Earl, Charles Robert
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Eayres, John Francis
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Eblethrift, John
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Edge, Frederick William
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Edisbury, George Frederick
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Edmunds, John
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Edmunstone, Alexander
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Edwards, Christopher
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Edwards, Edgar
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Edwards, Thomas
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Edwards, Trevor
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Eggleston, Frederick
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Elliot, Augustus
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Elliot, Edmund Walter
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Elliott, Norman
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Ellis, Joseph Robert
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Elkins, Samuel
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Ellor, James
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Emery, Samuel George
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Erskine, Kenneth
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Evans, & Allen
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Evans, Henry
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Ewerstadt, Ernest
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Edwards, Edgar
Edgar Edwards was perhaps his own worst enemy. He drew attention to himself
by being arrested in London in 1902 for attacking a man with a lead sash-weight.
When he was searched business cards were found on him with the name of
John W. Darby, a grocer of Camberwell. This made the police suspicious
and when they tried to contact the Darby family they found that they were
missing and that their shop was virtually empty. They also found a blood-stained,
8lb sash-weight. This was just too much of a coincidence and resulted in
a full blown investigation.
Edwards had recently rented a house in Leyton and when questioned the
neighbours said they had noticed him digging deep trenches in the garden.
This was enough for the police and they moved in and excavated the whole
garden. What their search revealed were the dismembered bodies of the Darby
family, John and his wife, both in their twenties, and their ten-week-old
daughter. Both adults had been battered to death while Ethel Beatrice had
been strangled.
It seemed that the Darby's had wanted to sell their shop and had placed
an advertisment which Edwards had answered. A meeting was agreed and having
been shown around the shop Edwards asked to see the books. John Darby stayed
down in the shop while his wife with their 10 week old daughter in her
arms tooks Edwards upstairs to see the accounts. Once alone he produced
the lead sash weight and struck her over the back of the head with it crushing
her skull. He then calmly strangled the little girl. He called to John
Darby to come upstairs where he gave him the same treatment. The room look
like a slaugherhouse with blood splashed over the walls. He emptied the
till and over a period of time slowly sold off all the stock in the shop.
His motive was simply greed and he might have got away with it had he not
tried a repeat performance.
Edwards was tried at the Old Bailey in February 1903 and his defence
was one of insanity, of which there seemed to be an abundant history in
his family. His plea was not accepted and he was found guilty and sentenced
to death.
His last remarks to the chaplain on the scaffold, on 3rd March 1903,
would seem to suggest that perhaps his plea of insanity should have been
accepted by the court. He is recorded as saying, I've been looking forward
to this lot! He was not to be disappointed and his life was ended at Wandsworth
prison by William Billington.
Erskine, Kenneth
A 24-year-old sexual psychopath who preyed on the elderly and became known
as the 'Stockwell Strangler'.
On 7th April 1987 the body of 78-year-old, retired schoolteacher, Miss
Eileen Emms was found in her home. In June there were three more murders,
67-year-old Mrs Janet Cockett, 84-year-old Valentine Gleim and 94-year-old
Zbigniew Stabrawa.
In July three more elderly people were strangled in their homes. These
were 82-year-old William Carmen, 74-year-old
William Downes and 80-year-old Mrs Florence Tisdall. In none of the
cases had there been a struggle and they were no
signs of any forced entry. It looked as though their attacker had got
in through unsecured windows. In some of the cases
the victims had been robbed.
In the early hours of 27th June 73-year-old Frederick Prentice was awoken
by sounds of someone entering his bedroom. He switched on the light and
told the intruder to get out. He was then attacked and was being strangled
when he freed one hand and pressed the alarm at the side of his bed. His
assailant ran off.
A pathologist involved in the case reported that, from the pattern of
injuries, it looked as though all the killings were linked. It appeared
that the killer had knelt on the victim's chests, had placed his left hand
over the mouth and had used the right hand to throttle the victims. In
four of the seven cases the victim had been buggered after death. Forensic
scientists discovered a single hair at the scene of Emms' killing and found
shoe marks that matched at three of the scenes.
At the scene of the Cockett murder fingerprints were found on a displaced
plantpot and there was a palm print on the
wall of the Downes' kitchen. They were found to belong to Kenneth Erskine
who had a criminal record for burglary.
But Erskine's whereabouts were not known. It was discovered that he
was collecting Social Security payments and a watch was kept at the office
where he signed-on. When he appeared he was duly arrested.
At an identity parade he was recognised instantly by Frederick Prentice.
Examination of his building society accounts showed that during the three
months of the murders he had paid in around £3,000, including £300
the morning after the Carmen murder. The old man was known to have kept
about £400 in cash in his bedroom.
A hairdresser told police that she had been approached by Erskine who
had requested that she bleach his head and pubic hair. She had agreed to
the former but had refused the latter request. She said that while he was
sitting waiting for the bleach to take effect he had taken the bowl with
the bleach and had applied it to his public region. He had also tried to
bleach his eyebrows and had got some of the chemical into his eyes and
needed help in washing it out. DNA fingerprinting with swabs taken from
the Downes murder indicated that Erskine could have been responsible but
they could not prove it conclusively.
His trial opened at the Old Bailey on 12th January 1988. He faced seven
counts of murder and one of attempted murder.
He pleaded not guilty but the jury did not believe him and he was found
guilty on all eight counts. He was given seven life
sentences for the murders and 12 years' imprisonment for the attempted
murder. The judge recommended that he should
serve a minimum of 40 years, the longest period of detention ever recommended.
Evans, Gwynne Owen & Allen, Peter Anthony
On the morning of the 7 April 1964 at approximately 3 am neighbours were
woken up by thuds and strange noises coming from next door. He looked out
of the window to see a car disapearing at speed down the road. The neighbour
felt uneasy and called the police.
The police found John Alan West, a 53 year old van driver dead. He had
severe head injuries and a stab wound in the chest. A raincoat was found
in the house and in the pockets were a medallion inscribed 'G.O. Evans,
July, 1961' and an Army Memo Form with the name 'Norma O'Brien' on it.
Miss O'Brien was traced to Liverpool and told police that, in 1963, she
had stayed with her sister and brother-in-law at Preston. There she met
a man called 'Ginger' Evans and confirmed that she had seen him wearing
the medallion around his neck.
Evans was lodging with Allen and his wife in Preston and the pair were
picked up by police within 48 hours. Evans had a watch inscribed to John
West in his pocket.
Allen alleged that they had visited West so that owen could borrow some
money from him. He had worked with him at the same factory at some time
in the past. What happened after that is not at all clear but Evans maintained
that it was Allen who killed West.
The two men were tried at Manchester Crown Court and both found guilty
of murder. They had the honour of being the last two to be hung in Britain.
They were both hanged on 13 August 1964, Allen was hung at Liverpool
by Robert Leslie Stewart and Evans at Manchester by Harry Allen.
Edwards, Christopher
Christopher Edwards was a thirty four year old locksmith who brutally
murdered his wife, Rosanna, at Willenhall on 20th April 1872. The crime
was carried out in a fit of drunken jealousy and with no compassion he
brutally beat her brains out with a poker. It was her screams that alerted
the neighbours who rushed in to find her dead on the floor. While their
two children lay asleep in an adjacent room. Edwards had frequently beaten
her and in order to protect herself she had started carrying a knife in
case he tried to assault her. The jury at Staffordshire Assizes on 28 July
took less than ten minutes to return a guilty verdict and he was hung on
the 12th August 1872. He was hanged by George Smith at Stafford.
Elliot, Augustus
Augustus Eliiot was hanged on the 9th December 1872 by William Calcraft
at Newgate for the murder of twenty two year old Ellen Moore. On
l4 September, Ellen Moore a 22 year old prostitute, was visited at her
room in Hoxton by Augustus Elliot. He had been an old boyfriend of
hers and she had known him for about four years. They got on well and enjoyed
each others company and were seen together in various pubs and cafes. On
the afternoon of 16 September, the landlady at Ellen's lodgings heard a
series of shots and rushed upstairs to find the couple lying wounded on
the bed. Before she died Ellen managed to whisper 'Gus done it'.
Thirty one year old Elliot was nursed back to health and then charged with
murder. He was tried at the Old Bailey and did not deny murder but claimed
that he had shot her because she refused to emigrate with him to America.
On 20 November he was found guilty and sentenced to death.
Evans, Henry
Forty five year old Henry Evans was sentenced to death at Aylesbury Assizes
in July for the murder of his wife, Annie Seabrook-Evans. Evans lived with
his wife at Oving, where she supported him with her earnings as a dressmaker.
He was a drunkard and as a result they frequently quarrelled. On Saturday
22 March 1873, Evans went to his father's house which was directly opposite
his own, and said his wife had locked up and left, taking the key with
her. He repeated this tale to many people, and spent the weekend in his
parents' spare room. On Monday morning, he left town in a pony and trap.
Neighbours became suspicious at reports of Mrs Evans' sudden and unexpected
disappearance, and decided to investigate. The door to the house was forced
and Annie Seabrook-Evans was discovered battered to death. Evans was located,
found to be in possession of her key, and was seen to be wearing trousers
with faint blood stains. He was convicted after a short trial and hanged
by George Smith.
Eblethrift, John
John Eblethrift, a ground labourer, and his wife Emma (45), were both heavy
drinkers who frequently quarrelled. She had three children from her first
marriage and when her husband died, he left her a small boat business and
a great deal of money which she soon squandered on drink. Shortly before
10pm on 24 June, Mrs Eblethrift was talking to neighbours outside her home
on Clarendon Street, Paddington. John Eblethrift emerged from the house
and headed for the local pub, returning at 11.15pm muttering threats against
his wife. Being used to his violence, Mrs Eblethrift usually locked him
out of their bedroom when he returned home drunk, but that evening a neighbour
advised her not to stay at home and offered her a bed for the night, but
she refused. Later that night, a fellow lodger heard Mrs Eblethrift cry
out and found her dead on the floor. John Eblethrift was tried at the Old
Bailey and pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty to manslaughter, saying
he stabbed her out of jealousy. He was convicted of murder and hanged at
Newgate on the 29th August by William Marwood.
Ewerstadt, Ernest
Ernest Ewerstadt, a twenty three year old Russian sailor was sentenced
to death by Mr Justice Day at Liverpool Assizes on 22 November, for the
murder of his former paramour. Ewerstadt had been living with Elizabeth
Hamblin for many months until she left him during the summer of 1884 because
he was reluctant to give her any housekeeping money. They parted but remained
on friendly terms. On 19 September he asked a friend to visit Elizabeth
with a request to meet him that night. The friend later returned with the
news that not only did she have no wish to meet him, but that she was also
in the company of two black sailors who were plying her with drink. Ewerstadt
told his friend that when he received his wages, he would buy a gun and
shoot her. The next day he bought a dagger instead, and went to find Elizabeth.
He caught up with her in a bar and told her that unless she agreed to come
back with him, there would be a 'bloody deed done that night.' She took
no notice and together they visited a friend's house where she left after
he again threatened to kill her. He followed her home, and after a quarrel
on the doorstep, stabbed her to death. He fled, but later bumped into a
friend to whom he said: 'Me kill my Lizzie, me die too!' He was tried in
Liverpool and having been found guilty was sentenced to death. The
sentence was carried out on 8th December 1884.
Eggleston, Frederick
Frederick Eggleston and Charles Raynor were both hanged for murder at Oxford
on the 17th March 1892 for the brutal murder of two gamekeepers.
It happened on the 12th December 1891when the two men, together with
a third man, Charles Smith, were poaching in a wood at Bilstone, near Aylesbury.
The three were set upon by gamekeeper Joseph Crawley and watchman William
Puddipant, and in the ensuing brawl, both men were beaten to death. Blood
was found on their clothing and their guns were found in the wood. They
were tried at Buckinghamshire Assizes before Mr Justice Lawrence. Smith
received twenty years for manslaughter, and the other two were sentenced
to death.
Edwards, Thomas
Thirty year old Thomas Edwards was convicted of the murder of Mary Connely,
a down and out, at Abergavenny on l6 September. He cut her throat with
a razor after accusing her of stealing from him, and then confessed to
the police. He was sentenced to death by Mr Justice Day at Monmouth Assizes.
It was revealed at his trial that he had a pathological hatred of tramps
ever since one of them murdered an old army colleague at Birmingham, and
he had sworn to avenge the death. The sentence was carried out by James
Billington on the 22nd December 1892 at Usk..
Elkins, Samuel
Samuel Elkins was hanged on July 18th 1894 in Winchester after he pleaded
guilty at Hampshire Assizes for the murder of William Mitchel, a tramyard
manager at Bournemouth. Mitchell had reported Elkins for a breach of duty,
and in a rage Elkins had bought a gun and shot him dead. Hanged by James
Billington on a scaffold constructed in a shed that normally housed the
prison van.
Emery, Samuel George
A private in the South Staffordshire Regiment, Samuel George Emery was
convicted of the murder of Mary Ann Marshall, whom he stabbed to death
on a road at Tynemouth on 23 July. James Billington recalled after the
execution that he was the calmest man he had ever hanged because
of the cool and totally unafraid manner in which he went to the scaffold.
He was just twenty when he died.
Ellis, Joseph Robert
Joseph Robert Ellis was a twenty two year old sailor who was convicted
of the murder of his wife at Goole. They had only been married for only
fifteen months before they separated and she went back to live with her
mother. Ellis called at the house and chased his wife and her mother out
into the street where he stabbed them both, fatally wounding his wife.
He was hanged by James Billington on the 25th August 1896 in Leeds.
Earl, Charles Robert
Charles Robert Earl was fifty six years old and a retired baker who shot
dead a Margaret Pamphilon at Mortlake. Earl had been on good terms with
the woman and her husband until shortly before the murder, when, for no
apparent reason, he began to entertain ill feelings against them. He smashed
a window at their home and was convicted of wilful damage. As a result,
he swore revenge. On 25 January, he waited in the fog and shot her as she
put the key in her door. He was tried at the Old Bailey before Mr Justice
Grantham. When told that he was not to be reprieved, he said 'Good job
too!' He was hanged by William Billington and Henry Pierrepoint on 29th
April 1902 at Wandsworth..
Edge, Frederick William
Frederick William Edge was hanged at Stafford on the 27th December 1905
for the murder of a baby boy. Edge who was a billiard marker murdered
the baby son of Frank Evans, his former landlord. Evans evicted Edge from
his lodgings at Newcastle-under-Lyme because he fell behind with his rent.
Edge swore revenge and later visited the house, entering while Mrs Evans
was upstairs. He found the baby and cut its throat, almost severing the
head. Sentenced to death at Staffordshire Assizes by Mr Justice Kennedy
and hanged by Henry Pierrepoint and John Ellis. He was just twenty
three when he died.
Elliot, Edmund Walter
Edmund Walter Elliot was a hairdresser convicted at Devon Assizes of the
murder of his unfaithful sweetheart, Clara Hannaford. On 17 November 1908,
she failed to show up for a rendezvous and he later saw her out walking
with another man. He waited for her to return home whereupon they quarrelled
and he cut her throat. Elliot then went to fetch the police saying 'I did
it with this razor... she had been out with another man tonight... I did
it on the spur of the moment.' He was hanged by John Ellis and William
Willis on the 30th March 1909 at Exeter aged nineteen..
Edmunds, John
John Edmunds was a twenty four year old labourer who was convicted
of the murder of Cecelia Harris, a married woman, whom he shot dead and
then sexually assaulted at her isolated farm near Abersychan. He wass hanged
by Henry Pierrepoint and John Ellis at Usk on the 3rd July 1909. The hangman
later stated that Edmunds was the most callous man he had ever executed,
claiming he smiled as they led him to the gallows, and that he seemed completely
indifferent to his fate.
Edmunstone, Alexander
Alexander Edmundstone was convicted of the murder of Michael Swinton Brown
who was a sixteen year old clerk from East Wemyss, Fife. On the 16th
February. Brown went to the Royal Bank of Scotland to collect the wages
for the linen manufacturers where he worked. He never returned and his
body was later found in a public lavatory, brutally beaten. A handkerchief
was tightly knotted around his neck, a cap was stuffed down his throat,
his skull had been smashed in and he had been robbed of around £85
which in 1909 was a great deal of money. Edmunstone had aroused suspicion
by his sudden disappearance and was later arrested at a guest house in
Manchester after a tip off from another lodger who had recognised him from
a police 'wanted' poster. He was taken back to Perth and at his two day
trial in June, he offered a feeble plea of insanity. The jury took just
ten minutes to find him guilty and he was hanged by John Ellis on the 6th
July 1909 He was only a young man of 23 himself when he died..
Eayres, John Francis
John Francis Eayres was a tinsmith who murdered his wife on 22 August.
She drank to excess and a dispute arose between them over a halfpenny.
She was later found dead at Peterborough with her throat cut. Eayres
was found beside her with self inflicted neck wounds. He pleaded manslaughter
at the trial before Mr Justice Avory but was convicted of murder and sentenced
to death. He was hanged by John Ellis and William Willis in Norhampton
on the 10th November 1914 at the age of fifty nine..
Ellor, James
Thirty six year old James Ellor was an ex-soldier who was working as a
hat finisher when he murdered his wife, Ada (42). On 25 March, they had
a row and as a result she left him and went to stay with a friend, a Mrs
Sayer, who lived in Hyde. Two days later, he discovered where his wife
was staying. He paid her a visit and pleaded for her to come home. Mrs
Sayer left them alone to sort out their problems, and as she was leaving
she saw Ellor get down on his knees and beg Ada's forgiveness. When Mrs
Sayer returned an hour later, she found Ada dead on the floor and Ellor
still present. He told her he had beaten his wife with a hammer after she
had refused to come home. At his Chester Assizes trial, the defence claimed
that Ellor had been wounded and gassed during the war and that as a result,
he suffered bouts of insanity. He was convicted of murder and was later
refused a reprieve. He was hanged by John Ellis and Edward Taylor at Liverpool
on the 11th August 1920..
Edisbury, George Frederick
On the night of 28th July 1922, forty four year old George Frederick Edisbury
returned to his lodgings in Manchester. He had been drinking heavily, and
started to argue with his landlady. Mrs Winifred Drinkwater who was
fifty disapproved of Edisbury's girlfriend and their general behaviour,
both were heavy drinkers, but the main thrust of her argument was that
his girlfriend was receiving a pension under false pretences. Losing his
temper, Edisbury withdrew a razor and cut Mrs Drinkwater's throat. He was
found guilty and sentenced to death at Manchester Assizes by Mr Justice
Acton on 27 November. He was hanged on the 3rd January 1923 by John
Ellis.
Elliott, Norman
Norman Elliott was a twenty two year old asylum attendant from Ferryhill
who was convicted of the murder of William Abbey, a bank clerk, on 16 February.
At his trial at Durham Assizes before Mr Justice MacKinnon on 27 June,
the prosecution alleged that Elliot, being in need of money, entered the
bank at closing time and struck Abbey over the head, then stabbed him in
the neck with a cobbler's knife before stealing 200. In his defence, Elliott
blamed another unnamed man, a compulsive gambler, but despite intensive
enquiries, the police were unable to trace him. He was visited frequently
in the death cell by his wife and young child. When the sentence was carried
out he was hanged by Thomas Pierrepoint and Robert Wilson on 10th August
1928 in Durham..
Edwards, Trevor
Trevor Edwards and his sweetheart Elsie Cook came from the same Welsh mining
village of Cynon Valley. On Sunday morning, 17 June, a man rushed to the
local police station and told them that he had seen a man bleeding heavily
from the neck. Officers investigated and the blood soaked man told them
that he had killed his sweetheart and that she was lying on a nearby hillside.
He admitted cutting her throat with a razor. He was tried at Glamorgan
Assizes before Mr Justice Branson on 22nd November and pleaded insanity.
It was shown in court that his family had a history of insanity and that
his father had died in a local asylum. Despite all the evidence to support
the insanity plea, the fact that Edwards had seemed perfectly sane when
he confessed to the murder weighed against him and he was sentenced to
death. He was hanged by Robert Baxter and Alfred Allen. Allen was a new
assistant, participating at possibly his first execution, and he was involved
in a dramatic experience. Baxter was very quick in noosing the prisoner
and pushing the lever. Unfortunately for Allen, he was not able to get
clear of the doors and followed Edwards into the pit. No blame was attached,
and the Governor claimed the accident was a mixture of the hangman's alacrity
and Allen's slightly defective vision. The sentence had been carried out
in Swansea on the 11th December 1928 with Edwards being only twenty years
old.
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For more information contact:
Gregg Manning
