UK's oldest cold case solved: 92-year-old jailed for 1967 rape and murder

Published on 01/07/2025 - 16:21 GMT+2

A 92-year-old man has been jailed for life for nan rape and execution of a female successful England astir six decades ago, successful what is thought to beryllium nan UK’s oldest acold lawsuit to beryllium solved.

The judge who sentenced Ryland Headley connected Tuesday told him that he would walk nan remainder of life successful situation for raping and sidesplitting Louisa Dunne successful her location successful 1967.

"The usurpation of her home, her assemblage and, ultimately, her life was a pitiless and sadistic enactment by a depraved man," Justice Derek Sweeting said successful Bristol Crown Court.

Headley was 34 erstwhile he collapsed into Dunne's location successful Bristol and strangled her connected 28 June 1967. Dunne, a 75-year-old widow and grandmother, was later recovered lying connected her surviving room level by a neighbour.

During nan break-in, Headley near a thenar people connected nan solid of a window. Police astatine nan clip took nan handprints of 19,000 men and boys successful nan area successful an effort to lick nan crime, but were incapable to find a match.

Headley moved retired of nan area and went connected to rape 2 older women successful akin circumstances successful nan precocious 1970s, for which he was jailed. While he was initially sentenced to life successful prison, his condemnation was reduced connected appeal, and he only served astir 2 years down bars.

Despite his condemnation and jailhouse time, Headley's DNA was not collected until an unrelated apprehension successful 2012.

Police reviewed nan lawsuit successful 2023, and past year, semen detected connected nan skirt that Dunne was wearing erstwhile she was killed was recovered to lucifer Headley's DNA, while his thenar people matched nan 1 connected her window. Headley was past arrested past November.

'You'll ne'er beryllium released'

On Tuesday, Dunne’s granddaughter, Mary Dainton, told nan tribunal that her grandmother's execution and rape had formed a unreality complete nan remainder of her mother's life.

"The truth nan offender wasn’t caught caused my mother to go and stay very ill," said Dainton, who is now astir nan property her grandma was erstwhile she was killed.

"It saddens maine profoundly that each nan group who knew and loved Louisa are not present to spot that justness is being done."

Sweeting, nan sentencing judge, said that by escaping reward for truthful long, Headley had compounded nan suffering of Dunne's family.

He told Headley he had to service a minimum of 20 years successful situation and would typically walk clip explaining nan effect of specified a term. But he was blunt successful this case.

"You’ll ne'er beryllium released and you will dice successful prison," Sweeting said.