There is no crime more serious than murder. It can rip apart a family and devastate tight-knit communities.
And long after the police cordons are taken down its impact remains.
Many murders may be ‘solved’ within weeks – and a conviction achieved through the courts in months.
Some are never solved and for the families of the victims, every birthday, every missed Christmas is a reminder of the tragedy.
The mother of one victim, whose son’s killers are still yet to be brought to justice, told the Oxford Mail a decade on from the murder: “We are just existing. It is not a proper life. Every day we stumble through.”
In the Thames Valley, so-called cold cases are investigated by the dedicated Major Crime Review Team.
Since 2007, they have secured convictions in five historic murder trials and 18 ‘stranger’ rape cases.
Last year, the team’s manager Pete Beirne was awarded an MBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours list.
The former detective chief inspector, who returned to lead the team on his retirement in 2007, helped ensure the conviction in 2010 of Mark Weston for the murder of Vikki Thompson in Ascott-under-Wychwood in 1995.
Weston was originally cleared of her murder in 1996, but fresh DNA evidence and changes to double jeopardy rules allowing someone to be tried for the same offence twice, led to his conviction at Reading Crown Court. He was given life imprisonment with a minimum jail term of 13 years.
There are at least 11 unsolved – or cold case – murder investigations in Oxfordshire, including the brutal beating of a couple in Boars Hill five decades ago and the mystery shooting of an Oxford University academic in 1994.
This is part one of our special feature on the cases. You will be able to read the second part of this next Friday.
Warren and Elizabeth Wheeler – 1973
When pensioners Warren and Elizabeth Wheeler were found beaten to death in their Boars Hill cottage in October 1973, the head of Thames Valley Police’s CID Det Chief Supt Cyril Jones said he had ‘never seen a more savage attack’.
“It was the worst I have come across in 27 years in the force,” said the senior detective.
The bodies of couple Warren, 83, and Elizabeth, 79, were discovered in the living room at Yatscombe Cottage. The tumbledown home had no running water and had been condemned.
It seemed that Mr Wheeler, who after career in the Royal Navy as a stoker became an engineer with Salter’s Steamers at Folly Bridge and later worked as a postman, was attacked first. His wife died around 12 hours later.
A 34-year-old chef, Kenneth Nairn, confessed to carrying out the killings. But six days into his trial at Oxford Crown Court in 1974, trial judge Mr Justice Davies directed jurors to acquit – labelling the defendant ‘an habitual liar, an habitual romancer and false confessor’ with previous form for confessing to a killing he had not done.
Eila Karjalainen - 1983
Hitchhiker Eila Karjalainen’s body was discovered in woods on the Blenheim estate in November 1983.
She had lain undiscovered for three months in Kings Wood, Woodstock. A post-mortem suggested the 23-year-old, from Finland, had been strangled.
The young woman’s belongings, including her passport, were found seven miles away in a layby on the A40 near Barnard Gate, Witney, three weeks after her body was found.
Miss Karjalainen had arrived in the UK at Harwich on August 2, 1983, and planned to see the country by hitchhiking. The two-week holiday was a chance to tour England before she stared a course in mental health nursing.
On August 7, she left London and headed west on the A40 towards Oxford. She did not return home to Helsinki as planned on August 14.
Her murder case was re-opened in 1987 by detectives searching for the killer of 17-year-old Rachel Partridge, who was murdered after trying to hitch a lift to her home at Shaw’s Field Farm, Chinnor Hill, but no clear links were proven.
Ronald Cheshire, the son of a policeman and originally from Henley, was jailed for Miss Partridge’s murder in 1989.
Crimestoppers re-appealed for information 21 years after Miss Karjalainen’s murder. Then coordinator at the Oxfordshire branch of the organisation, Terry Sykes, was one of the police officers involved in the original murder investigation.
"It's one of those jobs that always stays with you because of the circumstances,” he told the Oxford Mail in 2004.
Leonard Gomm - 1990
Leonard ‘Lennie’ Gomm’s taxi was discovered in a country lane near Bletchingdon four hours after he set off to pick up a fare in June 1990.
The 75-year-old had been stabbed through the heart and the dad-of-three’s body was found just yards from his blue Ford Granada cab.
Two decades on from the murder, police appealed for anyone with information to come forward.
Det Supt Barry Halliday told reporters that the motive for the killing was still unclear. “Robbery has not been completely ruled out, but there could be other reasons,” he said.
A further appeal for information was made in 2020, three decades on from the murder.
By then, head of the cold cases department at Thames Valley Police Peter Beirne said there was ‘no evidence’ to suggest he was robbed.
“Since the murder we have continued to work on the case, and using advancements in forensic science, have developed evidence, that could link the offender to the attack,” he said.
“There will be people who have information or suspicions about Lennie’s murder, and I am urging them to make contact with the police.
“You might know someone who acts strangely when Lennie’s murder is mentioned on the TV or radio, or perhaps you know someone who has an obsession with the case.”
Saied Ahmed – 1993
Somali refugee Saied Ahmed was badly burned in a house fire in Regent Street, Oxford, in April 1993. He died several days later at a specialist burns unit in Buckinghamshire.
Detectives were unable to discover the motive for the attack. Although a man was questioned in connection with the fire, he was never charged.
Michael ‘Spike’ Meenaghan – 1994
Talented scientist Dr Michael Meenaghan was shot through the kitchen window of his home in Monks Close, Blackbird Leys, in December 1994.
The researcher, who worked as a lecturer at Oxford University’s Sir William Dunn School of Pathology, managed to dial 999 but died from his chest injuries before paramedics could reach him.
Motives considered by detectives over the years have included whether the killing was linked to his private life, his academic work or even whether it was a case of mistaken identity.
Crimestoppers and Thames Valley Police offered a £20,000 reward in 2014 for any information leading to the conviction of Dr Meenaghan’s killer.
Pat Meenaghan, the victim’s mother and then aged 82, said in 2014: “His death is always with me and there is not a day goes by when I don’t miss him.
“We still don't know why someone would be so callous as to take his life and rob the world of a lovely man and a gifted scientist. Twenty years is a long time to wait for answers.
“There must be people out there that know something and could help ease the stress of not knowing why this happened to my boy.”
Nasreen Akhtar – 1995
Mum-of-four Nasreen Akhtar, 29, was killed in her home in Cobden Crescent, Grandpont, in March 1995. She had been strangled. Although a video recorder was missing from the living room, the rest of the house was untouched.
Her husband, Hakim Khan, was charged with her murder. His trial collapsed and he was acquitted as there was insufficient evidence, it was reported.
In 2015, the murdered woman’s eldest son led a police appeal asking for anyone with information about the tragedy to come forward.
Imran Khan, who was 10 when his mother was killed, said: “My mother was a nice, gentle lady who loved her family. She was considerate, caring, compassionate and had everything to live for and was always pleasant.
“Her death has shattered the family. She has not been able to see us grow up or enjoy our happiness.”
He added: “What has made it even harder for us as a family is knowing that the killer remains unpunished.
“Twenty years is a long time to wait for justice.
“If the killer is reading, I would personally ask on behalf of my sisters, brother and family, that you look at your conscience and hand yourself in, so we as a family can get on with our lives.
“It is only a matter of time before you are caught and we will never give up until we see justice being done.”
Read more from this author
This story was written by Tom Seaward. He joined the team in 2021 as Oxfordshire's court and crime reporter.
To get in touch with him email: Tom.Seaward@newsquest.co.uk
Follow him on Twitter: @t_seaward
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