John Cannan, a man suspected of the murder of missing estate agent Suzy Lamplugh and another woman, has died in prison. The 70-year-old was incarcerated in 1989 for the kidnap and murder of newlywed Shirley Banks from Bristol. He was later linked to the murder of 25 year old Ms Lamplugh, a London resident who vanished in 1986. Her remains have yet to be discovered, reports the Mirror, and the man has now died.
Cannan had long been suspected of being responsible for the “House For Sale” rape spree, in which a series of mysterious rapes occurred in homes for sale in the West Midlands, where he was living at the time. Those crimes stopped in early 1980 when Cannan began a new relationship. He later attacked the woman he woman he was dating, strangling her during sex while telling her he planned to kill her.
(Image: SWNS.com)
He went on to serve five years of an eight-year sentence for a rape he committed while robbing a ladies’ knitwear shop. Cannan was on day release from prison at the time of the murder of 27-year-old insurance clerk Sandra Court in Bournemouth and in the lead up to the disappearance of Suzy Lamplugh in July 1986.
While police believe he was responsible for both crimes, he has never been formally charged for either of them. In late 1987, Cannan tried to abduct Julia Holman, a 30-year-old businesswoman from Bristol, but she managed to fight him off and later identified him as her attacker.
The day after his attack on Holman, he kidnapped 29-year-old textile factory manager Shirley Banks, keeping her captive overnight and forcing her to call in sick from work before killing her. Cannan was arrested on October 29, 1987, after he assaulted a shop assistant at knife-point in Leamington Spa. Two passers-by chased him and called the police.
During the pursuit, officers found a knife and bag with blood on it that had apparently been discarded by the suspect. A search of Cannan’s car revealed rope and an imitation handgun, police also found rope hidden in a toilet cistern in a garage.
Cannan was charged with a catalogue of crimes including the abduction and murder of Shirley Banks. After a three-week trial, Cannan was jailed for life by Mr Justice Drake at Exeter Crown Court.
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