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

[Cedars]

??? A victim is found naked and there is near-immediate rule out that it wasn't sexual??
Wut?

I think police may have stated, back in the beginning, that there was no evidence of sexual assault, and that's been misinterpreted by journalists.

IMO many journalists don't understand the subtleties of crime or police investigations. And yet they are the ones who filter the information we get. So often it gives the impression that police are the problem, but really it's the media interpretation.

 

[tes1984]

BBC One - Crimewatch Live, Series 22, Search for Truth The 15th October is when crimewatch live will be doing Janets case again.

Thames Valley Police have been re-investigating Janet's murder for a while now, and are doing everything they can (within current UK laws) to match the DNA.

I hope Crimewatch starts featuring a lot more cold cases. As the police always say, loyalties and allegiances change over time.

 

[Professor Moriarty]

I have just seen the new Crimewatch item. The detective said that he didn't think it was a burglary. Sadly, there was no new information. If the police have learnt anything about this case in the past 30 years, they are not divulging it. They rely on getting a DNA match.

 

[tes1984]

Interesting that the DNA sample has been confirmed as male, and checked against samples on non UK databases.

It looks like the police tried to eliminate absolutely every male who had legitimate access to the house. That doesn't sound like an easy task.

 

[forensicswannabe]

I hope this new crimewatch appeal will bring up some new suspects they have his DNA so all it takes is someone suspicious of someone to call.

 

[naomiuk]

Interesting sentence from this article -

'She folded her clothes neatly and let her white towelling dressing gown drop on to the floor next to the bed.'

Why would you fold your clothes but drop your dressing gown on floor? Most people would hang it up on the back of the door or drape it over a chair before getting into bed.

I think ....

1. She was either abushed as she was removing it for bed but this seems unlikely as it would have meant she didnt hear the intruder smash through the glass doors downstairs as she was then getting into bed seemingly unaware.

2. She heard the intruder breaking in, jumped out of bed and was in the process of putting her dressing gown on but the killer reached her before she could and it was dropped to the floor in the scuffle.

3. She had the dressing gown on (either ready to then get into bed or heard the intruder and got up and put it on) and the intruder forced her to remove it before they handcuffed her.

There was no evidence of sexual assault but IMO this is very much a sexually motivated crime. The killer wanted to dominate, humiliate and scare janet and the robe on the floor I believe is evidence of this.

I used to drop my dressing gown by my bed, so I wouldn’t have to walk across the room naked to get it. So it’s certainly possible

 

[tes1984]

I have just seen the new Crimewatch item. The detective said that he didn't think it was a burglary.

They don't seem to rule out the idea of it being two perps though. Burglars and drug addicts often offend in pairs, but it's very unusual for lust murderers to do so.

 

[tes1984]

Two perp theory.

1. Two suspicious men were mentioned by witnesses in the similar Carolanne Jackson case.
2. Janet was bludgeoned from two different angles.
3. Paul Brittan suggested to police the possibility of it being two offenders.
4. The killer seems unconcerned that someone may investigate the alarm, or that Roxanne might return home. Two perps would be able to control unexpected additional visitors.
5. The killer seems to wander the house and possibly even takes a shower. This makes sense if he has an accomplice to keep watch.
6. The glass cutting might make more sense if it was done by someone who had been told to act as look out. Bored with his guard duties, he gets the glass cutter and starts messing around with it? Eventually he gives up, or is told to stop by his dominant partner?

 

[Professor Moriarty]

I am afraid I don't hold out much hope for this case. Whoever left the DNA, seems not to have left it at any other crime scene. Nor has he been charged with another offence and had his DNA taken. People tend to grow out of crime as they get older, especially violent crime, and this offender is likely to be in his 50s now, if not older, so he could well have lost his appetite for this sort of thing.

If he is stopped when driving and fails a breathalyser and then also fails the test at the police station, his DNA would be taken. People have been caught that way, but he would be foolish to risk that.

If someone calls the police, the caller has to be suspicious of the right person. That hasn't happened yet.

Whoever scored and smashed the glass had brought the glass cutter and the special sellotape with him. Therefore, he probably always intended to use them, but two people are a possibility.

 

[tes1984]

I am afraid I don't hold out much hope for this case. Whoever left the DNA, seems not to have left it at any other crime scene. Nor has he been charged with another offence and had his DNA taken. People tend to grow out of crime as they get older, especially violent crime, and this offender is likely to be in his 50s now, if not older, so he could well have lost his appetite for this sort of thing.

If he is stopped when driving and fails a breathalyser and then also fails the test at the police station, his DNA would be taken. People have been caught that way, but he would be foolish to risk that.

I'm a little bit more confident that this case will be solved. Let's see if anyone comes forward after today's appeal for starters.

There's also DNA still being taken from people who featured in the earlier investigations. If they fail to get a direct match, or near match, then they will look for more distant matches using the advanced testing.

As you say, there's also the chance of a drink driving type arrest. The 92 year old guy who was recently convicted of the Louisa Dunne murder got arrested for domestic assault when he was nearly 80.

 

[Bibitty]

On the most recent CW appeal did the police ask again for the person who called twice 10 months after the murder (once to Aylesbury the other to Maidenhead) to call back?

Was the husband part of the original appeal in 1995? Is he still alive or is there a reason he hasn’t been part of an appeal with this children?

 

[Professor Moriarty]

In the most recent CW appeal, the police did not ask for that person to call back.

The husband did take part in the CW appeal in 1995. I remember he described Janet as "quite a plucky person".

I don't know if he is still alive and, if so, whether he lives in the UK. (He might have settled in Switzerland.) However, he could be well into his 80s by now.

 

[tes1984]

No mention either of the potential sighting of Janet driving off somewhere at around 6.30pm.

Perhaps the police are no longer confident in the sighting, even though the witness was someone who knew her.

 

[Professor Moriarty]

Yes. They did refer to the car parked in the off road area, sometimes called the "tri angle" though. That car was very likely to have belonged to the intruder. If he came by car, where else could he have parked? Only people using that road that evening would have seen that car and I think there is little chance of new information on that becoming available.

 

[Bibitty]

Are the police still linking Janet Brown’s murder with Carolanne Jackson’s?

 

[Professor Moriarty]

Are the police still linking Janet Brown’s murder with Carolanne Jackson’s?

I didn't know that they ever said they were linked. Did they?

 

[tes1984]

AFAIK the police haven't confirmed a link, but haven't ruled one out either...

 

[Bibitty]

I didn't know that they ever said they were linked. Did they?

Yes I understood that there was a suggestion of a link at the time by TVP although no conclusive proof ever came through. Both cases were reviewed under Operation Enigma. I wonder if there is any connection because committed at same time of year in rural area - would seasonal workers be around for instance? CJ had complained of a stalker and there had been reports of a stalker in Radnage by I believe 2 separate women in the weeks before JBs murder.

Does anyone know the geography of the area to understand where JB could be going at 6:30pm as seen by the horse rider and then be home again to pick up a call from Roxanne at 6:40pm? Could this have been in the direction of the triangle?