Behind the Crimes with Robert Murphy Robert Murphy

To coincide with the launch of my true crime book ‘Decoy’ I’ve updated and reissued this podcast featuring a rare and exclusive interview with Chris Gould.
In the 1970s, the city of Bristol was terrorised by a man nicknamed ‘The Clifton Rapist.’ The stranger-attacker assaulted seven women over a two-year period.
PC Chris Gould suggested a daring honeytrap: Avon and Somerset Police should set up an innovative undercover sting, using young rookie police officers as decoys to catch him.
This was a monumental gamble, putting the lives of their youngest, least-experienced female officers on the line.
But 12 women volunteered.
As the weeks passed, with no further attacks, commanders made an even more innovative move. And Chris’s career was never the same again.
How was the predator caught and justice achieved? Chris has never spoken in this detail before.
+++ Grab your copy of Decoy here in the UK: https://tinyurl.com/fd759pmh +++
+++ Or here in the USA: https://tinyurl.com/yethzdum +++
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NB: This is a reissue of a podcast episode first released in November 2023


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Nearly 20 years had passed and forensic scientist Dr Colin Dark received a call asking if he’d like to take on the case of Hilda Murrell.
What clues had been left at the scene? How could they be analysed using modern techniques? And what truths would emerge about the theories surrounding her murder?
This is a short p…

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On March 21st 1984, Hilda Murrell disappeared. It would take police three days to find her - yet her body was in the obvious place.
She had been murdered.
But by whom?
Now the conspiracy theories started: Did the British government want Hilda dead because of her awkward questions about a new nuclear power station? Was she killed because of her links with naval intelligence?
And was the phone line disconnection in her home the work of a bungling amateur or a professional hitman?
This is a free episode and the first part of a two-part mini series. Episode two is for paid subscribers.



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Screenwriter George Kay (Hijack, Lupin, The Long Shadow, Criminal UK) was talking with his mother about a potential project: would he be interested in writing a script about the Lord Lucan mystery?
Then, she dropped the bombshell: he had a personal link with the other Lucan nanny Christabel Boyce.
George wanted to speak with Christabel - she would be a primary source and knew the main characters from ‘74.
This was impossible, his mother said. Christabel had herself been murdered by her husband ten years later.
In this conversation, George and Behind the Crimes host Rob Murphy discuss how a private diary found by police investigating Cristabel’s murder in 1985 shed new light on Sandra’s killing.
And the parallels between the Lucan marriage and the Boyce’s are chilling.
Parts 1 and 2 of this trilogy are available, you may want to listen to these first.


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In her book ‘A Different Class of Murder: The Story of Lord Lucan’ writer Laura Thompson suggests six possible scenarios of what happened on the night of November 7th 1974.
Was Lady Lucan the target? Did Lord Lucan carry out the killing himself or - as with the rest of his life - did he get help?
And speaking of help, did his rich, powerful gambling friends at the Clermont Club aid his disappearance? Or were they - like he - a target of 1970s society?
You can get a copy of Laura’s incredible book here.


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Within a few moments on the night of November 7th 1974, Lord Lucan killed his children’s nanny, tried to murder his wife - and then disappeared.
But that attack had been brewing for months, years even. And still - half a century on - people argue about what really happened.
Was his estranged wife really the target?
Was it Lucan in the cellar with the lead piping? Or a hitman? Had he somehow bungled an attempt to kill his wife?
And what about his rich, powerful gambling friends? Did they help his escape?
To research her book ‘A Different Class of Murder: The story of Lord Lucan’ award-winning author Laura Thompson spoke with people who knew the couple and investigated Sandra’s death.
In this interview, she argues that when you strip away the myths, the facts look different to the familiar story.
You can grab a copy of Laura’s book here: https://amzn.to/48UEXpb
Part 2 will be next week.


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