UK UK - Linda Smith, 12, Earls Colne, Essex, 16 Jan 1961

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Robin Hood said:
Sorry to quote my own post but I have found the reference I mentioned above, it was on another thread -

Ann Noblett 1957
UK UK - The "Deep Freeze" murder of Ann Noblett, age 17, Marshalls Heath, 1957 - Websleuths Crime Sleuthing Community.
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Another WS thread, a killing from - roughly - this same time frame and - who knows - perhaps somehow connected:

UK UK ∙ Mary Kriek, 19, au pair from Holland murdered in Colchester 05 January 1958 - Websleuths Crime Sleuthing Community
 
http://www.echm.org.uk/page5.html#Page5Printing

In the late nineteenth century, a printing works was opened in the High Street on the site now occupied by the Sue Ryder shop.
The left-hand picture shows the front office - looking like a garden shed - with Dickie Parmenter’s shoe-repair workshop beside it, nearest the camera.
The printing machines were housed in a rambling wooden building across the yard from the front office.
 
wfgodot said:
Another WS thread, a killing from - roughly - this same time frame and - who knows - perhaps somehow connected:

UK UK ∙ Mary Kriek, 19, au pair from Holland murdered in Colchester 05 January 1958 - Websleuths Crime Sleuthing Community
Click to expand...

Ann Noblett 1957
UK UK - The "Deep Freeze" murder of Ann Noblett, age 17, Marshalls Heath, 1957 - Websleuths Crime Sleuthing Community.

Another woman found 12 miles Ann Noblett's body

http://www.truecrimelibrary.com/crime_series_show.php?id=1452&series_number=11
Diane Suttey
The victim was Mrs. Diana Suttey, a 35-year-old hospital orderly, whose strangled body was found among bushes at Leverstock Green, Hertfordshire, on Friday, September 7th, 1956. Despite 65,000 statements collected from car owners, the killer vanished into thin air.
 
I can't remember where or from whom but quite a long time ago I heard that police strongly suspected Ann Noblett's uncle of her murder.

Eight Ash Green, from where Mary Kreik disappeared is about six miles from Earls Colne on the same road between Colchester and Halstead. Police discounted any link between Linda and Mary's murder. As I recall, Mary's employer was the prime suspect.

Earls Colne museum is situated in the water tower, which is al that remains of Atlas Iron Works where Linda's father, Robert was employed. I have been for a look around. It's relatively small but interesting.

RH, what are your thoughts concerning the print works?

Nimrod
 
Nimrod said:
Forensics ascertained that the paint was in fact lacquer in two forms. One red, the other red/yellow/red in layer form. They were never able to trace its source. Police still hold all the evidence from the case including this and Linda's clothing.

The village baker was the man police had in focus. Det.Chief Supt Jack Mannings of Scotland Yard had taken control of the investigation. After Linda's clothes had been examined in the lab they found the wheat starch and red flecks. It was the starch which lead Mannings to the bakery as routine. With him was Det.Ins John McCafferty of forensics who took sweepings and samples from the bakery and the bakers clothes and car. It was then that the red flecks were detected again on his coat and in his car.

The starch was found common to others connected to the bakery, naturally. Police took over eighty items from the bakers home but nothing matched the flecks, nor did it from Linda's home. Forensics deemed it probably a transient material.

The main reason for not treating him as a suspect was due to witness accounts placing him away from the scene at the time.

Nimrod
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Nimrod, I looked at what you described. The layer form of the red and yellow flecks suggested to me either photography touching up ink, printing ink or ceramic red ochre. As the flecks were flecks and not smudges I thought it might have come from dried ink left on a workbench or floor. Somebody might have taken Linda to the back of a business property to assault her. If it was the butcher he might have access to the rear of a building where, I assume, the lavatory was (a few businesses would maybe share one toilet) and if the printers had finished for the day he wouldn't be seen. Also, as there wasn't other colours involved I'd guess it could have come from where the products were stored rather than used, hence outbuildings.
I'd have to research more to see if the ink used came in powdered form.

Re Ann Noblett, that's interesting.

Re Mary, I remember reading that but don't know where now.
 
RH, that is a very interesting train of thought, I'll be pleased to hear the result of your research. There was a lavatory in the bakery backyard easily accessed from the street and garages shared shared by the bakery and butchery. There was also a rubbish dump and incinerator in the yard. The baker offered the suggestion that Linda may have been playing near the dump and picked up the red substance and got in his car. Not a theory for which I have great faith in but a possibilty.

If you look at the West view of the High Street at the ECHM site you can see a sign saying "cafe". That was Coop cafe at front of the bakery. The newsagent is further up the street on the right near the top the picture.

P.S. I know this is not the correct board on which to ask but please can somebody explain how to use the "quote" facility? Also how to undo it if I go wrong? I tried to post on "Forum Finesse" but it would not allow me to do so. Thank you.

Nimrod.
 
Nimrod said:
RH, that is a very interesting train of thought, I'll be pleased to hear the result of your research. There was a lavatory in the bakery backyard easily accessed from the street and garages shared shared by the bakery and butchery. There was also a rubbish dump and incinerator in the yard. The baker offered the suggestion that Linda may have been playing near the dump and picked up the red substance and got in his car. Not a theory for which I have great faith in but a possibilty.

If you look at the West view of the High Street at the ECHM site you can see a sign saying "cafe". That was Coop cafe at front of the bakery. The newsagent is further up the street on the right near the top the picture.

P.S. I know this is not the correct board on which to ask but please can somebody explain how to use the "quote" facility? Also how to undo it if I go wrong? I tried to post on "Forum Finesse" but it would not allow me to do so. Thank you.

Nimrod.
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I'm sorry, I have PC problems and when I post, the darn thing crashes so sometime my posts are rushed. I meant the Baker and NOT the Butcher.
I will find time to look at the flakes/powder but just now I needed to correct my error.

I must admit when I want to add more than one quote I'm not sure what I'm doing and end up using the quote button for one post and end up copying and pasting the other quotes, wfgodot is the man we both need to ask ;)

When a POI volunteers a reason for something, IMO, it's close to the truth, just with a little variation. IMO the Baker knew where he'd taken Linda and was trying to put her there and excuse why he had similar substances on himself.
Do they have the flakes still ? and have they tested them again under 2013 technology ?
You know where I think the crime scene was, tell us what you know/think.... I'm not trying to spoil your hard work on the book ;)
 
Robin Hood said:
wfgodot is the man we both need to ask ;)
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wfgodot is fortunate if he remembers how to turn his desktop on the morning after a good long sleep!

As for Nimrod's 'Forum Finesse' question, I have no idea - some stuff one might do on here requires a certain amount of posts accrued first.

(note no use of double-quotes here as I really don't know how!)

In summation, I strongly - when speaking of computer matters - identify with Blance DuBois's words in Tennessee Williams' 'A Streetcar Named Desire': "I have always depended on the kindness of strangers."
 
wfgodot said:
wfgodot is fortunate if he remembers how to turn his desktop on the morning after a good long sleep!

As for Nimrod's 'Forum Finesse' question, I have no idea - some stuff one might do on here requires a certain amount of posts accrued first.

(note no use of double-quotes here as I really don't know how!)

In summation, I strongly - when speaking of computer matters - identify with Blance DuBois's words in Tennessee Williams' 'A Streetcar Named Desire': "I have always depended on the kindness of strangers."
Click to expand...

With one 'quote' I hear you lol .
 
If anyone figures it out, please let me know too. I only know how to reply to a single poster's quote per post, but I know there's a way to reply to multiple posters' quotes in one's own post as I've seen others do it.
 
Robin Hood said:
When a POI volunteers a reason for something, IMO, it's close to the truth, just with a little variation. IMO the Baker knew where he'd taken Linda and was trying to put her there and excuse why he had similar substances on himself.
Do they have the flakes still ? and have they tested them again under 2013 technology ?

You know where I think the crime scene was, tell us what you know/think....
Click to expand...


The baker volunteered this reason while giving evidence at the Coroner's Inquest.

Yes, they have the flecks but I'm not aware of them having been tested again recently.

In my book I never deliver a judgement of guilt upon any individual because quite honestly I don't know what to deduce but I do raise questions and present the story and evidence as it unfolded leaving the reader to decide.

When I first began researching I thought the evidence pretty damning but that belief waned heavily as I progressed. The main factors against the baker were; the flecks, the flour, heelprints in the field where Linda was found matched his in shape and size but due to the conditions it was impossible to take casts for sole patterns, a Coop mint sweet found close to Linda's body and the location of the field in relation to the baker's home. All these were deemed circumstantial at the inquest.

In the baker's favour and accepted as such by the verdict were the witness statements from his wife, brother and the butcher. The first two placing him AT home at the crucial time, the other seeing him apparently GOING home, just short of an hour before Linda was last seen.

Even if the source of the flecks had been idenitfied I doubt if it would have altered the verdict which was..."murder by strangulation by person or persons unknown".

Nimrod
 
Nimrod - thanks again for being here, it's great stuff you bring us - my question is (and apologies in advance if this has been asked and answered already - didn't see but might have missed it), are any of the persons you might know of who were on the radar as persons of interest at the time - the baker, perhaps et al. - still living, to your knowledge? I note that in the BBC link in the OP, Det Ch Insp Andy Smith said there was "every reason" to believe the killer was still alive.
 
wfgodot said:
Nimrod - thanks again for being here, it's great stuff you bring us - my question is (and apologies in advance if this has been asked and answered already - didn't see but might have missed it), are any of the persons you might know of who were on the radar as persons of interest at the time - the baker, perhaps et al. - still living, to your knowledge? I note that in the BBC link in the OP, Det Ch Insp Andy Smith said there was "every reason" to believe the killer was still alive.
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WFG, thank you, it's a pleasure to be here and help keep Linda's memory alive.

You bring to the fore a question I have been asked many times. Without wishing to sound evasive there are some aspects which I feel could be considered an indiscretion to give a direct reply. I am sure you can appreciate my reasoning.

Nimrod
 
Nimrod said:
WFG, thank you, it's a pleasure to be here and help keep Linda's memory alive.

You bring to the fore a question I have been asked many times. Without wishing to sound evasive there are some aspects which I feel could be considered an indiscretion to give a direct reply. I am sure you can appreciate my reasoning.

Nimrod
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You're welcome, and sure - understood. Thanks.
 
I thought you would be interested to know that next Thursday 14th Nov. would have been Linda's 65th Birthday. It's hard to believe when you look at her face in those photographs, don't you think ?

Nimrod
 
Hi Nimrod!

Aside from the baker, who else did the police investigate in Linda’s murder?
 
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