Warren and Elizabeth Wheeler (Unsolved Double Murder)

Retired couple Warren and Elizabeth Wheeler lived a simple, quiet life in the picturesque village of Boars Hill, Berkshire. In the middle of the day on October 8th 1973, a person or persons unknown gained entry to their ramshackle farm cottage and brutally bludgeoned both elderly pensioners to death. A massive police investigation took place, and a man was arrested and confessed to the double murder. It appeared the case was cut and dried, yet evidence would lead to a very different conclusion.  

Sources for the episode can be found here

Chapters

• 0:00 The Wheelers’ Lives In Boars Hill
• 2:50 Routine Broken And Grim Discovery
• 5:15 The Crime Scene And Early Forensics
• 7:50 Motive Theories And Missing Weapon
• 10:40 Sightings And The Hunt For Strangers
• 14:05 Foster Son Leads And Elimination
• 17:20 Seven Men Of Interest Profiled
• 21:00 Mass Fingerprinting And Community Tips
• 23:15 Arrest Of Kenneth Nan
• 25:30 The Confession And Retraction
• 28:00 Inside The July 1974 Trial
• 31:30 Alibis, Doubt, And “Kenny The Confessor”
• 34:00 Acquittal And Aftermath

Transcript

SPEAKER_00: 0:01

Warren and Elizabeth Wheeler had resided at Yatzcombe Farm Cottage in the picturesque North Berkshire village of Boals Hill since 1938. Warren, middle name Randolph, was born in 1891 in Gloucestershire and had previously lived in Wootton, Bedfordshire and Devon. He was a veteran of the Great War and had served in the Royal Navy as a stoker. He stayed in the Navy after the war, but eventually moved on to operate pleasure steamers along the Thames from Oxford to Wallingford. For the latter part of his working life, Warren had been a postman in Boers Hill. Everyone around Boers Hill knew Warren by the name Arthur. I'm afraid I know very little about Elizabeth Wheeler's life. She was born in Kiddington, Oxfordshire in eighteen ninety eight as Elizabeth Gertrude Brown. The nineteen twenty one census and nineteen thirty nine register denote her occupation as unpaid domestic duties. The couple were married in nineteen twenty one and had no biological children, but started fostering a young boy in nineteen forty three. The child, born in nineteen thirty six, was orphaned shortly after and placed in the care of the state in nineteen thirty eight. The boy stayed with the Wheelers in Bores Hill until nineteen fifty one when he left home. He would occasionally return to Yatzcombe Cottage to visit. In nineteen seventy three, Warren, now aged eighty two, had been retired for many years. By this time, Elizabeth, aged seventy five, was disabled. She was riddled with arthritis and hardly ever left the home. She was rarely seen by other Bulls Hill residents. Moving around was just too painful, and for the most part she was confined to an armchair in the living room. The couple lived off their pensions. Warren was known to have three, including a Navy pension and his state pension. The couple were reasonably comfortably off, but the condition of the cottage did not reflect this. It was in drastic need of repair and modernization. There was no inside toilet, no bathroom or sink, and unbelievably the cottage had no running water or electricity. Warren, or Arthur, as I've mentioned he was known, was a regular sight around the village. He was five foot seven, of slight build with grey thinning hair, and he always wore the same heavy blue trousers, held up with a belt. He was universally thought of as a nice, jovial man, and would regularly call in at the post office to collect his pension, groceries and cigarettes for Elizabeth. Warren was also a regular at the local public house, the fox. Every day around noon, Warren walked the mile from Yatzkin Cottage to the pub for a tot of rum. The landlord joked that you could set your clock by him. Warren would stay for about an hour, often chatting with his friend Gerald. He also liked to read the newspaper and play the fruit machine that stood in the corner. Following the rum, Warren would often have a half of bitter, and occasionally he would take home a bottle of Guinness or Maccus and Stout for Elizabeth. This routine continued until Tuesday, october ninth, nineteen seventy three. On that day, Warren did not complete his daily ritual. It was just after lunchtime that a neighbour of the Wheelers named Lily noticed that the morning milk delivery was still on the front doorstep along with the daily newspaper. Lily was instantly concerned and contacted Mary, the shop assistant at the village store. She in turn telephoned the pub landlord to inquire about Warren. The landlord confirmed that he had not seen Warren all day. Mary went around to Yatzcom Cottage and shouted through the window, but did not get a reply. She could see no movement inside. A local handyman who was working in the vicinity had also noticed that the wheeler's curtains were closed, which was highly unusual. Not a sound could be heard from inside the cottage. Mary contacted the local police and explained she was worried about the elderly couple. At two hundred thirty PM PC John Lewington arrived at the cottage and found the front door locked, so he entered the property through an open window. He found Warren lying dead on his back next to the back door with a gash on his forehead. Elizabeth, who was also deceased, lay close by. Both bodies were fully dressed and covered in blood. Blood was splattered on the wall behind Elizabeth's chair. Even a cursory examination of the scene indicated the couple had been violently bludgeoned to death. New episodes are released every other Monday. If you'd like to become a supporter of the podcast, please see the link in the show notes. For as little as the price of a cup of coffee a month, you can help to ensure these historical and lesser-known cases from around the world are added and gain exposure. The show notes are also where to find social media details, information about the sources used for each case, and transcripts for all the episodes. If you enjoy the podcast, please consider leaving a review on your app. They make a real difference, and I love reading them. Finally, you can help others hear about persons unknown by sharing and recommending on social media. Thank you so much for listening. Now back to this week's episode. Detective Chief Superintendent Cyril Jones of Thames Valley Police was called in to take the lead on the investigation. He travelled to Boers Hill from the scene of a robbery in Chasham and arrived within two hours. Jones was a quiet man of good reputation who had been head of CID for four years. From the very start he put his all into the case, working from nine AM to at least midnight, sometimes as late as three AM every day. Jones publicly said it was the worst murder he had dealt with in his twenty seven years of service. He called the slayings both savage and brutal. On first seeing the state of the bodies and using the terminology of the time, pathologist Keith Simpson said we are looking for a maniac. Both Warren and Elizabeth died from significant head injuries. They had suffered heavy blows to the face and head. Warren had put up a fight, and it was thought his willingness to defend himself and his wife may have led to his death. The assumption was that the attacker probably did not go to the cottage with the intent of murder, but things had not gone as planned. When Warren fought back, the attacker panicked, and the situation spiraled out of their control. The postmortem discovered the following disturbing details. Warren had been struck while he was lying on the floor, presumably when he was already incapacitated. Elizabeth had sat in the chair unable to move and likely witnessed her husband's brutal killing before the attacker turned on her. Horrifyingly, the examination showed that she had taken twelve hours to die from her injuries. It was estimated that Elizabeth died twelve to thirty hours before the postmortem was carried out. It was believed the attack occurred the day before the bodies were found on Monday, october eighth, in daylight hours. At first, police would not reveal many details about the murder weapon except to say it was a blunt instrument. It was hard to make out the type of weapon from the wounds. They first theorized it may have been a household utensil, and that it may have been thrown onto an ivy covered reef of the adjoining house. Many months later in court it was suggested the weapon was a piece of wood which was found close to Warren Wheeler's body. The wood had been broken into three pieces. However, I should say modern day articles on the murders say the weapon was never found. The level of violence and brutality displayed in the killings meant police spent some time trying to decipher the motive. A robbery gone wrong was thought to be the most likely explanation. It was speculated that the murders could be connected to a spate of local incidents over the previous weeks where milk money had been stolen from the doorsteps of Boars Hill residence. A small pantry window at the rear of the cottage was open, and a bootlace used to tie the latch had been snapped. Ornaments on a dresser located in an upstairs bedroom had been disturbed and the lower drawer had been opened. It was discovered that Warren had withdrawn a large sum of cash from the post office in the days leading up to the murder, though an amount of money said to account for this withdrawal was found inside the house. Altogether, the amount discovered in the cottage was three hundred pound, while over three thousand pound in today's money. This was kept in a small unlocked case. There was a local rumour that the wheelers hoarded their savings at the property, but early in the investigation the police denied there was evidence to support this. The murdering was set up in a first floor gym of Oxford police station, which was overseen by Detective Sergeant Harry Porter. In a time before computers, all the information had to be indexed on roller decks so Leeds could be cross referenced. Roadblocks were set up around Boars Hill, and motorists were asked to think back in case they remembered anything. Police were sure someone must have seen the killer fleeing the scene as they would have been heavily bloodstained. Two areas of thick woodland near Ewlebury Scout Camp were searched. Metal detectors and dogs were deployed, but after a couple of days the search was called off and nothing of note was found. Police wanted to hear from anyone who had seen Warren between Sunday and Monday night. Inquiries around the village found that Warren had last been seen on the morning of Monday, october eighth. He was seen walking towards the fox pub, and then spotted again, later on, walking toward home. However, no one could remember seeing Warren in the pub that day. In all, fifty detectives were put on the case, and it wasn't long before they claimed they were quietly confident of catching the killer. This followed a good response from the local community and several promising leads. Southern gas board workers who were installing gas fittings in a nearby house reported being approached by a strange, frightened looking man who didn't appear to be from the area between eleven thirty AM and noon on Tuesday, october ninth. The man had come down the main road in Boars Hill, half running in big strides, and asked the gas workers the way to Sunningwell, a village that lies a forty minute walk to the south. He was between forty and fifty. This was revised to between forty two and forty five, with black hair and was wearing a long dark coat, almost to his ankles. He had an overall scruffy appearance. Shortly after this, police said they were looking for a second man, senior Yatzcom Farm Cottage at seven PM on Sunday, october seventh. He may have been waiting for a bus. He was described as being five foot ten to six foot, with a thin build and ginger or fair hair. He was smartly dressed in a dark blazer with grey trousers. Additionally, a man with scratches on his face was seen walking half a mile from the cottage shortly after midday on Monday, october eighth. He was walking toward Oxford, attempting to thumb a lift. He was five foot eight to ten and of medium build, with rough looking, long dark hair. He had a ruddy complexion and scratch marks on his face. He was wearing a long dark coat. A few days into the investigation, police said they had still been unable to contact the Wheeler's foster son. They had heard from distant relatives of the Wheelers from across the country, but not from the foster son. They wanted to speak with him so they could eliminate him from their inquiries. After leaving the Wheelers' home in nineteen fifty one, the foster son had worked as a road sweeper before joining the regular army. He had married in nineteen fifty nine but divorced a couple of years later. Over the following decade he obtained casual work at travelling fairgrounds and he had been involved with the territorial army. Police could find no record of regular employment in the recent past. It was claimed he had last visited Yatskham Farm Cottage in nineteen seventy. A nationwide search began to find the foster son, and a full description and photograph was circulated. As the photograph was from nineteen fifty five, the police later released an age progressed photo fit, which included a forehead scar he had received during his time in the Army. A police officer reported that he had seen and spoken with the Fosterson in Oxford just five weeks before the murders. He recognised the man from the photo and photo fit that had been shared. He also remembered him from dealing with a domestic matter in nineteen fifty nine or sixty. Other supposedly confirmed sightings came in of the Fosterson from North Wales and Lancashire. It was then stated that the son had made several recent visits to the Wheelers home, which contradicted earlier reports. In truth, these sightings must have been false because on november sixth, it was reported the Fosterson had been found working on a building site in County Cork, Island. He had been there for between six and eight months and was not in the UK when his foster parents were murdered. He was officially eliminated from police inquiries. There were, however, several persons that the Thames Valley police were looking to trace. In all, the descriptions and photophits of seven men were released. They had all been seen at one time or another in the lead up to the double murder. It may be that some of the descriptions referred to the same individual, seen at different times and locations. Some of the men I have already briefly described, but for clarity I will now go through the details of all seven. The first man was aged thirty five to forty, six foot, very slim build, with short, slightly wavy black hair. He was seen wearing a fawn coloured, tweed suit which looked like it was double breasted. He had an overall smart appearance and was thought to be the driver of a light green Ford Cortina estate, which had been seen parked outside the wheeler's cottage shortly after midday on Monday, october eighth. The second man was aged twenty six to thirty, five foot eight to ten, with a median build and rough, tussled hair. He had a ruddy complexion and appeared to have scratch marks on the right side of his face. He wore a long dark blue or black overcoat or mac, and he was seen near Yatskam farm cottage attempting to hitchhike towards Oxford. This was shortly after midday on Monday, october eighth. The third man was eighteen to twenty, five foot eight to ten, with slim build and shoulder length dark hair. He wore a black hip length coat with wet looking white piping. The right pocket was torn. He also had mud stained blue jeans. He was said to have spoken with a local accent. This man had visible red marks above his right eye, and had a handkerchief wrapped around his hand which looked like it was stained with blood. The fourth man was aged twenty to thirty and was fairly tall, with a medium build and ready complexion. He was clean shaven with a squarish face and had dark messy hair. This man had fresh scratch marks on his right cheek and wore a long dark coloured coat. He was seen near Boers Hill post office at five PM on Monday, october eighth. The fifth man was said to be a hippie type. He was aged twenty five to thirty, five foot six of stocky build. He had shoulder length hair and a square cut fringe and round face. He wore pink tinted glasses and a faded pink and beige, square necked, long sleeve t shirt and faded blue jeans. On his feet he had calf length leather boots with the tops turned down in a Robin Hood style. He was seen near the cottage at around twelve thirty PM on Monday, october eighth, and may have been waiting for a bus. The sixth man was in his early thirties, five foot nine to ten, of slim build with dark hair. He was said to be well greened and clean shaven. He wore a lightweight sports jacket with green or grey large tracks and mid grey trousers. He was seen near the wheeler's cottage between two hundred thirty PM and two hundred forty five PM on the day of the murder. The seventh and last person the police were attempting to find was a man aged thirty to forty, five foot ten, with a slim to medium build. He was wearing a brown knee length belted coat and brown trilby hat. He was spotted walking toward the cottage at three twenty PM on Monday, october eighth. Thames Valley Police began circulating leaflets with the details of all these men to police authorities across the country. They initiated a fingerprint drive, which obviously shows fingerprints were found at the crime scene with the aim of collecting ten thousand prints or dabs as they were referred to by police from men in the local area. At first they targeted Boars Hill and the surrounding villages of Wootton and Sunningwell, but soon widened it to include the market town of Abingdon. Sixty five detectives based at St. Aldate's Police Station in Oxford were involved, and by January they had printed seven and a half thousand men and male youths. In tandem, thirteen thousand questionnaires were completed by members of the public, which generated numerous new lines of inquiry. The operation produced a result when on january twenty first, nineteen seventy four, a man was arrested and taken to St. Aldate's police station where he was kept overnight. Within days it was announced that thirty-three year old Kenneth Maunders Nan of no fixed address had been charged with the double murder of Warren and Elizabeth Wheeler. A few months later at Oxford Crown Court, Kenneth Nan pleaded not guilty to the charge and a trial was scheduled for July. Kenneth Nan was originally from Dundee in Scotland, but had lived and worked at various locations across the UK. He had most recently been working as a labourer on building sites, moving around from job to job. Nan had been married but was currently separated. He had at least one child, an eight year old son, who lived with Nan's mother in the Oxford area. It was said he was very fond of his son. Kenneth Nan was an alcoholic which led to many problems in his life. In January nineteen seventy four, Kenneth Nern was drinking at the Royal Oak Pub in Manchester when he blurted out that he had topped or killed two people. So convincing was Nan that the landlord contacted the police and officers arrived to detain him.

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Him.

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As they were in the process of arresting him, a disabled man who was drinking in the pub fell over and was injured. The police officers went to his aid, and Nan used the opportunity to escape. Unbelievably, Nan returned to the pub the following day. This time he told the landlord that he had killed the people because they had attacked his bands or children. Around this time, the police in Manchester received a phone call from Nan himself, saying he wanted to confess to a double murder. This next part is a little confusing. At some point Kenneth Nan travelled to Clydebank in Scotland. I think this was after he was in Manchester, but it may have been shortly before. During his visit to Scotland, he went by the false name McKenny and was taken in by an older woman who felt sorry for him as he was homeless and without work. While in Clydebank, he visited a pub and repeated the claim that he had killed two people. From what I have read, I believe Nan attempted suicide in the toilet of the pub by slashing his wrists. Eventually, police did catch up with Kenneth Nan in Wales and arrested him on suspicion of murder. It was determined that his confession referred to the murders of Warren and Elizabeth Wheeler. During an interview with DCS Cyril Jones, who was leading the investigation into the Wheeler's deaths, Nan confessed to their double murder. Following the interview, the police said Nan produced a six page statement which corroborated the confession. This is a brief overview of the statement. Kenneth Nan detailed meeting a man in an Oxford pub and asking him if he knew of any places nearby he could screw or rob as he needed money. The man told him about the Wheeler's cottage in Boers Hill, and the two men agreed to meet the following day to do the job. The man was a stranger to Nan and he did not name him. This man took Nan to Boers Hill and showed him the Wheeler's cottage. Nan then got inside the property, and within moments mister Wheeler came at him at the back door. Nan pushed the older man over, but in the insurance struggle, Warren was able to grab Nan's arms. Prior to arriving at the cottage, Nan had drunk a lot of alcohol, and because of this, Warren was able to get the better of him. It was at this point that Nan managed to get the older man on the floor, and he started to batter him. During the fight, Elizabeth Wheeler was sitting in the chair screaming. Nan claimed she offered money to get him to stop, but he snapped and started to batter her. He beat them until they made no noise. After this he went upstairs and found seventy pounds on top of a wardrobe. The statement ended by saying he did not mean to kill the wheelers, and that he had done it for the money. When he left the cottage he went to Cannington in London, where he drank whiskey in a pub. The police got Nan in a car and got him to show the route he took to the cottage. Apparently he became very distressed during this journey. Later, when police officers went to Nan's sal to obtain his fingerprints, he allegedly told them that they should hang him twice over. It is important to note that after this, Nan retracted his confession and subsequently denied committing the murders. The seven day trial took place at the beginning of july nineteen seventy four. There were a few administrative hiccups to sort out at the beginning as it was discovered that one of the jury members was distantly related to a police witness, though the matter was resolved. The prosecution evidence revolved around the confession given at the interview and the statement. They also said that Nan was in Headington, Oxford on Monday, october eighth. That's a fifteen minute car drive from Boers Hill, giving him ample opportunity to commit the murders. They claimed he had visited his son's school at nine AM to complete an administrative form. During court proceedings the jury, consisting of eleven men and one woman, was asked to leave the room on several occasions, as the defense gave legal submissions to the presiding judge, Justice Michael Davis. The defense claimed that their client was not in a fit state to be interviewed at the time he gave his confession. When he was initially arrested, he was found to be intoxicated and had drank two bottles of whiskey. He was taken to a hospital where his stomach was pumped and then driven to the police station and interviewed. The defense claimed Nan was distressed and he was worried his young son was going to be taken into care. He was also asking whether his elderly mother had died. The defense argued this confusion and panic was not conducive for a formal police interview. In response, the police said Nan had only inquired about his son and mother at the end of the interview. Regarding the confession, the defense stated that when Nan was taken to the hospital to have his stomach pumped, he had denied having murdered the wheelers. He also denied it to police when first arrested and with subsequent conversations with police after the confession interview. Concerning the written statement, the defence QC said that Nan was incapable of producing such a thing and insisted that part of it was pure fantasy. They argued Nan's low standard of education, coupled with his strong Scottish accent and the fact he had no teeth made it impossible for him to have dictated such a lengthy and articulate statement. They tried to get the judge to rule it inadmissible, but this did not happen. The defence disputed the assertion that Nan had gone to the wheeler's home to rob it because he needed the money. He earned fifty to sixty pounds a week on building sites six hundred pound in today's money. He simply had no need of the money, and certainly wasn't desperate enough to rob a house for it. The defence's trump card was that they had a witness who put Nan fifty miles away from Boars Hill at the time of the murders. At two PM on Monday, october eighth, he was at the offices of building company Bovis in Harrow, Northwest London. He had gone there to collect a thirteen pound bonus for work he had carried out in Solihull. Apparently he had hitchhiked there on Sunday evening. From Harrow he travelled to King's Cross and visited another Bovis office where he signed up for a job in Yorkshire. He then caught a train to Jewsbury in Yorkshire and headed to the Fox's biscuit factory where the job was taking place. The defence introduced the name of a person they claimed could be the real killer. This was a twenty three year old man whose name I'm not going to mention, who allegedly had a conversation with Nen in a pub in which they talked about screwing or robbing a house to get money. The defense alleged that this man was in the area of Boars Hill on the afternoon of october eighth, between one PM and three thirty PM as he was returning from committal proceedings at Abingdon Court. This man had previous convictions including for burglary, intent to rob and assault causing actual bodily harm. DCS Cyril Jones admitted in court that this man was one of nineteen suspects that the police had looked into. Jones claimed that eighteen suspects, including this man, were able to provide an alibi for the murders. Jones maintained the only suspect who could not account for his time was Kenneth Nern. Responding to questions regarding why Nan had confessed to a crime he did not commit, he answered that his mind had been going round and round. When asked if he knew who did commit the murders, he responded that he wasn't a grass and refused to give any names. Perhaps the biggest revelation at trial was that this wasn't the first time Kenneth Narn had confessed to a murder, one that it was proven he could not have committed. In fact, he had a long history of admitting to crimes he had nothing to do with. The Rading Evening Post, july ninth, nineteen seventy four, said he was known by the nickname Kenny the Confessor. In january nineteen seventy one, Nan confessed to the murder of a hotelier in Perthshire, Scotland. It was proven he was in hospital in Middlesex when the murder occurred. Nan spent a lot of time in hospitals as he was a known hypochondriac, and Dundee Hospital said he regularly faked illnesses. Nan had previous convictions for theft and fraud dating back to nineteen fifty seven, and at least two for making false statements, one relating to a robbery at his home and another involved his wallet being stolen. Just a matter of weeks before the wheelers were killed, Nan was convicted over an incident involving a bomb hoax. He planted a carrier bag with laundry in a public place and claimed to the authorities that it was a bomb. Once the prosecution and defense finished their arguments, the jury were instructed by the judge to find Nan not guilty. Normally, a jury would be entitled to convict based on a confession, but Judge Davis was adamant that there was a lack of evidence pointing to Nern being the killer. It could not be proven he was anywhere near Boars Hill on the day. There was no forensic evidence connecting him to the scene. As an aside, it is clear his fingerprints did not match any found at the crime scene. And on top of all this, he had a reputation for lying. Judge Davis called Kenneth Nern an habitual liar, a regular confessor who liked to draw the attention of the police to himself. Following the not guilty verdict, Kenneth Nern told the press that his friends and family always knew he wasn't a murderer, and he regretted the trouble the matter had brought his family. Since being arrested, he had been forced to go cold turkey from alcohol, and he said he never wanted to touch it again. After leaving the court he went across the road to a pub and had a glass of lemonade. Nan was looking forward to a fresh start, finding a new job and spending time with his young son. He thought he may even restart the boys' football team he used to run. Kenneth Nan passed away in nineteen eighty eight, at the age of just forty eight. After the trial, the investigation into the murders fizzled out, and the real killer or killers have never been brought to account. Local people from Boars Hill believed the culprit was likely someone Warren had chatted to, possibly in the pub. He was happy to talk to anyone, including strangers, and was often open about his mistrust of banks. Or perhaps someone had overheard such a conversation and decided to act, thinking it would be an easy task to rob the elderly couple. They didn't reckon on Warren fighting back. For a while the local community were trying to get permission to turn the wheel's cottage into accommodation for lonely older people, but this never got off the ground. Eventually, after standing empty for a decade, Yatzcom Cottage was torn down by developers in nineteen eighty-three. Even now, after over fifty years since the murders of Warren and Elizabeth Wheeler, you can still contact Crime Stoppers anonymously on zero eight hundred triple five triple one to share any information you may have.