UK UK- Eve Stratford, 21, Bunny @ Playboy Club, posed for mag. cover, later her mutilated & grotesquely staged body found @ home, London 18/03/75 *DNA*
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Currently watching West End Murders documentary, it's in 5 parts covering Linda Farrow, Eve Stratford and Lynne Weedon.
They're investigating it as ex police, former Met police dci Colin Sutton was part of the team that dealt with putting away Levi Bellfield. Two of his ex colleagues are helping him. Colin was also asked in, I think it was 2002, to review Linda's murder. The murder of these three young ladies is something that he has never been able to shake.
Already he has explained that there were no exhibits remaining to examine with Linda, he thinks they were lost when handing them over to Essex police (?). There were some slides left, which weren't in a state to be tested for dna or anything. They can't magic up DNA and there is no DNA.
If anyone has a wikipedia account that can edit info, please change the info on Linda Farrow that she is ruled out by DNA, apparently she wasn't, the documentary and Colin Sutton can be cited as the source.
There were palm and I think they also said finger prints around the arch that lead into the kitchen, there was no door, those prints have never lead to anyone.
I will try and relay pertinent points another time. But there is a new witness with Linda, a neighbour, with info I don't think I have heard before. Probably better to put info relevant to her in her own thread.
They're investigating it as ex police, former Met police dci Colin Sutton was part of the team that dealt with putting away Levi Bellfield. Two of his ex colleagues are helping him. Colin was also asked in, I think it was 2002, to review Linda's murder. The murder of these three young ladies is something that he has never been able to shake.
Already he has explained that there were no exhibits remaining to examine with Linda, he thinks they were lost when handing them over to Essex police (?). There were some slides left, which weren't in a state to be tested for dna or anything. They can't magic up DNA and there is no DNA.
If anyone has a wikipedia account that can edit info, please change the info on Linda Farrow that she is ruled out by DNA, apparently she wasn't, the documentary and Colin Sutton can be cited as the source.
There were palm and I think they also said finger prints around the arch that lead into the kitchen, there was no door, those prints have never lead to anyone.
I will try and relay pertinent points another time. But there is a new witness with Linda, a neighbour, with info I don't think I have heard before. Probably better to put info relevant to her in her own thread.
I am now starting to understand better where you're coming from. You watched West End Murders? Because while watching it I started to get bits and bobs of what you were saying.
They're trying to tie Abdul Khawaja, the Arab who frequented the club so often and was over friendly with Eve. They are linking him to Linda.
After their mother was killed and they went to live with their father, a frequent visitor, who Linda's girls, knew of as foreign, probably Arab, well dressed, smelt nice, short man with curly hair that would give them £50 each, every time he came, to go buy something nice, he was referred to as Monty. Linda's daughters, each separately said yes that's him, that's Monty, to a photo of Abdul, without being told who he was.
Part of me thinking yes he is often suspected, but his son gave DNA when that science became available, and it ruled him out.
I am pretty sure it being said the DNA found on Eva and Lynne is Northern European too.
But Abdul was a Mr Fixer who arranged things for people and used ex policemen doormen to do his dirty work. That he probably worked across various casinos, like the one Linda and her husband worked in, doing the same networking and business, some possibly shady.
In other words they're trying to say there were 2 involved with Eve, but Abdul didn't get his hands dirty. Their reasons for her being killed are pretty weak so far.
They're also using the two photofits to say the shorter one could be Abdul, present to make sure she opens the door and the taller one the killer. So would that mean both going in? So the lady downstairs who mentioned nothing about Eve coming back downstairs, now wouldn't hear her go back downstairs and 3 people going back up? Or that Abdul stayed outside after she opened the door? Thing is I remember reading the accounts and it was two separate witnesses that didn't put them as being together. One was following Eve said one witness, the one describes as having out-turned feet like a penguin and having a coat too big for him, the one described as shorter, wavy dark hair. The other is described as standing outside Eve's flat and taller. However people can misjudge heights and not remember features or take in details accurately.
Everyone saying she must have known the person to open the door seems to forget, there was one front door to a hallway and stairs leading to the downstairs flats, and the upstairs flat . The lady describing the talking, loud thump upstairs and someone leaving, when people arrived like Eve's bf etc never mentions a knock on the door, never mentions Eve coming back downstairs again to take someone upstairs. The dried flowers (more like leafy stems) weren't by her body as was often misreported, they were still on the stairs and it was deduced that she hadn't even properly gone upstairs when the man who killed her arrived, she may not have even closed the door.
Oh and it's become clear that it was mis-reported that Eve was a croupier, she was a waitress and preferred the afternoon shift to be able to go be with her bf when he came home from work.
There used to be a lot of pictures of the inside of Eve's flat online before, now I can only find one and it's lacking pixels.
West End Murders (2024) ⭐ 7.1 | Crime
West End Murders: Directed by Sacha Bennett. With Sarah Alexandra Marks, Colin Sutton, Kieran Chalker, Ruby Bennett. In West End Murders, former Metropolitan Police DCI Colin Sutton gathers a team of detectives and uses first-hand knowledge to re-open and re-investigate three troubling cold case...
m.imdb.com
Sorry I knew I forgot something. Despite them not mentioning SAS guy doing anything, I know ex SAS have controversially fought as mercenaries in some morally awkward wars, like in Syria.
In this they keep mentioning how many security in the west end and casinos were ex police, whether there through legitimate reasons or because they were sacked for doing something naughty. They point out in this, something many would already be aware of through reading about, or watching documentaries regarding the corruption and dirty business in the police at the time.
There is a good documentary "Bent Coppers: Crossing The Line of Duty" which gives a good taste as to what was going on.
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I note that Lynne told her parents and friends that she would never use that alleyway at night but would always take the long route home.
Do we know where the 2 boys who walked her home went their separate way?
Also Police have said that the person who attacked Lynne must have been a very strong person to have managed to lift her over the fence into the electricity substation. I don't think this tallies with the description of the suspect MOO
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Did the 2 boys have any connection to the school by where Lynne was murdered?
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I am now starting to understand better where you're coming from. You watched West End Murders? Because while watching it I started to get bits and bobs of what you were saying.
They're trying to tie Abdul Khawaja, the Arab who frequented the club so often and was over friendly with Eve. They are linking him to Linda.
After their mother was killed and they went to live with their father, a frequent visitor, who Linda's girls, knew of as foreign, probably Arab, well dressed, smelt nice, short man with curly hair that would give them £50 each, every time he came, to go buy something nice, he was referred to as Monty. Linda's daughters, each separately said yes that's him, that's Monty, to a photo of Abdul, without being told who he was.
Part of me thinking yes he is often suspected, but his son gave DNA when that science became available, and it ruled him out.
I am pretty sure it being said the DNA found on Eva and Lynne is Northern European too.
But Abdul was a Mr Fixer who arranged things for people and used ex policemen doormen to do his dirty work. That he probably worked across various casinos, like the one Linda and her husband worked in, doing the same networking and business, some possibly shady.
In other words they're trying to say there were 2 involved with Eve, but Abdul didn't get his hands dirty. Their reasons for her being killed are pretty weak so far.
They're also using the two photofits to say the shorter one could be Abdul, present to make sure she opens the door and the taller one the killer. So would that mean both going in? So the lady downstairs who mentioned nothing about Eve coming back downstairs, now wouldn't hear her go back downstairs and 3 people going back up? Or that Abdul stayed outside after she opened the door? Thing is I remember reading the accounts and it was two separate witnesses that didn't put them as being together. One was following Eve said one witness, the one describes as having out-turned feet like a penguin and having a coat too big for him, the one described as shorter, wavy dark hair. The other is described as standing outside Eve's flat and taller. However people can misjudge heights and not remember features or take in details accurately.
Everyone saying she must have known the person to open the door seems to forget, there was one front door to a hallway and stairs leading to the downstairs flats, and the upstairs flat . The lady describing the talking, loud thump upstairs and someone leaving, when people arrived like Eve's bf etc never mentions a knock on the door, never mentions Eve coming back downstairs again to take someone upstairs. The dried flowers (more like leafy stems) weren't by her body as was often misreported, they were still on the stairs and it was deduced that she hadn't even properly gone upstairs when the man who killed her arrived, she may not have even closed the door.
Oh and it's become clear that it was mis-reported that Eve was a croupier, she was a waitress and preferred the afternoon shift to be able to go be with her bf when he came home from work.
There used to be a lot of pictures of the inside of Eve's flat online before, now I can only find one and it's lacking pixels.
West End Murders (2024) ⭐ 7.1 | Crime
West End Murders: Directed by Sacha Bennett. With Sarah Alexandra Marks, Colin Sutton, Kieran Chalker, Ruby Bennett. In West End Murders, former Metropolitan Police DCI Colin Sutton gathers a team of detectives and uses first-hand knowledge to re-open and re-investigate three troubling cold case...
In early media literature after Eve's murder there apparently was speculation that the killer was already in the flat when she arrived home as there was no evidence of a break-in.
I said where they separated in another post, complete with map. Lynne's friends that walked back with her said. It was further than J had thought.
They put another route on this, I don't think they did as much research as me into old newspapers. They obviously thought they separated closer to the lane too.
I was going to write more about Lynne on her thread than here as this is Eve's thread. Writing in two places can sometimes get confusing and you forget what you put where.
Not that they had much about Lynne, not many people wanted to talk and some didn't want to discuss what happened at all, I think it's something too painful.
One friend called one of the people they had wanted to talk to, Lynne's boyfriend but that it wasn't anything serious. The former pc taking the lead has apparently talked to a lot of the people in last so many years and stated when talking to that male friend before he hadn't mentioned being her boyfriend or having a twin brother. Well I checked back to the one clipping I shared of Lynne and her bf, her best friend and her bf and he has a different name to that given by the friend. I am trying to post Lynne related stuff on her thread as said, so may not have posted that here.
They said Lynne usually wouldn't use that route, at least alone, as the two boys walking with her would usually walk her to her door, but she insisted she was fine and apparently they had to work early next day so she told them to go on their way.
The 3 former police also discussed how much longer and out of her way Lynne would have to go to go on the more open and better lit way and that having had a drink it often gives people more courage.
Some of this about the lane and Lynne using it, Short Hedges, I think I also put in Lynne's thread.
The friend he talked to said she never heard of that Lane being unsafe or anything happening there, yet in the old newspapers locals said differently.
Parents btw often don't know what their kids do and keep from them.
Oh yes, I was sure Lynne's brother had died prematurely somehow, I can't recall how. Newspaper giving wrong info maybe. Her older brother is alive when they made this documentary.
This is something I was thinking about this week funnily enough, if there was an easy way to reach an upper window which may have been open. I don't think it was warm enough to leave a window open and if breaking into a closed one they would have seen if anything had been forced. We don't know if the last downstairs was home all day, she could obviously hear a lot from upstairs, old house.
However if the man entered more or less the same time as Eve the he wouldn't have had to break in or charm his way in. May have threatened, brandished a weapon, Eve may have not screamed or resisted because fight, flight or freeze, people forget there are other responses like trying to placate the person, to not give them a reason to harm you. There are various options for a lack of breaking in, it does not necessarily mean knowing them.
Eva was being followed, one of the photofits. And someone was seen standing outside her flat, the other photofit, around the time she would have already died. The photofits look very similar. Same person perhaps.
Jan 2022 By Kelly-Ann Mills
www.mirror.co.uk
''Two murders of two young women, one a 16-year-old schoolgirl and other a Playboy Bunny who had posed nude for Mayfair, were both carried out by the same man.
Nothing would have linked the two horrific killings until the murderer's DNA was found at both crime scenes.
The samples were matched in 2006, linking 21-year-old model Eve Stratford and schoolgirl Lynne Weedon for the first time, more than 30 years after their brutal deaths...
Playboy Bunny killer also raped and murdered schoolgirl, 16, as she walked home
Lynne Weedon was just 16 when she was stuck of the head and raped in an alleyway on her way home. Her killer left her for dead six months after murdering another young woman
''Two murders of two young women, one a 16-year-old schoolgirl and other a Playboy Bunny who had posed nude for Mayfair, were both carried out by the same man.
Nothing would have linked the two horrific killings until the murderer's DNA was found at both crime scenes.
The samples were matched in 2006, linking 21-year-old model Eve Stratford and schoolgirl Lynne Weedon for the first time, more than 30 years after their brutal deaths...
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So there appear to be holes in peoples stories then?
Yes, but considering how long it's been. How much evidence is missing, they said the material evidence is missing in Linda's case but they have the paperwork, the paperwork is missing with Eve, but the material evidence is there.
Basically without DNA and other forensics, deceased witnesses or those not willing to talk. They're doing more or less what we are doing, only they have had opportunities to talk to witnesses and family friends etc to help piece things together.
I was surprised how much I learnt looking at old contemporary newspapers, they had far more info that nobody passed forward. Witness statements, the photofit/identikits, artist's impressions. Details never mentioned later. However there were mistakes and the mistakes were passed forward, like stating Eve had flowers out next to her body, untrue.
Basically without DNA and other forensics, deceased witnesses or those not willing to talk. They're doing more or less what we are doing, only they have had opportunities to talk to witnesses and family friends etc to help piece things together.
I was surprised how much I learnt looking at old contemporary newspapers, they had far more info that nobody passed forward. Witness statements, the photofit/identikits, artist's impressions. Details never mentioned later. However there were mistakes and the mistakes were passed forward, like stating Eve had flowers out next to her body, untrue.
I nailed Levi Bellfield, I'll prove serial killer is behind West End Murders
SOME detectives have an unsolved case which still torments them years after they have retired. For Colin Sutton, it is the murders of two young women and a girl of 16 in the 1970s by a serial kille…
www.thesun.co.uk
Abdul Khawaja at the Bunny Girl Playboy Club. The fixer, was welcomed at the club as he helped business, he helped attract rich Arabs to spend money and translate for them. Something he may have done at different clubs. Lynda Farrow's daughters recognised him from this photo as a friend who visited their father, who must have known their mother.
It was Abdul who first took a copy of Eve's Mayfair magazine shoot to the Playboy Club showing it off to everyone, saying look at my girlfriend, isn't she pretty. Therefore the management finding out early and suspending Eve.
It's uncertain how close Eve and Abdul were, but it seems he made more of it than she did. The Bunnies seemed to find him a nuisance. Someone to be avoided by those with more street smart, someone charming and nice by the naive.
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Was this him showing his loyalty to the Playboy Club?
He made them an absolute fortune, and no doubt did extremely well himself from the arrangement while it lasted.
I think it's probably a combination of mis-reporting, and the police changing approach as the enquiries progressed.
The boys Lynne was last seen with were presumably top of the list for DNA testing in 2004. Lynne's dad thought it might have been them, but it seems he was wrong.
Former '70s Playboy Club bunny tells all
Bobbie Walters, now 69, worked at the Playboy Club in NYC starting in 1970 at the age of 22. She said she loved her job there and that it was always exciting.
This is very relevant, explaining about Playboy Bunny rules, the perks, security etc. Some of the things brought up in the West End Murders documentary.
There's even a pic of Eve, Bunny Ava, sadly her last year, 50 years ago
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Eve's bf mentioned him, he got his name wrong, he had suspected him I think, would have to look again at what he said. Although he didn't get involved in the West End Murders documentary. I remember he did talk to Marcel Theroux in his documentary. I don't know how he pulled that off as I got the impression that other than wanting any updates if anything progressing I think he, like many people close to those killed, wanted to be left alone. Understandable, you can see how emotional Lynda's daughters are.
Unlike the rich Arabs visiting the casinos, who were more than likely oil rich, he was Lebanese, no oil there. Arabs are often very generous, I have known some and the attitude seems to be you could die tomorrow and you can't take money with you, so you may as well spend it. Abdul would have benefited both sides.
Unfortunately Eve's boyfriend has now passed away. It's a lot easier to approach witnesses, family members etc if you're a big name, or are backed by BBC, ITV etc...
Abdul was a narcissist. I don't think he cared about anyone other than himself. He didn't even apologise to his wife and family, just said he had nothing to be sorry for and complained about how much his business had been affected.
Abdul was a narcissist. I don't think he cared about anyone other than himself. He didn't even apologise to his wife and family, just said he had nothing to be sorry for and complained about how much his business had been affected.
Troubles in Bunnyland
Playboy may lose its profitable British gambling licensesThe scantily clad Bunnies last week were still spinning the roulette wheels and dealing the cards under the crystal chandeliers at...
time.com
Troubles in Bunnyland
Playboy may lose its profitable British gambling licensesThe scantily clad Bunnies last week were still spinning the roulette wheels and dealing the cards under the crystal chandeliers at...
Troubles in Bunnyland
3 minute readTIME
October 19, 1981 12:00 AM EDT
Playboy may lose its profitable British gambling licenses
The scantily clad Bunnies last week were still spinning the roulette wheels and dealing the cards under the crystal chandeliers at London’s Playboy Club casino on Park Lane. But despite the outward show of pleasure as usual, the Bunnies were fearful that they might soon be out of work and out of business. A committee of four magistrates last week refused to renew gaming licenses for the Park Lane casino and the Clermont Club casino on Berkeley Square because the Playboy corporation was “not a fit person to hold a gaming license.” The move put a cloud as well over the future of Playboy’s chain of 80 betting shops, six bingo parlors and three other casinos in Britain.
During twelve days of public hearings, the justices heard charges, for example, that the clubs had violated British laws between 1975 and 1979 by issuing credit to wealthy Arab businessmen and other high rollers. Favored patrons were allowed to write bad checks for gambling debts. When the accounts were settled later, a discount was sometimes available for the asking. Investigating Accountant John Godfrey testified that Qatari Sheik M.H. Behbehani cashed about $4 million worth of checks drawn on 14 different banks that were returned unpaid. Behbehani, though, eventually made good. Moreover, there were allegations that Clement Freud, grandson of Sigmund Freud and a Member of Parliament, was allowed to gamble at the club while serving as a Playboy director, a violation of British regulations.
The committee was also regaled with the exploits of a Lebanese habitue of the casino, Abdul Khawaja, who reportedly steered wealthy Arabs to the tables, and to the Bunnies. As ex-Bunny Toni Anne Gibson told an interviewer: “Once a girl went with Abdul she got special privileges. If Abdul wanted to take her on holiday, he would phone Playboy and fix it. It wouldn’t take long before he had set her up with one of his sheiks.” Former Bunny Mia Marsh said that Khawaja would come into the club, waving money and shouting, “Lots of monies to spend on Bunnies.”
Two witnesses acknowledged that they had been paid to testify against Playboy by a rival casino operator. Nevertheless, Playboy faces an uphill battle as it pursues legal appeals to the decision of the licensing justices. The company had attempted to clean up its image in Britain earlier this year by firing flamboyant Victor Lownes, who had headed its operation in London for 15 years.
The action by the four magistrates strikes at the most profitable division of the Chicago-based corporation. In the fiscal year ending last June, British earnings made the difference between profit and loss for the enterprise. Without $40 million in earnings from Britain, Playboy would have been $15 million in the red, in part because of losses on its U.S. resorts. The firm’s namesake magazine is still a moneymaker, earning about $10 million last year.
The timing of the court’s decision was particularly bad because Playboy is now seeking to obtain an ongoing license for its new $150 million casino in Atlantic City. Said Steven Eisenberg, an analyst with Wall Street’s Bear, Stearns & Co.: “We can assume that it would be very difficult for New Jersey to grant a license if the company loses its appeal in the United Kingdom.” The future of Playboy could hang on the two decisions concerning its gambling operations.
I found it odd when Lynda Farrow's daughters, who believe him to be the Monty that often visited their Dad, one said he gave the impression of class. I get more the impression that the one previous Bunny referred to him as, sleazy.
Sad to hear about Eve's bf, it feels like losing another part of Eve in a way.
I understand regarding having a big name to approach people, they may be suspicious of someone having nefarious reasons.
Also some I think want a good reason, something that may help catch the killer, than go through the heartache remembering again and again.
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