UK UK - Ann Heron, 44, found at home with throat cut, Darlington, 3 August 1990

[Jen Jarvie]

How would the murderer know that AH was alone at the house? How did PH know that the murderer wasn't still in the house 'when he found AH's body'? Only PH would know the answer to both questions. IMO

He didn't......

 

[Jen Jarvie]

Would a self-righteous local (what would they be self-righteous about?) be careful not to damage property, remove her bikini bottoms, use a box cutter of the type used by haulage companies as the murder weapon, and do so in a downstairs location where PH's semen just happened to be concentrated, including in her throat. The out of character long way home on that day is also incriminating IMO. Why did PH make that bizarre journey on the very day his wife was murdered and not on some other random day?

This wasn't out of character; just the long way back to the office; entering the village a different way. This was a journey often taken by Peter Heron.

 

[Jen Jarvie]

Would a self-righteous local (what would they be self-righteous about?) be careful not to damage property, remove her bikini bottoms, use a box cutter of the type used by haulage companies as the murder weapon, and do so in a downstairs location where PH's semen just happened to be concentrated, including in her throat. The out of character long way home on that day is also incriminating IMO. Why did PH make that bizarre journey on the very day his wife was murdered and not on some other random day?

Just to clarify too. The haulage company mainly hauled steel so a box cutter was not a usual tool.

 

[CSIAngus]

Just to clarify too. The haulage company mainly hauled steel so a box cutter was not a usual tool.

They didn't just haul steel though. They also had extensive warehousing, and multiple company registrations suggesting diversity in their trading model even back then.

Are you going to respond to the question about Benson's criminal history of violence against women?

 

[WiseOwl]

To clarify Peter was called to an unexpected meeting at 3.15pm and left for the meeting at 3.45pm what lasted till 4.20pm. From there he left and took the long way back to the office arriving at about 4.45pm. The journey was witnessed by several people. I hope that clarifies.

Let me get this straight: PH gets called to an unexpected meeting at 3.15 that afternoon (who made the call to him and why was it unexpected?). You stated he left for the meeting (presumably from his office) at 3.45. So by the time he got to the meeting at Cleveland Bridge it must have been more-or-less 4.00. The meeting finished at 4.20, so what was so important or unexpected about a meeting that lasted a mere 20 minutes?

As this meeting bit a large chunk into his work that afternoon, one would of thought that PH might have wanted to get back to his office asap but instead he decides to drive the leisurely route taking nearly half-an-hour to get back to work - why would he do this on this particular afternoon?

 

[JennieM]

I watched the documentary too a while back and like others here also thought that PH didn’t come across very well. If I remember right he initially lied to police about his whereabouts and timings to conceal his affair? You would think that a loving husband would do everything in his power to give LE all the information they need to catch his wife’s murderer. Some of his comments were questionable. I too thought that sending someone else to witness the murder scene was suspicious, as well as his long route back from the meeting.

The wiki gives a good summary of the case.

Murder of Ann Heron - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[JennieM]

Really strange case. Having seen the CW reconstruction, read about the case, and seen the documentary it is still a mystery, and I feel a lot of facts, and background information have not been released into the public domain (for instance, Ann's social circle, her 1st Husband, or any contacts back in Scotland). The police seem to think the guilty party is the husband. He was having an affair which suggest all wasn't well in their relationship, and was unlikeable in the documentary,
However, if he was the culprit (or set it up via a hit) surely he would either refuse to take part in the show, or at least present a better image of himself. He hasn't kept a low profile since the murder, and most of this concerns trying to clear his name. This edges me towards the theory that HE IS innocent. The sperm in the throat, the lack of a clear break in, sexual assualt or struggle though is pretty damning for him though

Welcome to WS! Did you watch Michael Peterson in The Staircase? He appeared in a whole docuseries after the mysterious death of his wife! He didn’t come across very well either to say the least.

IMO PH’s participation in the documentary is no proof of his innocence.

 

[Westchester76]

Welcome to WS! Did you watch Michael Peterson in The Staircase? He appeared in a whole docuseries after the mysterious death of his wife! He didn’t come across very well either to say the least.

IMO PH’s participation in the documentary is no proof of his innocence.

No I did not watch The Staircase, and I'm far from certain PH is innocent, but if it ended up being a stranger murder, or someone from Anne's social circle, you can comfortably bat away why PH was suspected.

The Drive / Meeting - Whether of not this included seeing his lover, the long drive could be something he did with some regularity
The Discovery of the body, and sending in his friend. PH was in shock and perhaps could not bare to check that Ann was acutually deceased. He probably wasn't thinking straight.

 

[Jen Jarvie]

I watched the documentary too a while back and like others here also thought that PH didn’t come across very well. If I remember right he initially lied to police about his whereabouts and timings to conceal his affair? You would think that a loving husband would do everything in his power to give LE all the information they need to catch his wife’s murderer. Some of his comments were questionable. I too thought that sending someone else to witness the murder scene was suspicious, as well as his long route back from the meeting.

The wiki gives a good summary of the case.

Murder of Ann Heron - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

The Wiki page has lots of misinformation on it and not a good source of fact

 

[Bethan]

In the references at the foot of the Wikipedia page I found an episode of this rather ghoulish Channel 5 series “Blood Under the Carpet” which I’d never heard of.

Link above to the episode ( aired in 2002) which includes Aeolian House & the family who bought the house & built a dog kennels & cattery in the grounds.

There is quite a long segment with footage taken inside the house, including the living room where Ann’s body was found, and outside, where traffic can be seen passing at the front of the house.

I get the impression that when this programme was filmed perhaps not a lot had been changed inside the house ( IMO)

I also found it interesting to get an idea of just how busy the road was ( in 2002) & how visible the house is from the road.

We know a friend of Ann’s who was on a bus passing Aeolian House on the afternoon of 3rd August 1990 saw Ann sunbathing & that Ann was fond of topping up her tan.

It made me think……

Perhaps Ann’s husband didn’t like her sunbathing in a bikini, in view of the road?
Perhaps this was an issue between husband & wife?
Perhaps PH had told his wife not to sunbathe at the front of the house In a bikini?
Perhaps he was an angry/controlling/possessive husband who arrived home to find he had been disobeyed?
Perhaps a husband, who himself is having an affair, is more suspicious of his wife doing the same? A wife who we know enjoys socialising with her own friends, without him, as was planned for that very evening?

This is all supposition of course….

IMO MOO etc

Edited to correct a fact.

 

[WiseOwl]

The Wiki page has lots of misinformation on it and not a good source of fact

Hi,

Could you please point out which parts of the Wiki article about Ann's murder have lots of misinformation? The source of the info on there is clearly stated by the numbered references it refers to. The information is taken from some of the following media outlets: TeessideLive, Daily Record, Middlesborough Evening Gazette, The Northern Echo, The Times, The Sunday Times, The Guardian, Crimewatch UK, BBC News & Sky News to name but a few. Which of these media outlets have unreliable information about Ann's murder?

I also (thanks to the Wiki page) found out the following information: (This is taken from The Northern Echo dated 6th August 2015, a letter to the Durham police chief from Peter Heron).

'During my interrogation in 2005 and presumably as part of the prosecution case against me, the police insisted that I could not account for a full two hours of my day on August 3, 1990, the day of Ann’s murder.

That is wrong. I had lunch with Ann at 1pm and returned to the office at 2pm. At about 3pm I received a telephone call from a client, Cleveland Bridge, who asked me to attend his office to discuss a contract my company was tendering for. As requested by him, I left the office shortly after 3pm and made the short journey to Cleveland Bridge and was in front of the client and two of his colleagues by about 3.15pm. I left the meeting at about 4.30pm and returned to the office via Croft and through Middleton St George village arriving back in the office at 5pm, returning home at 6pm to find Ann dead on our living room floor. Each and every step of my movements as I’ve described are corroborated by witness statements in Durham Constabulary’s own prosecution bundle of ‘evidence’ presented to my solicitor'

Full article here: I am innocent, it's time to clear my name - Peter Heron's letter to Durham police chief

The times PH state are different from the ones that you yourself have quoted on this thread:

PH: Call to attend meeting about 3pm
JJ: Call to attend meeting at 3.15pm
PH: Left office just after 3pm
JJ: Left office at 3.45pm
PH: Meeting started 3.15pm
JJ: Meeting started at ? (not stated)
PH: Left meeting at 4.30pm
JJ: Left meeting at 4.20pm
PH: Back at office at 5pm
JJ: Back at office at 4.45pm.

Would it be possible for you to explain why the information you have on that afternoon differs to PH's version?

TIA

 

[Jen Jarvie]

Hi,

Could you please point out which parts of the Wiki article about Ann's murder have lots of misinformation? The source of the info on there is clearly stated by the numbered references it refers to. The information is taken from some of the following media outlets: TeessideLive, Daily Record, Middlesborough Evening Gazette, The Northern Echo, The Times, The Sunday Times, The Guardian, Crimewatch UK, BBC News & Sky News to name but a few. Which of these media outlets have unreliable information about Ann's murder?

I also (thanks to the Wiki page) found out the following information: (This is taken from The Northern Echo dated 6th August 2015, a letter to the Durham police chief from Peter Heron).

'During my interrogation in 2005 and presumably as part of the prosecution case against me, the police insisted that I could not account for a full two hours of my day on August 3, 1990, the day of Ann’s murder.

That is wrong. I had lunch with Ann at 1pm and returned to the office at 2pm. At about 3pm I received a telephone call from a client, Cleveland Bridge, who asked me to attend his office to discuss a contract my company was tendering for. As requested by him, I left the office shortly after 3pm and made the short journey to Cleveland Bridge and was in front of the client and two of his colleagues by about 3.15pm. I left the meeting at about 4.30pm and returned to the office via Croft and through Middleton St George village arriving back in the office at 5pm, returning home at 6pm to find Ann dead on our living room floor. Each and every step of my movements as I’ve described are corroborated by witness statements in Durham Constabulary’s own prosecution bundle of ‘evidence’ presented to my solicitor'

Full article here: I am innocent, it's time to clear my name - Peter Heron's letter to Durham police chief

The times PH state are different from the ones that you yourself have quoted on this thread:

PH: Call to attend meeting about 3pm
JJ: Call to attend meeting at 3.15pm
PH: Left office just after 3pm
JJ: Left office at 3.45pm
PH: Meeting started 3.15pm
JJ: Meeting started at ? (not stated)
PH: Left meeting at 4.30pm
JJ: Left meeting at 4.20pm
PH: Back at office at 5pm
JJ: Back at office at 4.45pm.

Would it be possible for you to explain why the information you have on that afternoon differs to PH's version?

TIA

The misinformation on the wiki page has tried to be corrected but the edits are continually deleted - yes there are many; yes they are referenced but are mostly from newspapers and not always accurate articles.

If you look at thd timings given by Peter he states 'about' not specifics. Also Peter Heron is in his 80s and wasn't giving specific timings and journalists sometimes misquote too.
The timing I have given are agreed by Peter Heron and from the files.

 

[Jen Jarvie]

In the references at the foot of the Wikipedia page I found an episode of this rather ghoulish Channel 5 series “Blood Under the Carpet” which I’d never heard of.

Link above to the episode ( aired in 2002) which includes Aeolian House & the family who bought the house & built a dog kennels & cattery in the grounds.

There is quite a long segment with footage taken inside the house, including the living room where Ann’s body was found, and outside, where traffic can be seen passing at the front of the house.

I get the impression that when this programme was filmed perhaps not a lot had been changed inside the house ( IMO)

I also found it interesting to get an idea of just how busy the road was ( in 2002) & how visible the house is from the road.

We know a friend of Ann’s who was on a bus passing Aeolian House on the afternoon of 3rd August 1990 saw Ann sunbathing & that Ann was fond of topping up her tan.

It made me think……

Perhaps Ann’s husband didn’t like her sunbathing in a bikini, in view of the road?
Perhaps this was an issue between husband & wife?
Perhaps PH had told his wife not to sunbathe at the front of the house In a bikini?
Perhaps he was an angry/controlling/possessive husband who arrived home to find he had been disobeyed?
Perhaps a husband, who himself is having an affair, is more suspicious of his wife doing the same? A wife who we know enjoys socialising with her own friends, without him, as was planned for that very evening?

This is all supposition of course….

IMO MOO etc

Edited to correct a fact.

The house had changed substantially from 1990 to when the footage was taken.
As regards Peter Heron's attitude to Ann; he wasn't controlling and/or possessive. There was no problem from either party regarding the sunbathing at the front or back of the house.
In 1990 and in August, the visibility from the road was not as clear as it is now.

The woman on the bus ( not a friend but a co worker who didnt really know Ann) was interviewed 9 days after the incident and only gave information that had been made public in the newspapers. The sighting is not as reliable as thought.

 

[CSIAngus]

The misinformation on the wiki page has tried to be corrected but the edits are continually deleted - yes there are many; yes they are referenced but are mostly from newspapers and not always accurate articles.

If you look at thd timings given by Peter he states 'about' not specifics. Also Peter Heron is in his 80s and wasn't giving specific timings and journalists sometimes misquote too.
The timing I have given are agreed by Peter Heron and from the files.

Peter Heron wasn't always in his 80s though. He was 55 when the murder was committed. The discrepancies have been building up over 30 years.

 

[CSIAngus]

The house had changed substantially from 1990 to when the footage was taken.
As regards Peter Heron's attitude to Ann; he wasn't controlling and/or possessive. There was no problem from either party regarding the sunbathing at the front or back of the house.
In 1990 and in August, the visibility from the road was not as clear as it is now.

The woman on the bus ( not a friend but a co worker who didnt really know Ann) was interviewed 9 days after the incident and only gave information that had been made public in the newspapers. The sighting is not as reliable as thought.

Eye witness accounts are the biggest single cause of miscarriages of justice (MOO as I don't have a link at hand) so they should always be treated with caution. I'm more interested in Benson though. What is there in his conviction record that is evidence of violence towards women. Every conviction is delivered in public so there is no reason why you would not be able to cite this given that you have stated that you have his conviction record. I've asked before but you have not responded. You won an award from somewhere for 'Investigator of the Year' for linking Benson to the case, so this shouldn't be difficult. I reiterate, what is the evidence in Benson's criminal past that indicates that he was a danger to women?

 

[WiseOwl]

The misinformation on the wiki page has tried to be corrected but the edits are continually deleted - yes there are many; yes they are referenced but are mostly from newspapers and not always accurate articles.

If you look at thd timings given by Peter he states 'about' not specifics. Also Peter Heron is in his 80s and wasn't giving specific timings and journalists sometimes misquote too.
The timing I have given are agreed by Peter Heron and from the files.

Thank you for your reply.

I am surprised by your answer to the newspaper articles on the wiki page. Surely as a cold case investigator you would have researched old newspaper reports regarding Ann's murder? Every tv show i have watched on cold case investigations always has the investigators pouring over old newspaper articles about the case as sometimes that is all they have to go on. So how does someone like yourself, as a cold case investigator, decide what information from old newspaper articles is reliable or not?

As regards to the letter Mr Heron sent to the police in 2015, why would he not be specific about timings? He was sending the letter to protest his innocence, yet he states 'about this time' or 'about that time', it doesn't come across as very convincing does it? Also you say the timings you have stated are agreed by Mr Heron and are from the files, why didn't he find out these correct timings when he wrote his letter back in 2015? If you are going to write to the police to protest your innocence you need to be crystal clear in what you are saying and have all the facts at your disposal surely?

 

[WiseOwl]

The misinformation on the wiki page has tried to be corrected but the edits are continually deleted - yes there are many; yes they are referenced but are mostly from newspapers and not always accurate articles.

If you look at thd timings given by Peter he states 'about' not specifics. Also Peter Heron is in his 80s and wasn't giving specific timings and journalists sometimes misquote too.
The timing I have given are agreed by Peter Heron and from the files.

I did reply to your post yesterday but there was something else i wanted to ask but forgot - apologies.

It's about the meeting that afternoon. Your timings have Mr Heron leaving his office for the meeting at 3.45pm and leaving the meeting at 4.20pm. However, you have not mentioned how long this meeting lasted for (given the timings you have supplied it couldn't have been more than 20 minutes) or why it was such a short meeting.

Mr Heron has stated that the meeting was with a client and two of his colleagues and was for a contract his company was tendering for. So, just out of interest, did Mr Heron's company get the contract?

TIA

 

[CSIAngus]

Jen Jarvie is a 'Verified Expert - Cold Case Investigator' on this site. She has received awards for linking Benson to this case but has repeated refused to state what evidence there is in Benson's (publicly available) conviction record that indicates that he was danger to women, despite stating that she has such information. That speaks volumes IMO. This must be my fourth or fifth request for her to reveal what was pronounced in public in front of a judge. What is Benson's criminal record of violence against women?

 

[ctaylor]

On the subject of Michael Benson, it looks like he was found in East Lothian in Scotland in 1999 under the name Mick van der Wall Derchange. Found this article on newspapers.com from the Western Daily Press of 26 November 1999 and it says the judge in his 1972 trial described him as a "psychopathic type"

 

[CSIAngus]

On the subject of Michael Benson, it looks like he was found in East Lothian in Scotland in 1999 under the name Mick van der Wall Derchange. Found this article on newspapers.com from the Western Daily Press of 26 November 1999 and it says the judge in his 1972 trial described him as a "psychopathic type"

As far as I can discover, all of his convictions involving violence were against men. I'm quite happy to be confounded.