92-Year-Old Man Convicted in UK’s Longest-Running Cold Case: 1967 Rape and Murder of Elderly Woman

A 92-year-old man has been found guilty of the rape and murder of a 75-year-old woman in what is believed to be the United Kingdom’s oldest cold case ever solved. Ryland Headley, who was 34 at the time of the crime, was convicted at Bristol Crown Court on Monday for the brutal 1967 killing of Louisa Dunne in her southwestern England home.

Dunne was discovered dead by a neighbor on June 28, 1967, having been raped, strangled, and asphyxiated in her own residence — the very place she should have felt safest. “Louisa Dunne died in a horrifying attack carried out in the place where she should have felt safest — her own home,” said lead prosecutor Charlotte Ream. “For 58 years, this appalling crime went unsolved and Ryland Headley, the man we now know is responsible, avoided justice.”

At the time of the original investigation, authorities collected key evidence, including Dunne’s clothing and biological samples, and recovered a palm print from a window used by the intruder. These items were preserved for future examination.

In May 2023, the case was reopened and modern forensic testing was conducted on Dunne’s blue skirt. DNA recovered from the fabric linked directly to Headley, whose profile had been added to the national DNA database in 2012 following an unrelated incident. Forensic scientists confirmed that the DNA on the skirt and the palm print from the window matched Headley’s.

Headley, who was living in Suffolk, was arrested in November 2023. His history of sexual violence added weight to the case. He was convicted in 1978 for the rape of two elderly women, aged 79 and 84, in Ipswich. During his trial for Dunne’s murder, the harrowing testimonies of those two women were read aloud to the jury. “Hearing the voices of the victims of his 1977 offenses is just incredibly powerful and harrowing,” said Detective Inspector Dave Marchant, the senior investigating officer. “I think it gives us an insight into probably what happened within 58 Britannia Road.”

The breakthrough in the case brought a wave of emotion and reflection. Dunne’s granddaughter, Mary Dainton, expressed shock when she learned of the arrest. “I accepted that some murders just never get solved and some people have to live with that emptiness and sadness,” she said.

Detective Inspector Marchant confirmed that authorities are now working with the National Crime Agency to investigate whether Headley may be connected to other unsolved crimes over the decades. “Crimes of this magnitude should never go unpunished,” he said. “We will remain relentless in ensuring we do everything we can to advance other unsolved murder cases in the Avon and Somerset area.”

Ryland Headley is scheduled to be sentenced on Tuesday.