Two arrests over Keith Lyon murder

[The Clown of Pevensey Bay]

This is a fascinating unsolved Sussex crime that dates back to 1967

TWO HELD OVER SCHOOLBOY MURDER 39 YEARS AGO
By Tom Pugh, PA
Detectives investigating the murder of a 12-year-old boy 39 years ago have
made two new arrests, it was announced today.
Schoolboy Keith Lyon was found repeatedly stabbed on a bridle path in an area
known as Happy Valley, between the villages of Ovingdean and Woodingdean, near
Brighton, East Sussex, in 1967.
One of the biggest murder investigations ever mounted by Sussex Police was
launched in the wake of the murder.
The inquiry led to more than 80,000 home visits being made and more than 6,000
fingerprints of local schoolboys taken.
Although there were a number of suspects, no-one has ever been charged in
connection with the case.
Today, Sussex Police disclosed that a 55-year-old man from Manchester and a
56-year-old man from Brighton were arrested on Thursday on suspicion of Keith's
murder.
Both suspects have been released on police bail until Tuesday, November 14, a
police spokesman said.

 

[Barrel of Fun]

Fantastic news if they are the culprits. I have watched various programmes about the murder.

Released on bail It is a shame we have an archaic system really.

 

[The Clown of Pevensey Bay]

Released on bail It is a shame we have an archaic system really.

Police bail just means the cops don't think they're going to do a runner before the next time they have to report to a police station. Better that, than bring charges in a hurry and have them collapse cos the case isn't prepared properly...

 

[Barrel of Fun]

Police bail just means the cops don't think they're going to do a runner before the next time they have to report to a police station. Better that, than bring charges in a hurry and have them collapse cos the case isn't prepared properly...

True, but you would think the evidence has been gathered and a preliminary case has been built after all this time.

I agree it is important but I was surprised that it was to be used in this instance.

 

[Da Man Clay]

True, but you would think the evidence has been gathered and a preliminary case has been built after all this time.

I agree it is important but I was surprised that it was to be used in this instance.

I thought the same thing. Saying that it may just be forensic evidence they have arrested for and therefore a lot of background work needs to be done before they can charge.

 

[The Wookiee]

The inquiry led to more than 80,000 home visits being made and more than 6,000
fingerprints of local schoolboys taken.

My Dad was one of the 6000 schoolboys.

 

[Lady Whistledown]

True, but you would think the evidence has been gathered and a preliminary case has been built after all this time.

I agree it is important but I was surprised that it was to be used in this instance.

Could be stuff like forensics.

These days you can link someone to a crime through DNA gathered from their relatives, which would give you, say, a 1 in 5000 probability that it was that person.

But 1 in 5000 isn't good enough for a court to convict, therefore you have to physically get the suspect's DNA, which the police may not already have, in order to obtain a profile. If it's the right person, the probability of it not being them is more like 1 in a billion, which a court could reasonably convict on.

So maybe (and I have no insider knowledge on this at all) they arrested and interviewed them, and are awaiting the results from sending these blokes' DNA samples off, hence the bail.

I also saw from the paper that they're looking for some family who emigrated to Canada as well, so who knows what the link with these guys is.

It's just a shame that Keith Lyon's parents are both dead and won't ever see justice for their son.

 

[Barrel of Fun]

Could be stuff like forensics.

These days you can link someone to a crime through DNA gathered from their relatives, which would give you, say, a 1 in 5000 probability that it was that person.

Thanks.
I was being rather naive thinking it was a great deal smaller than that and DNA tended to be singular for each blood family. It has been 8 years since I gave up Biology after my GCSE B.

Very sad the parents went to their graves without justice.

 

[Lady Whistledown]

The Argus says there's a brother who's still alive.

Let's hope they find the person responsible, so he at least can see some kind of justice done.

 

[jevs]

Does anyone remember the Margret Crane murder in Stanmer park. Was anyone ever caught for that ?.

My dad was a dog handler with sussex police and was heavily involved in that one.

 

[Publius Ovidius]

whilst we are here....does anyone remember that horrific attack on the little boy at Rodean ( rodean pitch and putt?) around about the late 70's early 80's?

I think that was another one of those unsolved ones. They thought it may have been some foreignors who skipped across the Newhaven ferry at the time

My mate worked on the force then and said it was the worst thing he had ever seen done to another human being.

 

[Man of Harveys]

Didn't I read that they found the knife in a "sealed room" at Brighton police station and then did DNA testing on it?

 

[Lady Whistledown]

If you think about it, there must be bodies of people all over the place.

Sad to think, but there are so many places you could stuff someone away and they'd never be found.

There was an old lady who wandered off from a nursing home in Wolverhampton in about 1980, and they only found herbody in 2000 or so, when some council workmen went to clear away scrub on a roundabout in the middle of town. She was a bit senile, obviously just wandered there one night and just laid down and died. All those years people drove around her, having no idea.

How many others are there out there, some killed unlawfully, with families waiting to know? Scary.

 

[dougdeep]

I remember this from when I was a kid. Poor policing if it was done by kids and not sorted at the time.