UK UK- Janet Brown, 51, research nurse, found nude, gagged, handcuffed & bludgeoned to death, @ home, Buckinghamshire,10 April '95, *DNA, new initiative*

[dotr]

Murder of Janet Brown - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

''Forensic psychologist Paul Britton assisted police with the investigation. Britton posited that although Brown had not been sexually assaulted, the perpetrator may have become aroused by inflicting fear and dominating his victim, and that this may have been his primary motive rather than burglary.''

Author Vanessa Brown wrote, "thieves don't take handcuffs to a robbery and strip their victims ... The one focus had been Janet, a desire to humiliate and control her. It had to be personal."

''Detective superintendent Martin Short commented:
There is no theory to explain what happened that night which makes perfect sense. There are aspects of every theory which are contradicted by the facts. And policemen deal in facts. The intruder showed a fair amount of planning. He had an iron bar or truncheon, two types of tape, handcuffs, a glass cutter and probably a torch. I have the gut feeling that it wasn't burglary. He didn't react like a normal burglar. More than 99 percent of burglars would run on hearing an alarm go off. This one not only continued his murderous attack but coolly washed his hands and went upstairs again. We don't know the motive. In most murders, once you've got the motive, then you're a long way to cracking it.''

 

[dotr]

By Matthew J C Evans
April 17 2025 rbbm

Hunt for Bucks nurse's killer goes global with tip-offs from Australia

Thames Valley Police has received responses from Australia, following its appeal for information about the murder of an Oxfordshire nurse, 30 years…

www.bucksfreepress.co.uk

'People from as far as Australia have been in touch with police over an unsolved cold case murder in which an Oxford nurse was found dead at her home.'

Last week, on the 30th anniversary of her death, police launched a new appeal for any details.

This included a reward of up to £20,000 offered by Crimestoppers for information given directly to the charity which leads to the arrest and conviction of the person responsible for Ms Brown’s murder.
Since then, police said “a number of people” have been in contact.

People from as far as the Netherlands and Australia have subsequently come forward with information to aid police with the investigation.''
''Police added that officers are “currently researching this information” and urged “anyone that has suspicions or doubts about someone” to get in touch.

Members of the public can contact Thames Valley Police online at a police station or by calling 101, quoting reference 695 (April 8).''

 

[tes1984]

Police said there were plans to swab a number of people who featured in the original investigation but there were "no suspects, as such".

Why has it taken a decade to swab those who featured in the original investigation?

 

[wtiger]

paul britton - right up there with williams-thomas and bleksley in the "love the sound of their own voice" charts.

he was long since discredited as a serious profiler.

i'd take anything from him with a cellar full of salt

just personal opinion and not certain to be fact

 

[tes1984]

paul britton - right up there with williams-thomas and bleksley in the "love the sound of their own voice" charts.

he was long since discredited as a serious profiler.

i'd take anything from him with a cellar full of salt

just personal opinion and not certain to be fact

I'm not at all sure about those comparisons. PB served an extremely long apprenticeship and spent more time dealing with serious offenders than most people can imagine. I don't think he is in it for fame or personal glory. The police requested his help on many occasions, but he didn't control investigations and always made it clear he was only offering an opinion.

 

[Hustling01]

Not clear what you mean. Whose familiar DNA should they look at?

spelt it wrong

 

[Cedars]

Why has it taken a decade to swab those who featured in the original investigation?

I don't know. People on here usually assume police incompetance: laziness, forgetfulness, staff turnover, or they lost the list...

I think such an obviously strange comment has been inserted deliberately by police as a message to someone who has refused to clear themselves by voluntarily submitting their DNA, and/or perhaps they moved to another country...

JMO

 

[forensicswannabe]

I really hope they find this offender soon poor Janet had an horrific death and deserves justice.
The book confirmed that the offender laid on top of her for sometime so this really does seem like a sexually motivated crime led on for the humiliation and fear aspect.

 

[LadyL]

I really hope they find this offender soon poor Janet had an horrific death and deserves justice.
The book confirmed that the offender laid on top of her for sometime so this really does seem like a sexually motivated crime led on for the humiliation and fear aspect.

that's bizarre - how would they be able to 'confirm' that without video?

 

[forensicswannabe]

that's bizarre - how would they be able to 'confirm' that without video?

From Paul Brittons book he writes "He forced her hands behind her to handcuff her and pushed her onto the bed where the weight of her body pressing down on the manacles made indentations in her back and buttocks. It was enough to cut into her skin indicating that he was likely laying on top of her".

 

[Cedars]

I really hope they find this offender soon poor Janet had an horrific death and deserves justice.
The book confirmed that the offender laid on top of her for sometime so this really does seem like a sexually motivated crime led on for the humiliation and fear aspect.

I read only that the autopsy showed she was probably lying on her back for a time. I expect that means that some type of marks from the handcuffs appeared on her lower back as well as her wrists.

That could have happened, eg, if she fell back.

I expect it is through some type of imaginative speculation of PB's that he turned it into your scenario.

JMO

 

[Cedars]

From Paul Brittons book he writes "He forced her hands behind her to handcuff her and pushed her onto the bed where the weight of her body pressing down on the manacles made indentations in her back and buttocks. It was enough to cut into her skin indicating that he was likely laying on top of her".

The whole paragraph is pure speculation. Does he write for the Daily Mail?

 

[forensicswannabe]

The whole paragraph is pure speculation. Does he write for the Daily Mail?

He has seen the crime scene photos in details though and a crime scene video and has helped out in multiple crimes across the UK so his word is worth taking a look at IMO.
I do believe that this was likely a sexually motivated crime myself tbh because I don't believe it was a burglary gone wrong and it seems the killer spent a lengthy time in the house possibly up to 2 hours switching lights and cleaning himself back up he was in no rush and didn't steal anything.

 

[LadyL]

From Paul Brittons book he writes "He forced her hands behind her to handcuff her and pushed her onto the bed where the weight of her body pressing down on the manacles made indentations in her back and buttocks. It was enough to cut into her skin indicating that he was likely laying on top of her".

ok so these aren't 'confirmed' facts - these are his theories correct?

 

[tes1984]

ok so these aren't 'confirmed' facts - these are his theories correct?

It's a theory, but quite a lot of it is fact based. Some of it is definitely speculative though.

In a case like this, only the killer knows exactly what happened at the crime scene.

 

[Cedars]

I do believe that this was likely a sexually motivated crime myself tbh because I don't believe it was a burglary gone wrong and it seems the killer spent a lengthy time in the house possibly up to 2 hours switching lights and cleaning himself back up he was in rush but didn't steal anything.

I agree, I think burglary should be completely ruled out. They may have been trying to make it look like a burglary with the elaborate glass cutting, etc.

My understand of profilers is they take known facts from a crime scene, and they focus on the actual behaviour the unsub must have engaged in, to produce.those known facts, and from that, they profile the type of person who police should look for.

For eg, someone familiar with glass cutting...how difficult is that to do, how well was it done, must the person have had experience?

I'm not familiar with this approach of imaging what might have happened. Obviously, a profiler can't create an accurate profile of the type of person to look for, when they've invented how they think the crime went.

JMO

 

[LadyL]

It's a theory, but quite a lot of it is fact based. Some of it is definitely speculative though.

In a case like this, only the killer knows exactly what happened at the crime scene.

yes, true!

did someone say they looked at all the realty visitors?

 

[tes1984]

I agree, I think burglary should be completely ruled out. They may have been trying to make it look like a burglary with the elaborate glass cutting, etc.

Completely agree that it wasn't a burglary. I can't understand how the police even considered the idea.

 

[tes1984]

When did he cut the glass/break the window?

Before he had Janet restrained, whilst she lay helpless, or after the murder?

Was it before, during or after?

 

[forensicswannabe]

When did he cut the glass/break the window?

Before he had Janet restrained, whilst she lay helpless, or after the murder?

Was it before, during or after?

This is what I wonder because I do believe it could have been an after thought to throw off what the real motive was and since its been suggested it could have been broken from the inside to make it seem like a burglary but if that is the case then how exactly did he get in the house in the first place?