‘Fred the Head’ murder mystery still grips police 50 years on
DNA clues from skeleton found on RiverTrent island draw a blank
THE detective in charge of investigating a notorious Midland mystery dubbed the ‘Fred the Head’ murder has revealed his frustration that the victim remains unidentified 50 years on.
The victim was discovered in a shallow grave with part of his head showing in Stafforshire in 1971 _ hence the name.
But half a century later Detective Chief Inspector Dan Ison of Staffordshire Police said even modern DNA profiling has drawn a blank – though tentantive links with possible family members have led to nothing.
Police have travelled the country following possible DNA links in a bid to identify the victim and find his killer, but all have been eliminated.
The case is Staffordshire Police Force’s oldest unsolved murder.
DCI Ison was invited to speak after a Facebook group was recently set up ahead of the 50th anniversary of the grim discovery by Neil Deaville.
The body was found at 7.30pm on March 27, 1971, when off-duty special constable David Nathan was walking his dog on a river island in the Newton Road area of Winshill, Burton upon Trent.
He stumbled upon the skull protruding from the ground.
Officers uncovered the skeletal remains of a young man aged between 23 and 39 buried in the shallow grave about four feet down and covered over.
He was naked and in a kneeling position. A cord had been tied around his wrists and another tied his ankles together. His hands were behind his back.
The cause of death was not determined due to decomposition, although forensic analysis has been able to establish that he did not suffer trauma to the skull.
All the man had on him were mustard-coloured socks and a lady’s nine-carat gold wedding ring on the right finger of his right hand.
He had short, brown hair, slim, and was about 5ft 8in tall. His hands were small with well kept, short nails.
The man had also suffered from torticollis, a condition of the neck that would have caused his head to lean to his right. His chin may have noticeably stuck out.
It is believed the body had been buried there for between nine and 12 months.
The skull had a partial upper denture and extensive
dental work done less than six months before death, though dental records of the time are of no use, said Det Chief Insp Ison.
The detective took over the investigation in 2016 at the time BBC’s Crimewatch TV show featured the case.
A life-like facial reconstruction was created to show what the victim would have looked like – detectives were given a name but that person was later eliminated from enquiries.
But Det Chief Insp Ison has not given up hope and says work is continuing, involving the National DNA Database and sites such as Ancestry.
He said: “The DNA from the database comes from those convicted of crimes or victims.
“We had a number of matches, and some quite strong, but so far they haven’t borne fruit. It cannot tell you if they are related, it just gives a likelihood.
“We have met with these people up and down the country but they have been eliminated.
“The DNA was last tested in 2017/2018 and obviously refreshing that test doesn’t change the outcome, as we have a full profile.”
As well as DNA, dental evidence and some partial fingerprints were recovered from the body.
His women’s wedding ring was manufactured in 1967/1968 by Henry Showell Ltd, of the Jewellery Quarter, in Birmingham. It was one of a batch of 5,000 made, police discovered.
His socks were from a local stall at Burton Market and both cords were found to have come from Bradford, in West Yorkshire.
Despite the sock link, Det Chief Insp Ison does not believe the man was from Burton.
He said: “It would be very strange if he was from Burton that no one came forward.”
He added that had the body been found today he would almost certainly have been identified.
He said: “If someone steps off the grid their disappearance is reported online.
“There is passport control. There are many ways of tracing them that they didn’t have in 1971.
“Time is against us. Many of his family may not be around now. I do think it is so sad that we have this missing man and have never identified him.
“He must have loved ones somewhere and we want to give them closure. Something horrific happened to him and that person has never been brought to justice for it.
“We can still do something and return him to his family members, so it is frustrating.
“I spoke to Peter Hough (retired Detective Chief Inspector who led the murder inquiry at the time) last year before he died.
“He said one of his great frustrations is he couldn’t identify him. It was quite sad for him.”
Another clue could be that the man was the ring on his right hand, rather than the left – fashionable in cerains countries such as Norway, Austria, Poland, or Russia.
THE North has a number of highly effective and vocal organisations lobbying the Government for funding, and for policies that will benefit cities such as Manchester, Liverpool and Newcastle.
The Midlands has nothing like it. The region has been outclassed and outgunned by the North of England.
This week the Centre for Policy Studies published a report calling on Boris Johnson's Government to create a ‘Big Bang' in the North.
The report argued that Mr Johnson's government should do for the North what Margaret Thatcher's government did for the City of London – which was a lot.
And it contained some practical ideas for achieving this, such as subsidising firms that invest in the North.
It's not unusual for organisations writing about regional inequalities to focus on the North.
We know that London and the south are richer than the rest of the country, and there's a tendency to assume that if the South is rich then the problem must be that the North is poor.
Of course, that's far too simplistic. It ignores the existence of the
Midlands, and also of the South West, has problems of its own.
But perhaps it's inevitable, however frustrating and wrong-headed it may be.
That doesn't entirely explain the Centre for Policy Studies report, however.
There was something else going on, and that's the existence of a group of MPs called the Northern Research Group.
These are Conservatives in the North of England who got together to form what's been called a trade union for the North. They are led by Jake Berry, a Lancashire MP and a former Minister for the Northern Powerhouse.
The group has more than 50 members and worked with the
Centre for Policy Studies on the report.
There's nothing like it in the Midlands. But they are not the only people fighting for the North.
Another major think tank is the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR).
While the Centre for Policy Studies has links to the Conservative Party, IPPR describes itself as ‘progressive', which suggests it is somewhere on the centre left. IPPR has an off-shoot called IPPR North, with offices in Newcastle and Manchester.
It produces well-researched and authoritative reports highlighting lack of investment in the North of England, and calling for more powers and funding for the North.
That's not the only think tank specifically dedicated to making the case for the North. There's also the
Northern Powerhouse Partnership, set up by former Chancellor George Osborne, to ensue his dream of creating a Northern Powerhouse wasn't forgotten.
Despite the obvious links to the Tories, the Northern Powerhouse Partnership has forged partnerships with MPs from all parties.
And it's not at all reluctant to demand a better deal for the region, and to criticise the Government when it believes the North isn't getting its fair share of investment.
As far as I am aware, there are no think tanks dedicated to making the case for the Midlands, whether that means the West Midlands region or the Midlands as a whole (which would include the East Midlands).
The North's local government leaders work closely together, through a body called the Convention of the North.
This is chaired by Nick Forbes, leader of Newcastle City Council in the North East.
Other members include Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham and Liverpool City Region Mayor Steve Rotherham, in the North West.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson attended their last full meeting, in September 2019, and delivered a speech.
There's little evidence of councils in the East and West Midlands forming partnerships in this way.
The Convention of the North works with a business-led group called the NP11.
This involves 11 Local Enterprise Partnerships – Government-backed and business-led bodies set up to support economic growth – across the North. Again, nothing like this seems to exist in the Midlands.
The North also benefits from the existence of a transport body, called Transport for the North.
It is led by local councils in the North and has statutory status, meaning Parliament has passed laws setting out its rights and responsibilities.
Among other things, it has a duty to draw up an integrated transport plan for the North, and to act as “one voice” for the North, relaying priorities to the Transport Secretary, who in turn has to respond. It lobbies vocally for funding for transport projects.
There is something similar in the Midlands, called Midlands Connect.
But it doesn't seem to play the same high-profile lobbying role, perhaps because it does not have statutory status.
The West Midlands Combined Authority, including the mayor and local councils, would no doubt argue that they fight for a fair deal for their constituents.
And perhaps they do – but they don't even represent the whole of the West Midlands region, never mind the entire Midlands. Their equivalent would be Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham and his colleagues in the Greater Manchester Combined Authority, not the bodies mentioned above, which cover the whole of the North.
The Midlands just doesn't have the same infrastructure in place to make our case. The North is organised, and we are not.
As far as I am aware, there are no think tanks dedicated to making the case for the Midlands