A 92 -year -old man has been found guilty of rape and murder of an elderly widow, which is considered to resolve the British’s longest cold case.
Ryland Headley, then at the age of 34, forced Louisa Louisa in June 1967 to attack her before entering the house of 75 -year -old Louisa Duna.
On the morning of June 28, the body of two was found by neighbors inside his house on Britannia Road in Easton area of the city.
A woman was heard shouting a few hours before Mrs. Dunna, who had become a widow twice and lived alone, she was discovered dead.
Mrs. Dune, who was using the front room as a bedroom, was lying on a pile of old clothes and the police found no evidence of any violent struggle in the house.
The case remained unresolved for more than 50 years until the Avon and Summerset detectives closed the objects from the original check for DNA testing.
The results gave Headley a DNA match, which had moved to Safok since the murder, and in 1977, he had sentenced to jail for rape of two elderly women.
Headley of Clarence Road in Ipswich denied both allegations, but was found guilty by a jury in the Bristol Crown Court on Monday afternoon after nine hours and 53 -minute deliberations. He did not give evidence.
Mr. Justice Sweeting told the jury of eight men and four women that he would sentence Headley for two crimes on Tuesday morning.
He told him: “This was a case that remained in the eyes of the public.
“This included many details that are not doubt. If you are called again for jury service in the next 10 years, you are entitled to refuse.”
The test heard that a pathologist concluded that Mrs. Dune died of asphalt, which was strangled by a scarf and pressure on her mouth, forcibly with hand to hand.
Mrs was taken from the body of Mrs. Dunna, who conducted a positive test for semen, but scientific examinations were limited at that time.
The police also recovered a left -handed palm print from a top window at their home, which was compared to 19,000 men and boys in 1967, but no one matches the suspect.
Headley, then a railway worker, living with his wife at Pictton Street – Mrs. Dunna around one mile and one and a half miles, but excluded excluded the geographical area, which was asked to give prints to men and boys.
After some time he overthrown his family in London, then went to Ipswich, never taken to Bristol with his Palm print.
Eventually, the police assembled the material from their investigation – including the clothes worn by Mrs. Duna, when her body was found – and removed it for further work in future.
All evidence, including Mrs. Dunna clothing and other forensic evidence, was boxed and kept by Avon and Summerset detectives to wait for progress in science.
The case was re -investigated in 2023 and the blue skirt of Mrs. Duna was sent for forensic tests in May last year.
DNA, recovering from the skirt, matched Headley with a ratio, which meant that it was one billion times more likely to have her DNA than anyone else.
His DNA was taken by the police and uploaded to the National Database in 2012 after an unrelated crime, resulting in not an allegation.
When Headley was arrested at her house in November last year on suspicion of killing Mrs. Duna, she said to the detectives: “I don’t know what you are talking about. Very strange, very strange.”
During the previous arrest, Headley provided his fingers mark, but did not give palm prints. As of 2012, it noted “not flexible to arthritis in both wrists, not flexible”.
This time, Headley’s palm prints were taken and a fingerprint specialist found more than 25 features that coincided with a print of 1967.
Headley was heard that Headley was imprisoned for the rape of two elderly women in 1977, whom he had broken in homes – if he did not comply with him, threatened them with violence.
He first asked to keep 10 theft offenses in mind when the sentence was sentenced.
During the case of 2025, Headley used a hearing loop and assisted by an intermediary. The gamblers were told that the court would sit for less days to enable Headley to maintain concentration.
Jeremy Banson Casey, who represented Headley, said that his client had “no memory” to visit Mrs. Duna or to have sexual intercourse with him.
“He certainly did not rape her and did not kill her,” Mr. Banson told the jury in her closing speech.
Speaking after the verdict, Detective Inspector Dave Merchant of the Evon and Summerset Police said that the army across the country was now investigating whether Headley could be linked with other unresolved crimes.
He said, “Railend Headley has now been convicted of three rapes of elderly women within his own address, and in the case of Louisa Dunne, her murder too.”
“In 1978, when he was sentenced, he admitted several other theft crimes.
“I think there is every possibility that there are other crimes – in the 60s, in the 70s, although a long period of time – which can be guilty for Sri Headley.
“We are working with colleagues across the country and other police forces and National Crime Agency, so that we can try to understand and identify those potential forward crimes, and if possible, can we match them through any forensic technology etc. and if we are capable, hope that they will also find them in front of the court to face justice on those matters.”
