John Van der Kiste - Surrey Murders

JOHN VAN DER KISTE

First published in 2009

The History Press

The Mill, Brimscombe Port

Stroud, Gloucestershire, GL5 2QG

www.thehistorypress.co.uk

This ebook edition first published in 2012

All rights reserved

John Van der Kiste, 2011, 2012

The right of John Van der Kiste, to be identified as the Author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyrights, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

This ebook is copyright material and must not be copied, reproduced, transferred, distributed, leased, licensed or publicly performed or used in any way except as specifically permitted in writing by the publishers, as allowed under the terms and conditions under which it was purchased or as strictly permitted by applicable copyright law. Any unauthorised distribution or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the authors and publishers rights, and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly.

EPUB ISBN 978 0 7524 8393 1

MOBI ISBN 978 0 7524 8392 4

Original typesetting by The History Press

Hindhead, 1786

Godalming, 1817

Walton Heath, 1834

Frimley, 1850

Englefield Green, 1852

Haslemere, 1855

Richmond, 1879

Near the Merstham Tunnel, 1881

Godalming, 1888

Thames Ditton, 1903

Wrecclesham, 1904

Merstham, 1905

Croydon, 1907

Blindley Heath, 1910

Byfleet, 1924

Croydon, 19289

Farnham, 1932

Hankley Common, 1942

Milford, 1949

Chertsey, 1951

Teddington, 1953

A Divided Kingdom

A Grim Almanac of Cornwall

A Grim Almanac of Devon

A Grim Almanac of Hampshire

Berkshire Murders

Childhood at Court 18191914

Cornish Murders (with Nicola Sly)

Cornwalls Own

Crowns in a Changing World

Dearest Affie (with Bee Jordaan)

Dearest Vicky, Darling Fritz

Devon Murders

Devonshires Own

Edward VIIs Children

Emperor Francis Joseph

Frederick III

George Vs Children

George IIIs Children

Gilbert & Sullivans Christmas

Kaiser Wilhelm II

King George II and Queen Caroline

Kings of the Hellenes

More Cornish Murders (with Nicola Sly)

More Devon Murders

More Somerset Murders (with Nicola Sly)

Northern Crowns

Once a Grand Duchess (with Coryne Hall)

Plymouth: A History & Guide

Princess Victoria Melita

Queen Victorias Children

Somerset Murders (with Nicola Sly)

Sons, Servants and Statesmen

The Georgian Princesses

The Romanovs 18181959

West Country Murders (with Nicola Sly)

William and Mary

William John Wills

Windsor and Habsburg

A book of Surrey murders is bound to come up against the conflicting boundaries of the old county and the new. In this account of twenty-one cases of unlawful killings committed between 1786 and 1953, I have taken old Surrey. This therefore includes the cases of Kate Webster in 1879, the Croydon poisonings in 19289, and the towpath murders at Teddington in 1953, which all counted as Surrey in their day although since 1974 they have fallen within the domain of Greater London. Two of the murders listed in this book are unusual in that the victim was never identified, and in one of these the main suspect was eventually acquitted. In five others the killer was never brought to justice, though in one of these the murderer escaped trial by committing suicide and in some, the police had a reasonably clear idea as to who the guilty people were.

Particular thanks are due to my wife Kim for her constant support, encouragement and assistance with reading through the draft manuscript; Hannah and James Cosgrave, Lois, Tim and Lara Caister, for assistance with photography; Nicola Sly for being always ready to help with advice and information whenever needed; Surrey Police Association, and John Cooper, for permission to reproduce images of copyright material; and as ever, my editors at The History Press, Matilda Richards and Beth Amphlett, for their continued help and encouragement.

Every effort has been made to obtain permission to reuse material which may be in copyright, and I would be grateful if any holders of relevant material whose rights have been inadvertently infringed would notify us, so that a suitable correction can be made to subsequent editions.

O ne of Surreys earliest and most well-known murder cases concerned the fate of a man towards the end of the eighteenth century. Yet one element of mystery remains to this day: the name of the unfortunate victim.

On the evening of 24 September 1786 a sailor walking along Portsmouth Road stopped at an inn, probably the White Lion, at Mousehill, Milford, near Godalming. While enjoying a drink he made the acquaintance of three fellow sailors, Michael Casey, 42, Edward Lanigon, 26, and James Marshall, 24. Perhaps he recognised one of them as an old shipmate, or maybe he was on his own, and being an outgoing soul, relished some company before returning to sea. He had some money on him at the time, and while he would have been safer finding a coach to take him back to port before rejoining his vessel, he preferred to stop at an inn and pass the time with fellow patrons first. Sadly for him, they turned out to be anything but trustworthy.

Being in a generous frame of mind, he treated them each to a drink. Once they had finished, all of them walked to Thursley, where they stopped at the Red Lion, the last watering hole before a steep climb up the Devils Punchbowl, for more drinks. Again, he stood them all drinks. The inn was quite busy and several other people there at the same time later remembered having seen the four men together. Two of them were about to take the same road themselves.

Once the four men had finished, they set out on their way. The first sailors fate was almost certainly sealed by now. Casey, Lanigon and Marshall had probably been looking out for such a person. They may have decided beforehand to lie in wait for somebody whom one of them would pretend to greet as an old shipmate, lure into conversation and then help his companions to get their hands on his money. After having journeyed on foot a while, they reached a secluded spot and the three opportunists attacked their unwitting benefactor. They knocked him to the ground, stripped and robbed him, then mutilated him with their knives, butchering him so savagely that his head was almost severed from his body. Having taken his money and anything else of value, they dragged his body and tipped him down the slope of the Punchbowl.