Infamous Murders: Society Murders
Sunday 12 Oct 7.00PM
Throughout history there are countless examples of brutal killings in the highest echelons of society. Sometimes the odds seem to act in favour of the society killer - expensive lawyers, influential friends and sometimes the sheer incompetence of the authorities conspire so that justice is not always served.
At 3am on the 30th October 1955, the emergency services were called to Oyster Bay Cove, Long Island, to the house of wealthy racehorse-owner William Woodward and his actress and model wife, Ann Woodward. William was found dead from two shotgun blasts and Ann was hysterical, saying she had mistaken him for a prowler and killed him by mistake. But was it really an accident?
Three weeks later, Ann Woodward appeared in front of a Grand Jury and was cleared when a petty criminal admitted to have been in the house that night. Twenty years later, Ann committed suicide after seeing extracts from a magazine article which implied she was indeed guilty of murdering her husband.
In 1974, British aristocrat Lord Lucan disappeared on the same night his children's nanny was murdered in the London home of his former wife. It was believed that Lucan had mistaken the nanny for his wife and bludgeoned her to death.
Despite an enormous search, and numerous international sightings, he had been missing for over 20 years, and no trace of him was ever found. On 27th October 1999, the British High Court ruled that Lord Lucan must be presumed dead.
In July 1943, on the idyllic island of the Bahamas, a body was found in an exotic mansion. It was Sir Harry Oakes, an American who had made his fortune prospecting gold in Canada and who had fled to the Bahamas to escape taxation. His body was half-burnt and there was a wound to his head.
Oakes' son-in-law, Count Freddie de Marigny, was charged with the murder. He was found not guilty but was subsequently deported from the Bahamas and exiled to Cuba, where he lost his wife and his fortune. Even today the case remains officially unsolved and rumours concerning the Mafia, gambling businessmen and even fortune hunters still surround Sir Harry Oakes' death.
At 3am on the 30th October 1955, the emergency services were called to Oyster Bay Cove, Long Island, to the house of wealthy racehorse-owner William Woodward and his actress and model wife, Ann Woodward. William was found dead from two shotgun blasts and Ann was hysterical, saying she had mistaken him for a prowler and killed him by mistake. But was it really an accident?
Three weeks later, Ann Woodward appeared in front of a Grand Jury and was cleared when a petty criminal admitted to have been in the house that night. Twenty years later, Ann committed suicide after seeing extracts from a magazine article which implied she was indeed guilty of murdering her husband.
In 1974, British aristocrat Lord Lucan disappeared on the same night his children's nanny was murdered in the London home of his former wife. It was believed that Lucan had mistaken the nanny for his wife and bludgeoned her to death.
Despite an enormous search, and numerous international sightings, he had been missing for over 20 years, and no trace of him was ever found. On 27th October 1999, the British High Court ruled that Lord Lucan must be presumed dead.
In July 1943, on the idyllic island of the Bahamas, a body was found in an exotic mansion. It was Sir Harry Oakes, an American who had made his fortune prospecting gold in Canada and who had fled to the Bahamas to escape taxation. His body was half-burnt and there was a wound to his head.
Oakes' son-in-law, Count Freddie de Marigny, was charged with the murder. He was found not guilty but was subsequently deported from the Bahamas and exiled to Cuba, where he lost his wife and his fortune. Even today the case remains officially unsolved and rumours concerning the Mafia, gambling businessmen and even fortune hunters still surround Sir Harry Oakes' death.
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Infamous Murders: Spree Killings
Sun 12th Oct, 5PM
