Suzy Lamplugh murder suspect tells of ‘character assassination’
THE chief suspect in the disappearance of estate agent Suzy Lamplugh in 1986 has penned a letter from prison complaining about the “assassination” of his character.
The letter purportedly from convicted killer John Cannan dated November 6 comes as a police search of the back garden of a house once owned by his mother continues into its 13th day.
Cannan denies any involvement in the 25-year-old’s disappearance.
In the correspondence sent to a female pen pal and passed to the Sunday Mirror, Cannan says he is ready to throw himself from the top of maximum-security Full Sutton prison, near Pocklington, because of the latest investigation.
It reads: “I was just about to throw myself off the building when your kind letter arrived. Many thanks. If I ever win the lottery I’ll buy you a villa.
“Yes, this police and press assassination of me has upset me deeply. Worse, I am in no position to reply to it so I feel powerless.
“Strange really, the reality of my life is so much more interesting yet it has been buried.”
The letter also refers to a video for a dating agency Cannan made in 1987 describing his perfect woman as “somebody who’s easy and relaxed to be with”.
The video is understood to have been made six weeks before he was arrested for abducting and murdering newlywed Shirley Banks in Bristol. Cannan is serving a life sentence for her murder.
In his letter, he says: “Well actually, I never asked to meet any woman from that agency.
“It wasn’t quite what you think. Actually do not believe much of what you’re reading or seeing on the telly. A lot of it I dispute.”
Miss Lamplugh went missing in July 1986 after leaving her west London offices to meet a mystery client known only as Mr Kipper. She was declared dead in 1994.