The UK’s oldest cold case has finally been solved after more than six decades. A British court sentenced 92-year-old Ryland Headley to life in prison for the 1967 rape and murder of 75-year-old Louisa Dunne. The ruling came at Bristol Crown Court, where Judge Derek Sweeting said, “You will never be released, you will die in prison.”
At the time of the crime, Headley was 34 years old. He had broken into Dunne’s home and attacked her in an act the judge described as brutal and terrifying. “She must have experienced considerable pain and fear before her death,” the judge added.
UK’s Oldest Cold Case Resolved With DNA Match
Police reopened the UK’s oldest cold case in 2023, using advanced forensic tools. Investigators eventually matched DNA from the victim’s skirt to Headley. In addition, they reviewed other pieces of evidence collected during the original investigation. Together, these findings confirmed his role in the crime.
Earlier, in 1977, Headley had already been convicted of two other violent assaults. He broke into the homes of two widows and raped them. At the time, he received a life sentence. However, the sentence was later reduced to just seven years on appeal.
Judge Sweeting noted that these previous attacks revealed a “chilling pattern of behaviour.” Moreover, he emphasized that the 1967 crime “violated the sanctity and safety of Mrs Dunne’s home where she had every right to feel secure.”
According to Doughty Street Chambers, Headley’s legal team, this case marks Britain’s oldest solved cold case murder. They noted that it had remained unsolved longer than any other case in the country’s legal history.
With this verdict, British authorities have finally closed a case that haunted investigators and victims’ families for decades. Headley had already served two years for the 1977 crimes before authorities identified him as the attacker in the 1967 murder.