an update, sadly Greater Manchester Police have concluded their search for Peter Baglin who disappeared whilst out walking on December 28th 2022.
Greater Manchester Police have sadly confirmed that the human remains found in Salford on Saturday, March 4th 2023 are those of Peter Baglin.
Myself and all the team here at Lolly True Crime World send our heartfelt condolences to Peter's wife Michelle and all his family and friends at this tragic time.
With much love and respect
3 notes
·
View notes
Text
Missing Peter Baglin
55–year-old grandfather vanished during a walk
Peter Baglin went missing whilst out enjoying a walk on the evening of December 28th 2022 and has so far not been located.
Peter from Boothstown, Salford, Greater Manchester went on one of his favourite walks along the Bridgewater Canal, a route which he took regularly. His hat, mobile phone and headphones were found on the morning of December 29th on the towpath of the canal, but no sign of Peter, not even a possible sighting. It is simply like he just disappeared, but where?
It seems with all the searches Peter has fallen into or was pushed into the Bridgewater Canal, but having said that there have been quite a large number of males found dead in the canals around Manchester with an estimated figure of at least 76 discovered between 2007 and 2018.
Peter’s wife, Michelle Baglin told Manchester Evening News that she had telephoned her husband — who has always enjoyed walking alone at 8.15 pm and he told her he had taken a walk to “clear his head” and assured her he would “be home soon”. However, her attempts to call her husband after that were unanswered and as a result, she called the police to report her concerns.
Michelle Baglin also personally organised several searches of the entire stretch of the Bridgewater canal, with the help of more than 200 people, but to date, the searchers have found no trace of Mr Baglin save for his personal possessions namely, his hat, bank cards, house keys, mobile, headphones and tobacco which as previously said were found on the towpath.
Now in some ways, the possessions being found could be indicative of suicide, but as far as I can establish, Peter had no reason to take his own life as he was happy and he told his wife during their last telephone conversation that he loved her and that she was his life. So where is he, where did he go that evening?
There is a dedicated Facebook group available trying hard to help the family, which can be found by clicking the link below: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1322421261881024
I will leave this here but it goes without saying if you have any information, no matter how small it may seem contact the police on 101 or Crimestoppers at 0800 555 111.
My team and I are always keen to get missing person stories out there and help to look for them and if you’d like to talk about any case with me or my team then we are always happy to hear from you.
Email me:
or
Follow me on:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/LollyTrueCrime
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LollyTrueCrime
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lollytruecrimeworld/?hl=en
2 notes
·
View notes
Text
Lyn Bryant — Murder Unsolved
Dog walker murdered in broad daylight
Lyn was last seen alive at 1.45 pm close to the Ruan Methodist Chapel chatting to a man described as being in his 30s and around five feet, nine inches tall and wearing ‘light’ clothing. I feel this is one of the earliest indicators of something a little unusual. Remember it was an October day and therefore not that warm, in fact, the weather forecast for that day (link below) suggested rough wet and windy conditions so why was this man dressed so lightly?
A tourist found the body of Lyn Bryant in the gateway to a field at 2.30 pm, her clothing had been disturbed possibly indicating a sexual motive for the murder, She had been savagely attacked with multiple stab wounds to her neck, throat and back. The tourist called 999 and when the air ambulance arrived at around 2.50 pm Lyn was sadly pronounced dead at the scene.
Evidence shows that Lyn had fought hard with her killer and therefore the person responsible for her death would have been covered in blood, probably bruised and certainly pretty shaken. Forensic officers say that they believed that the killer had been with Lyn Bryant for some time and that injuries suggested that she had been stabbed whilst standing up and again laying horizontally. The dog had not been harmed at all during the attack.
Lyn had been to her regular job as a cleaner at a local house, then briefly popped in on her parents on her way home. She had then gone out again driving her car, a grey Ford Sierra, when she first visited Harris Garage but having discovered that they were out of petrol she then drove on to Chenoweth’s garage where she filled her car with petrol, bought some foodstuffs and went home.
It was noted that during her drive Lyn was followed by a man described as being of large build and around 50 years old with a scruffy beard, he was driving a white van, possibly a Volvo van which was seen on the forecourt of Chenoweth’s garage at around 1.05 pm. More than 6,700 white vans and their owners have been identified and tracked during the course of the long-running investigation.
Lyn returned home and had lunch with her 19-year-old daughter Erin during which they discussed Lyn’s upcoming 41st birthday, before setting out to walk the dog.
A critical sighting was made by a farmer at between 2.45 pm and 3 pm when he saw a man walking across a field which does not have a footpath close to it or surrounding it and according to the farmer was never normally used by walkers. The man was wearing what the farmer described as normal clothes and shoes which of course is quite odd for two reasons, firstly the weather was wet and rough and secondly, he was crossing fields in late autumn when it would obviously be muddy.
A vital piece of evidence is a quantity of vivid blue polyester-cotton mix fibres found on Lyn’s body. The police have since identified them as the sort used in the manufacture of polo shirts and sweatshirts. There has been no identification as to a specific manufacturer or brand thus far, obviously, that would narrow things down still further, It is fair to assume that the fibres were left by the killer as they were completely alien to Lyn and her home, again this is suggestive of a link to the man seen wearing ‘normal’ clothes perhaps, but we should not explore a line with no supporting evidence either.
Some four months after the murder on the 2nd February 1999, Lyn’s tortoiseshell spectacles were found just 3 feet from where her body had been discovered plainly sitting on top of the mud, an area which had been intensely searched by police.
The 2nd February was a dry and mild day with temperatures as high as 8 degrees Celsius in Cornwall so it’s not like the glasses suddenly blew out of a tree in a storm or anything. So did the killer return to the murder scene for some strange reason maybe to relive his or her sick fantasy again? Another question which pops into my mind is, did the person that reported finding the glasses actually “find” them on that day or on the day of the murder? Did that person have a connection to the murder, maybe the killer was known to them and they hid that from the police.
The police are absolutely certain that there was no way the glasses could have been missed during the in-depth search of the area in October and as the area was a muddy and well-used entrance to a field the glasses would have been damaged or buried long before a six-month period had passed. There is something really quite curious about the “discovery” of those glasses that I feel somehow is very relevant to identifying the killer. I truly believe that when the person found those glasses and reported the find to the police it was one of the moments when the police were, in fact, closest to revealing the killer’s identity.
During the murder investigation, the police interviewed every male aged between 14 and 70 years old on the Roseland Peninsula but they did not reveal anything of real relevance and certainly did not find Lyn Bryant’s killer.
The area where this murder took place is a very remote area of Cornwall and the murder investigation team is satisfied that the killer was almost definitely a local person with good knowledge of the area. Senior investigating officer detective Stuart Ellis said “This is a very remote area and not the kind of place someone is liable to just wander into” He went on to say that it is much more likely that the killer was someone that had a definite reason to be there, whether that be work, family or another connection but the indication is that it is almost certain that the person that was responsible has good local knowledge and local contact.
A very interesting little twist to this story is that in 2013 a self-proclaimed psychic medium and drag queen known as Tristan Rees came forward to police claiming that he had seen regular visions of Lyn’s murder and that he was visited by her spirit. During such “visits,” the spirit showed Tristan what he described as almost film-like footage of her being followed and then murdered. He said that he had begun to receive these spiritual communications just a few months after Lyn Bryant was murdered and they were very graphic, however, he did not contact police as he felt he may be made a suspect.
Police did indeed treat Tristan Rees as a suspect in as much as they took DNA samples from him but no action was taken against him. Tristan later said that he believed the police had taken his samples because of how much detail he was able to give to them. He described the vehicle in which the killer fled the scene and the killer himself but I think the police possibly saw Tristan Rees more as a suspect than an informant due to the length of time that had passed before he came forward.
Tristan described the killer as having ginger but greying hair, a wrinkled face and wearing a blue boiler suit and heavy boots which were covered in blood when he left the scene. He was driving a large white van. The clairvoyant said that he was plagued by the spiritual images and visions for some 15 years before he eventually found the courage to contact Devon and Cornwall police and give them his drawings of the suspect and details of the murder. I personally feel that there is good and credible evidence in Tristan Rees’s words but it seems the police did not take things seriously enough.
He said that he left the drawings and description documents at the police station and the spiritual communications stopped, that was the last that he heard of it all until some two years later when two plain-clothed police officers arrived at his home and took DNA samples. As far as I am able to ascertain Tristan has not been contacted further and is unsure whether he may still be considered a suspect.
I would love to speak to Tristan Rees but I have not so far been successful in establishing contact, I will, of course, advise you here and via social media if and when that changes.
In 2015 police went back to basics so to speak and undertook a full forensic view of the case during which they examined hundreds of exhibits. A partial DNA profile of the person believed to be Lyn’s killer was able to be found
It has been suggested that there may be links to some other murders of lone women walking dogs within a few months of each other, do I think they are linked? In all honesty, I doubt it. There is a slight possibility that the murder of Kate Bushell may possibly be linked due to some similarities but I feel that the murders of Helen Fleet and Julia Webb are almost certainly separate cases.
Helen Fleet was murdered in March 1987 so over 11 years before Lyn Bryant and Julia Webb’s murder took place some 310 miles away from Roseland Peninsula in Cornwall and even 223 miles from Exwick in Devon and there was no stabbing of the victim at all. The only way I see any link that could be established between the killing of Helen Fleet, Lyn Bryant and Kate Bushell is to explain the very long gap between the murders. If anyone has anything that you would like to suggest then do please get in touch, I would be delighted to hear from you my contact details are below and of course, you can leave me a comment here.
Of course, if anyone reading this knows anything or even believes they do then please do get in touch with Devon and Cornwall Police or Crimestoppers at once, remember even the smallest piece of evidence, a name, a vehicle identity or a location can change this enquiry and lead to justice for Lyn and especially for her family left behind, still not knowing who was responsible for her horrific murder or why.
Points of interest
(Not necessarily related to the case)
20th October 1998 was Tuesday and was the 293rd day of the year (the 42nd Tuesday of the year) This pattern of dates will be exactly the same will be 2026 when in effect you could reuse your 1998 calendar
In mythology, October began the season for military campaigns and ended the season for farming. In the Roman religion October 19th, the day before this murder the festival of Armilustrium was celebrated in honour of Mars, the god of war. On this day soldiers, and weapons were purified
4 notes
·
View notes
Text
Melanie Hall Murder
A Cold Case from Bath UK
This is a case that my team are currently reviewing in hope that we can put out a documentary about it. This murder seems to have been committed in 1996 but the victim’s remains were not found until 2009. This murder has to date never been solved.
This is one case that we as a team believe can be solved and in fact, should have been solved a long time ago.
Melanie Hall was born on August 20th 1970 and disappeared on June 9th 1996 after a night out at the Cadillacs Nightclub in Bath, UK.
Melanie had graduated from from the University of Bath in in 1995 having achieved a degree in nursing. She went on to get work as a clerical officer at The Royal university Hospital in Bath.
On 8th June 1996 Melanie had made arrangements for an evening out with her boyfriend Philip Karlbaum and then spent the night at his home afterwards. Her mother dropped her off at Philip’s home amd it was from there that they set out with another couple to Cadillacs nightclub in Bath city centre.
During the course of the evening Philip apparently saw 25-year-old Melanie dancing with another male and as a result an argument ensued. He left the club upset and headed home. She was last seen sitting on a barstool at 1.10 am in the early hours of June 9th 1996.
There was an unconfirmed sighting of a woman arguing with a man between 1.45am and 2am on Old Orchard just around the corner from the nightclub. Whilst police say that they cannot rule out that the woman was Melanie but at the same time there is no way to confirm that it was her.
There is also a report of a male seen talking to a woman matching Melanie Hall’s inside the nightclub. He was described as white, around 27 years old, 5ft 10ins tall, medium build, dark brown hair, dark brown eyes, bushy eyebrows and clean shaven.
His clothes were described as black trousers, black shoes with a brown silk shirt. The person who gave the description could not be certain but it seems quite possible the male had a gold hooped earring in his right ear and a flashy gold watch on his wrist.
Despite a massive police operation Melanie was not found and she was declared legally dead by a court on November 17th 2004 but without her body being found
Now before we go any further it is right to day that it has been suggested that a serial sex offender who preyed on women in the Bath area between 1991 and 2000 could potentially have been responsible for Melanie’s disappearance and death but thus far this has never been confirmed.
Officers from Avon & Somerset Police have said that they cannot rule out that the ‘Batman rapist’ was responsible for Melanie’s murder. The rapist is known to have attempted to carjack a woman at knifepoint in the same area of Bath as the club where Melanie was last seen just a few hours before Melanie is believed to have been abducted.
The victim of the attempted carjacking was left wouded when she fought her attacker but managed to escape.
Coming back to Melanie Hall’s murder the night of her disappearance is a night that may stick in some people’s memory as it was the evening of the opening game of the Euro 96 football championships, England played Switzerland and drew 1–1.
Melanie was wearing quite distinctive clothes and shoes on the night that she disappeared namely a pale blue silk dress with a round neck, black suede mule shoes with straps across the front and an open toe, size 5 or 6, a cream single-breasted, long-sleeved jacket and a black satchel-type handbag. Her jewellery consisted of a Next watch with expanding bracelet and silver drop earrings.
She was also known to have had her Midland bank cheque book and cheque guarantee card with were in her handbag and have never been recovered.
Maybe you were in the club that night? Did you speak to or recognise Malanie Hall? She was a very pretty young lady with very distinctive blonde hair. Were you a can driver in Bath in 1996? Did you take Melanie and a male somewhere in the early hours of June 9th 1996?
Were you offered the items of jewellery to purchase? or even the high quality handbag?
If you know anything at all that could lead police to solve this heinous crime, please contact the police on 101 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
If you are willing to discuss the case were a friend or colleague of Melanie and would be willing to speak to one of my research team then please get in touch.
Our contact details:
Email: [email protected]
Follow me on:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/LollyTrueCrime
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LollyTrueCrime
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lollytru
10 notes
·
View notes
Text
Mysterious Death
The strange death of Melanie Jane Spence
This will not be a long report because I am unable to gather much information but, something struck me about this case and there is a clear element of unexplained death that seems to have just been almost ignored by police.
Melanie who came from Porthtowan, near Truro in Cornwall UK worked a little in the media and mostly as a Yoga teacher. She also starred in an award-winning film ‘Two Down’ where she played the role of ‘Ms Mangetout’.
After the discovery of Melanie's body, a 45-year-old male who was known to her was arrested and then released pending further investigation. As far as I have been able to ascertain, no further action was taken.
There has been very little by way of updates from Avon & Somerset Police via the media, but I do know that on November 15th 2019 a spokesman from the force said “Our enquiries are ongoing and her death continues to be treated as unexplained”.
The spokesman added that there was no connection to Odd Down Football Club and the findings of the initial post-mortem were inconclusive.
It seems very mysterious to me that a woman is found dead in the back of a small Ford Escort van, in a car park and the police record the death as inconclusive and that seems to be that. I am of the opinion that a great deal more should have been done and the public should have been kept abreast of the investigation.
The city of Bath seems to have been pretty well known for murder, rape and “unexplained death over the last 25 years or so and this one just adds to that toll.
So what did happen to Melani Jane Spence? Was she murdered? Did she die from natural causes, (seems unlikely) or for some other reason? Someone must know what happened to this relatively young woman.
Obviously, if you do have anything that could help solve the mysterious death of Melanie Jane Spence then call Avon & Somerset Police on 101, or contact Crimestoppers at 0800 555 111.
If you would like to discuss this case or any other aspect of y work or you would like to help me by clicking the link to BUY ME A COFFEE then I would be delighted.
Contact me & my team:
or
Or on social media:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/LollyTrueCrime
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LollyTrueCrime
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lollytruecrimeworld/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lolly-true-c-43937
9 notes
·
View notes
Text
The Bedminster Murder Mystery
The unsolved murder of Shelley Morgan
33-year-old Shelley’s body was found in October 1984 in a wooded copse off Long Lane, on Backwell Hill, she had been brutally stabbed on the day that she disappeared.
Background
Shelley Cameron Brian Morgan was born in 1951 in Iowa, United States. Her father was an art teacher. Her parents were delighted to find that their daughter was gifted.
She learned to talk at an earlier than average age — and kept on talking! Shelley wanted to travel & explore the world. She loved books and music and excelled at school. One of the major talents Shelley had was that she was good with her hands — drawing, making things and sculpting and, as she got older she learned sewing, making all kinds of things out of fabrics and fibres, including amazing stuffed dolls and animals, as well as making her own clothes.
When she was 17, Shelley was accepted into the American Field Service foreign student exchange program and spent that summer away from home, staying with a family in Japan.
She eventually decided to pursue a career in textiles and costume design and went to college & university to get qualifications in theatre arts.
During her years working at the Playhouse, Shelley met her first love, they got married, had a son and went to live in a small village in South Wales, UK. Shelley became a committed wife and mother. Shelley became pregnant again with a daughter.
A little later in time, it was discovered that their son had been born with a disability and he was diagnosed as autistic. In order for him to lead a full life he would need special education facilities and therapy that were not available in Wales, so Shelley and her family relocated to Bristol. Shelley started to think about returning to work as a designer. She was keen to complete her art degree so she started building a portfolio of artwork and photography to help her secure a university place.
On the day that Shelley disappeared Monday, June 11th 1984, she and her children, Charlotte & Liam left their home in Dunkerry Road, Bristol at around 8.30 am and walked to the school bus stop. She told the children that she intended to spend some time taking photographs and drawing in the Avon Gorge area and would meet them after school as always.
The main area that Shelley was interested in visiting that day was Leigh Woods, a National Trust nature reserve. She particularly wanted to get photographs of the Clifton Suspension Bridge in order to paint from them later.
Back in 1984, the bus route was probably somewhat different from today but it would certainly be the best bus route to reach Avon Gorge where she said she was going. Unfortunately, no one was able to confirm that Shelley actually used a bus on the day in question. One witness did say they believed that they saw Shelley talking to someone in a blue van near the entrance to Ashton Court Estates.
This intelligence has never been confirmed but if it was Shelley then she had gone in the opposite direction of the Bristol Bus Station. She may have got a lift from someone and taken a completely different route to the gorge. She could have been able to follow the Ashton Court Estate road to Bridge Road onto the Clifton Suspension Bridge. It does seem like a long way around to get to her desired destination.
There were also reported sightings of a woman sitting in a yellow lorry on Backwell Hill Road and of a woman in a BMW car parked on the Portishead-to-Bristol road. These women all apparently matched Shelley’s description but despite thorough investigation, the sightings were never confirmed and came to nothing.
There was also a report of a woman matching Shelley’s description being seen boarding a Weymouth to Channel Islands ferry but of course, these sightings were unsubstantiated and eventually, some four months later on Sunday, October 14th 1984 her body was found in a wooded copse.
Her skeletal remains were discovered with a pair of torn and twisted tights around her ankle bones and her pair of sandals were found discarded in bramble bushes close by. Dental records were used to identify the remains as being Shelley's and a forensic examination revealed that she had been stabbed in the back some 14 times.
The police say that there was evidence the brutal attack had been sexually motivated and I have to draw your attention to the ‘Batman rapist’ investigation in which the unknown assailant had a fetish for tights and in fact ripped them before he raped his victims.
You can read a recent blog on the Batman rapist by the Cold case Detective HERE
Shelley’s camera, bag, red-framed spectacles and clothing that she had been wearing have never been found. Did the killer take them as trophies or more likely in order to speed up the decomposition process and make identification much more difficult?
Thirty-five years on from Shelley Morgan’s disappearance and the discovery of her remains the police thought that they had a breakthrough in June 2019 in the form of a new lead
Cold case detectives at Avon and Somerset Police discovered two ageing postcards which could hold vital evidence in their bid to solve the murder of Shelley Morgan.
As we know Shelley had been heading towards Leigh Woods to spend the day sketching and taking photographs with a 35mm Olympus OM20. The tear-off postcards discovered are from a calendar sold by the local Bristol Hospice charity in the 1980s or 1990s.
I am sure it is possible to establish the year the tear-off postcards were in the Bristol Hospice charity calendar. If anyone reading this has one of them or indeed the relevant postcards we would love to hear from you.
It has not been made clear where the postcards were found but the question has to be asked, did the killer keep these postcards as souvenirs or trophies? Ultimately it seems likely he had the camera, what happened to it? Do you know the whereabouts of the Olympus OM20 camera, serial number 1032853?
Avon and Somerset police say they cannot reveal how they gained possession of the postcards or exactly how they may fit in with the investigation, but I strongly suspect that they are believed to have been taken with the missing Olympus OM20 camera.
DS Sarah Barnston of the major crime review team said: “Both locations are significant as they are linked to the areas where Shelley was heading for on the day she disappeared, and where her body was found four months later.”
My team and I have several suspects that we are hopeful of ruling out in this interesting case as well as at least two possible linked murders. Those are:
Ann Myring — Bristol, 1997.
Ann was abducted from her home in Bristol and has never been seen since. She lived in Great Stoke, which is midway between Bedminster and Thornbury (where the remains of Melanie Hall were dumped).
Sharon Hoare — London 1991.
Sharon was working in London as an escort when she was killed. She was from Bedminster, just like Shelley Morgan. The Metropolitan Police suspected a Bristol connection to her death and my team are inclined to agree.
I will leave this one there and hope that you will bring me lots of feedback on this one as we head toward an investigative documentary production of the case later in the year,
If you can BUY ME A COFFEE to help with the ever-growing costs of living and research then I would very much appreciate it. I will be back with another case in the coming days, the more you help and support me, the more content I can bring you without putting a paywall in place.
If you would like to discuss this case with me and share any information then you know I love to hear from you. Leave me a comment, email me or catch me on social media, the links are below.
Email:
or
Follow me on:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/LollyTrueCrime
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LollyTrueCrime
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lollytruecrimeworld/?hl=en
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lolly-true-c-43937
7 notes
·
View notes
Text
The Brampton Hut Murder
Janice Carol Weston, unsolved murder
Solicitor, Janice Weston was found dead in a ditch by a lay-by on the A1 in between Brampton and Brockden, Cambridgeshire on 11 September 1983.
36-year-old solicitor, JaniceWeston’s body was found at 9 am on a Sunday, in a ditch on the northbound carriageway of the A1 about half a mile south of the Brampton Hut roundabout by a cyclist. She had been beaten to death by several vicious blows to the head using a car jack which was found discarded close by.
A detective said that he believed that the killer had possibly lost his temper during an argument and had gone berserk. She was found fully clothed, with no sign of sexual assault or robbery. A post-mortem examination revealed that she had fought against her attacker.
According to Janice’s husband, she had a bit of a habit of picking up hitchhikers when she was making a journey. although he had told her not to and in fact he thought she had stopped doing that.
Curiously Janice Weston had told her husband and her friends that despite her husband being abroad she intended to stay at home in London that weekend. She had spent Saturday in London shopping, getting a new spare wheel for her car and visiting her office at Lincolns Inn to catch up on some work during the afternoon. She was last seen alive at around 4.15 pm on Saturday 10th September 1983.
According to traffic reports and an approximate time that Janice left her home in Holland Park, London, she probably didn’t reach Huntingdonshire until after 9 pm on Saturday night. It seems likely that she was heading for her ‘Weekend retreat’, a country house in Clopton, Northamptonshire.
It is possible that detectives are linking the story of the tyre with the fact that forensics found oil beneath Janice Weston’s fingernails but I think it is more likely that she had changed the tyre in London and done something else, such as checking the oil in the Brampton Hut Layby.
I do not see that a killer is going to kill a woman with a carjack, discard the jack but not the wheel and then drive her stolen car to Camden, London then dispose of the wheel. I really feel that is an error in the investigation.
Janice's husband was arrested after the body was identified, he was held for 55 hours and questioned at length but he was released without charge. It had taken three days to identify the body due to her having been so severely beaten. Hence Tony Weston had returned to England before his wife was identified so police had no idea that he was in fact in France at the time of his wife’s murder.
I personally see a number of faults and failings in this case and the way in which it was handled, hence I am sitting here almost forty years on from the killing, reporting that the case remains unsolved.
I will leave this one here and be back with another case very soon. In the meantime, if you can help me by leaving me a tip and buying me a coffee by clicking the link HERE it would mean a lot to me.
As always, if you would like to discuss this case or indeed any other then please get in touch, I love to hear from you.
Email me:
find me on social media:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/LollyTrueCrime
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LollyTrueCrime
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lollytruecrimeworld/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lolly-true-c-43937a201/
7 notes
·
View notes
Text
Schoolgirl Murder
An unsolved murder that ended in a severe miscarriage of justice
At around 6 pm on Wednesday 7 June 1972, 14-year-old Queen Elizabeth grammar school student Judith Roberts left her home at 155 Gillway Lane, Wigginton, Tamworth. Judith took her green Raleigh bike, which had been a present from her parents two years earlier, and rode off along Main Road, then along Comberford Lane, which becomes Wiggington Lane.
Judith often rode this route after school, She would arrive home from school at around 4:30 pm, have her tea and do her homework for an hour or so before going for a ride on her bicycle. She would ride ‘round the block’, which consisted of Gillway to Wigginton Road, Comberford Lane to Comberford Road back to Gillway and home.
On June 7th 1972 Judith’s routine was pretty much the same as every school day. She arrived home at around 4.30 pm after school was over, her mother had prepared a salad and banana custard for tea, but Judith didn’t feel like eating, she had worrying things on her mind. Her period was three weeks late and with her mind full, her stomach felt the same. Judith left her salad and swallowed down the banana custard with a drink.
Her mother said that she would tell Judith’s father that she had not eaten her meal. Around 5.15 pm Vincent Robert arrived home to see that instead of eating her meal, Judith was doing homework in the living room, thoroughly engrossed.
Vincent was not happy that his daughter had missed her tea and summoned her to the kitchen, where he asked her to eat. Judith sat at the table but reportedly only nibbled half-heartedly at some lettuce, a tomato and spring onion.
Mr Roberts told his daughter off for not eating fresh food and told her to go back to complete her homework. He told her that he would expect her to eat what she had left for her supper. Judith finished her homework, put on her navy-blue anorak and went to get her bike from the shed in the back garden.
As always Judith let her pet hamster Horace out of his cage and pinned a notice on the shed door saying, ‘Horace on the floor’ and took off on her bike ride. She was still wearing her blue and white school uniform dress, her navy blue anorak with black tie-up shoes. Underneath her clothes, she wore a bra and two pairs of knickers (one under her tights, the other over).
There were witnesses to Judith leaving the house on that fateful evening and with it being summer time it was daylight so they could not have been mistaken. The next-door neighbour, Bertha Evans, at 153 Gillway recalled seeing Judith go left out of number 155 onto Gillway in the direction of Wigginton Road.
Maude Best of 134 Gillway, was out walking her dog and remembered seeing Judith close to the junction of Wigginton Road and Brown’s Lane, Judith had stopped briefly to chat with Maude before continuing her bike ride. Judith would normally make sure back by around 6.30 pm to watch ‘Cross Roads’, a TV soap opera that was very popular at the time. Sadly on the night in question, the 14-year-old did not make it home.
The pathologist report suggested that Judith came to Comberford Lane, where she had become separated from her bike for reasons that have not been established. The report indicates that at around 7 pm she was subjected to a frenzied attack, which left her dead.
A description of Judith was distributed and the police began an investigation straight away with an intensive search of the area. Police with dogs searched the town with local volunteers, a mountain rescue team, RAF airmen and military troops from Whittington Barracks.
Judith was 5ft 1 inch tall, medium build, fair skin and hair with braces on her upper teeth. Obviously, there was always the green bicycle to be considered as Judith had it with her when she left home.
An intensive search for Judith spread through the day and night of Thursday and by Friday police with dogs were looking in canals, rivers, and local barns on farmland.
On Saturday 10 June, some 300+ members of the Whittington Army barracks joined the search. The Junior Soldiers Company from Whittington Barracks were called upon to make a search of local fields. A statement made by a soldier said that at 2.30 pm that afternoon the squad began to carefully search fields from south to north on the western side of Wigginton.
The search came to a local corn field known as ‘Robinson’s Field’, not far in Comberford Lane, at about 4.30 pm. Private Barry Gibson, a soldier in the search said, “On reaching Comberford Lane we commenced searching the field on the other side of the lane. To enter this field, which had been roughly ploughed, I opened a gate and walked in first in front of L/Cpl Steele.” In the field, Private Gibson made three dreadful finds.
Soon after entering the field, the soldier found a green Raleigh bicycle thrown into a thorn hedge, the front wheel sticking out of the hedge. “I turned left and sttarted to walk up the hedge,” reported Gibson. “I had gone about seven yards when I saw about two yards in front of me a green Moulton pedal cycle lying into the hedge with the front wheel towards the gate. I shouted and was joined at once by L/Cpl Steele and others.”
The soldiers scoured the field and about a yard to the right of the cycle there was a big pile of hedge trimmings.” A soldier noticed a piece of blue-coloured material sticking out from the mound of hedge cuttings. When he lifted a piece of cloth he saw human hair covered with blood and a piece of human flesh. He had found the blue anorak that Judith had been wearing when she set out on her bike ride three days before.
The final horrifying discovery was hidden under the hedge cuttings. Three pieces of corrugated sheet, underneath which were two fertiliser bags covering Judith’s body face down. Forensic investigations revealed that she had been bludgeoned to death, her skull shattered into 18 fragments and viciously sexually assaulted. Judith had been put into a shallow grave and pushed under the hedge feet first.
Officers from Staffordshire Police arrived at the scene within minutes of receiving a call to say that soldiers had discovered a body. A Home Office Pathologist, Dr Scholtz Barendo Van-Der-Merwe, was also called to attend the scene of the crime and arrived within around two hours.
The police reported that Judith had been stripped of her clothes from the waist down with the front of her dress and anorak pulled up over her breasts. Her bra was still in place with the breasts covered.
A report from the Home Office Pathologist reads, “At approximately 6.45 pm on Saturday 10 June 1972, I visited the scene of a serious crime in a field off Comberford Lane, near Tamworth. It had been and was still raining. Present were Mr Rees Chief Constable of Staffordshire, Mr Bailey Assistant Chief Constable, Detective Chief Superintendent Wright, Detective Superintendent Jordan, Detective Constable Prince as well as two photographers and other police officers”.
“The field had been roughly ploughed but there was a fairly wide border of ground (headland) over which grass and weeds were growing, moderately short near the ploughed edge and very long at the edge which was tall and overhanging. A newish pedal cycle lay at the base of the hedge some yards inside the gate and not visible except from inside the field. Various pieces of rubbish and pieces of brick lay on the grass verge and a large pile of relatively fresh privet hedge clippings, a pile of soil and rubble lay near the cycle but separated by tall weeds from it. Some yards further along the foot of the hedge and below its overhang another pile of clippings was visible through a gap in the weeds and grass”
“This almost totally obscured the body of which only a hand was visible, and nearest the field, part of a blue anorak and a corner of white plastic material. The grass beneath the body was flattened by the weight of the body, relatively orderly in fashion, not churned about and dry to the touch. The feet were extended well into the hedge with stems of dry grass and twigs caught between some toes. The site where the body lay was relatively orderly and gave the appearance that it had been placed there fairly carefully and that it had been pushed under the hedge feet first”.
Mr Wright continued, “The body was subsequently removed to the Public Mortuary at Kettlebrook, where it was identified to me by Mr V.E. Roberts, to be that of his daughter Judith Roberts, aged 14 years. At 8.15 pm the same night I was present when Doctor Van-der-Merwe carried out a Post Mortem examination on the body and saw him remove a navy blue quilted pattern anorak…. a blue coloured patterned dress…. and a brassiere…. which appeared to be intact and in place. I saw obvious and multiple injuries to the left side of the face, temple and scalp”.
“At 3.15 pm on Tuesday 20th January 1972 with Detective Chief Superintendent Saunders and Detective Constable Prince, I again attended the Mortuary whilst Doctor Van-der-Merwe carried out an examination of the skull and brain”.
The pathologist report states that Judith was dragged by her upper right arm from the area where she was initially attacked on Comberford Lane to Robinson’s Field where she was party to a frenzied stabbing to her left temple area and masturbated over.
Professor Van-Der-Merwe concluded that the cause of death to Judith Roberts was a fractured skull, due to blows to the head with a sharp or potentially pointed object.
Sadly, despite the case being one of the most intense murder hunts in the history of the Midlands, this horrific murder still remains unsolved over 50 years on.
More than 200 police detectives worked on the investigation and took over 15,000 sets of fingerprints, carried out 11,000 door-to-door enquiries and took more than 11,000 statements.
Over 4,000 pieces of information were reviewed but in spite of all that the case still remains unsolved after almost 51 years.
The case was believed to have been solved for a number of years as a soldier who had been based at Whittington Barracks at the time of Judith’s murder, for some reason walked into a local police station, asking to see a photograph of the victim. He was interviewed over a three-day period and gave a full statement in which he confirmed his guilt.
As part of the police investigation into the murder, soldiers who were in residence at Whittington on June 7th 1972 were required to fill out a form detailing their whereabouts on that evening and provide referees to confirm their story.
Andrew Evans said that he had spent that evening in question at the barracks and gave the names of three other soldiers who could confirm this. Police failed to find one of the soldiers, and discovered the remaining two had in fact left the barracks before June 7th. Evans was questioned again in October by police at his grandma’s house.
On the morning after the interview, Andrew told his grandma that he intended to go to the police station and ask to see a picture of Judith He made that decision after having a dream in which he saw “a hazy combination of images of women’s faces” which somehow left him believing that he was the killer.
Although his grandma told him that it was not a good idea to do such a thing he still reported to Longton Police Station in a state of great distress. Evans made the request, telling them he had dreamt of Judith, saying, “I keep seeing a face. I want to see a picture of her. I wonder if I’ve done it".
Although Andrew Evans subsequently retracted his confession, a jury convicted him of murder at trial in 1973, and he was handed a life sentence.
A 1970s legal team advised Evans that he had absolutely no grounds for appeal, so he spent the next twenty years in prison before his case was brought to the attention of a British media journalist in 1994, and was taken up by the human rights group Justice when he contacted them about it.
There is a course of a belief that Judith may have been murdered by the Yorkshire ripper, Peter Sutcliffe and whilst it is possible I am not so sure.
An armchair detective, Chris Clark believes that he and his team have uncovered evidence that Judith was yet another victim of the Yorkshire Ripper.
Interestingly Chris has recently published a book, ‘Mark of a Serial Killer’ with a co-author, Tanita Mathews.
They claim to have searched national archives, studied pathology reports and read every word of the transcripts of Andrew Evans’ trial. They also claim to have spoken to Judith’s family.
They called upon the services of an independent pathologist to review the case. Chris Clark firmly believes that Judith was monster Sutcliffe’s unknown victim.
The Ripper died after contracting covid in 2020 aged 74 while a whole life sentence for the violent murders of thirteen women and the attempted murder of seven more. According to the author, Chris Clark, Judith’s murder fits with Sutcliffe’s modus operandi like a glove.
Allegedly on the evening of the teenager’s death, June 7th 1972, Sutcliffe was making a major journey to visit his then-fiancee in a hospital in Bexleyheath, London. He then returned to Bingley, West Yorkshire, where he worked nightshifts on the Baird TV company assembly plant.
So, let’s just let that sink in, Sutcliffe drove 250 miles to London, a long journey in the 70s with cars travelling at around 60mph top speed, visited his partner, drove 250 miles back, stopped off to viciously murder a 14-year-old girl, who he had no idea would be there for the taking, then drove to work. Possible? Yes. Likely? No, not in my opinion anyway.
I think that the killer was local and intentionally targeted his particular victim for a specific reason, but I am open to persuasion of course.
I will leave it there and remind you that I have so far not put my blogs behind a paywall, thus allowing you to read my articles free of charge. If you want that to continue then please be kind, dig deeply click the link and BUY ME A COFFEE or click ‘Leave a tip’ at the bottom of this article.
If you would like to discuss this or any aspect of my work please leave me a comment or contact me using the methods detailed below, I will be back with more very soon.
Email me: [email protected]
Follow me:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/LollyTrueCrime
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LollyTrueCrime
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lollytruecrimeworld/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lolly-true-c-43937a201/
3 notes
·
View notes