Judge denies household of Muriel McKay injunction to look east London backyard for her physique
The family of Muriel McKay, who was kidnapped and murdered in 1969, have lost a bid for a High Court injunction to search an east London garden where they believe she is buried.
Mr Justice Richard Smith described the behaviour of some of Muriel’s relatives as ‘appalling’ and ‘possibly unlawful’ after the family initially used deception to access the premises.
Mr Smith said there had been ‘threats, deception, dishonesty, lies, bullying and harassment’ towards Madeleine Higson and other leaseholders.
‘There was no justification for it,’ he said.
‘Something has gone seriously wrong here, and it seems to me that in their desperation to find an answer to what has happened to the remains, the claimants and (Muriel’s grandson) Mr Mark Dyer have lost a sense of perspective and also respect for the interests, concerns, privacy and safety of others who are perceived to stand in the way of their campaign.’
Mrs McKay was snatched from her home in 1969 by Indo-Trinidadian brothers Arthur and Nizam Hosein, who mistakenly believed she was the wife of media mogul Rupert Murdoch and demanded a £1million ransom.
The duo were convicted and jailed for Mrs McKay’s murder in 1970, but her body has never been discovered despite several police searches.
Muriel McKay was snatched from her home in 1969 by Indo-Trinidadian brothers Arthur and Nizam Hosein, who mistakenly believed she was the wife of media mogul Rupert Murdoch and demanded a £1million ransom.
A view of the shared back garden of two neighbouring properties on Bethnal Green Road, east London, where the family of Muriel McKay believe her remains are buried.
Muriel’s killers, Arthur and Nizam Hosein
Her family received new hope this year, however, in the form of a tip from the daughter of a tailor who owned a shop on the site in Bethnal Green.
Barristers for Mrs McKay’s children, Ian McKay and Dianne Levinson, asked a judge to order homeowners of two neighbouring properties to conduct a ‘ground-penetrating radar survey’ of their shared back garden.
But homeowner Ms Higson opposed the injunction and told the court she and her partner had been subject to four months of intimidation and harassment by the McKay family and associates.
This included unsolicited visits from a man identifying himself as ‘Ricardo’ who claimed he wished to take photos of the garden for a “sentimental montage” for his grandfather.
This was followed by a woman who claimed to be purchasing a nearby property and wished to conduct a drainage survey, the High Court heard.
After the family later confirmed the real reason for the contact, Ms Higson continued to be bombarded with calls and visitors trying to access the garden, Mr Justice Smith said.
‘Perhaps the most appalling aspect of that harassment was the threat by Mr Mark Dyer that he would have the property “swarmed” by the press if his request was not granted, and his confirmation that this was indeed a threat,’ the judge said.
Muriel’s grandson, Mark Dyer, vowed to continue to fight for access to the garden
(R-L) Muriel’s daugher Dianne Levinson, grandson Mark Dyer and Hayley Frais, whose father once owned a tailor shop on the site and told her he believed Muriel may be bured on the premises
The Metropolitan Police said the case had not met its evidential threshold to carry out a search but it was ‘receptive to information’ that may come from a scan.
Mr Justice Smith said: ‘I was not persuaded that even if a survey was carried out, that it would be conclusive one way or the other, that it would produce incontrovertible data.’
He added: ‘The evidence of the presence of Muriel McKay’s remains at the premises, such as it is presently, seems thin.’
Mr Dyer vowed to continue the battle to search the premises for the body of his grandmother and called for the police to change its stance.
‘We are fully aware that we must continue with the legal process, and we maintain faith in the judiciary to ultimately assist us,’ he added.
‘What is deeply disappointing, however, is that the Metropolitan Police continue to hide behind the claim that the threshold for a warrant has not been met.
‘They continue to treat this as a closed case simply because the kidnappers have served their sentences, while the family is left to live a life sentence. If the police were to show the humility and empathy their role demands, they could finally bring an end to that sentence for the family.’
He added: ‘My grandmother remains kidnapped and effectively held captive at Bethnal Green Road.’
Percy Chaplin’s shop in Bethnal Green was used by notorious gangsters the Kray twins, and he employed one of Mrs McKay’s murderers, Arthur Hosein.
In 2022, when he was nearing the end of his life, Mr Chaplin told his daughter, Hayley Frais, that he believed her body could be buried on the premises.
Mr Chaplin said there had been a ‘strong and horrific stench’ during the period of the kidnap.
An associate of Hosein’s – later found with Muriel’s jewellery – also had keys to the premises, and a nearby phonebox was used by the killers to receive instructions for picking up ransom money.
Mrs Frais informed the Metropolitan Police the following year but the force took no action – and did not inform Muriel’s family of the lead.
When a £1million reward for information was later offered, Mrs Frais realised the tip may not have been passed on and contacted the family directly.
