Mail's feature of 1999 on Hanratty by Roger Matthews

[NickB]

According to Bob Woffinden's book this particular person was detained from 10.00pm Wednesday (the 6th) until just after 2.00pm the following day Thursday (the 7th).

After being interviewed by Acott and Baron he was questioned further by Scotland Yard.

[Sherlock Houses]

After being interviewed by Acott and Baron he was questioned further by Scotland Yard.

Do you have any further info Nick as to what time he was released on Sept 8th ? It would mean that this unnamed suspect had been questioned/detained at the very least for 26 hours. A long time to be held without being charged.

[Sherlock Houses]

Considering all that has been written in recent posts It rather begs the question "Who or what was the source of the Court of Appeal Judgement's claim that 'he [ie Alphon] had already been interviewed on 27 August and 7 September and he was interviewed again' ?

[Derrick]

...Why did the cases in room 24 lead the police to Alphon and not originally J Ryan...

...Because further to Alphon's questioning after he was interviewed reference his conduct at The Alexandra Court, he freely admitted to the police that he had stayed at The Vienna on the night of the murder. However, it was soon established that he had slept in Room 6 at The Vienna, whilst a "J Ryan" had occupied Room 24...

Hi Graham
I understand what you are saying but that still doesn't answer my question.

My point was that the cases were found in room 24, occupied the night before by J Ryan, and still the police pursued Alphon, occupant of room 6 on the night, for another 10/11 days.

One cannot blame a lowlife like Nudds and say that he muddied the waters with his myriad of statements. It is a fact that Hanratty stayed in room 24 on the night of the 21st and Alphon stayed there on the night of the 22nd in room 6. The police, once they had the register, should have concentrated solely on room 24 and Ryan. So my question, somewhat rephrased and concise, is; why didn't they?

Yet, in all honesty, Acott, despite his so-called total belief in Miss Storie's identification and evidence, conducted his investigation in complete contradiction to Miss Storie and any available evidence.

Alphon didn't have icy-blue saucer-like eyes did he?

What do you think?

Del

[Natalie Severn]

September 6th was the day that Juliana Galves, asst.manager at the Vienna Hotel was interviewed by police about the night of the murder-following the police visit to the hotel on 27th August.She was questioned about what she knew about Alphon's stay there and the interview took place at Highgate [or Highbury] police station .She herself was off when Alphon had booked in but she saw him looking dishevelled and agitated late the next morning just after the murder.He was bending over a case which she told them contained dirty clothing and she also apparently claimed she saw a pair of black ladies gloves lying on top of the clothing.

[Graham]

Derrick,

Alphon originally came to the attention of the police after they had issued a public appeal to hotels, b&b's, etc., asking proprietors if any of their guests had been behaving oddly. The manager of The Alexandra Court contacted the police to report s Mr F Durrant who certainly had been acting oddly. The police, when they first met him in his room, noticed that his case was open and that a copy of a newspaper folded to show an article on the A6 Case was visible. Not proof of anything, of course, but bear in mind that the police were at The Alexander Court in the first place as part of the A6 investigation. Therefore Alphon was 'down on the list' almost right from the start, but told the truth when the police asked him where he was on the night of the murder.

So when the cartridge cases were found at The Vienna, the police fell on the place and interviewed all and sundry. As Alphon had already freely admitted he was at The Vienna on the night of the murder, he was instantly a potential suspect and a search for him began. They had no idea who J Ryan was (and incidentally, to this day it is not clear how the connection to James Hanratty was eventually made). It also transpired that Alphon had initially been offered Room 24 but requested a move to another room - so I think it is obvious that he'd been inside Room 24 which would rather naturally give the police cause to believe he had the opportunity to drop the cases in that room.

Nats, I thought that the police's first visit to The Vienna was on September 6th to check out Alphon's alibi given by him reference the Alexandra Court incident.

Graham

[Natalie Severn]

Hi Graham-No I believe they paid a visit to the Vienna on the 27th August but didn't get much from that visit.My understanding is that for some reason the police called Juliana Galves to be interviewed on 6th September but I am in Stratford Upon Avon right now-about to go to theatre on way back from Wales -so have no source materials with me. I do know that police were called by William Ewer as early as 1st September when he rang them about having seen a man with staring eyes in a cafe near his Umbrella shop.The lady in the nearby flower shop was approached by police and told them a J Ryan of similar description had sent flowers to his mum -a Mrs Hanratty- on September 1st and she gave them the address he had given but at that stage they didn't follow up-presumably it was one of very many suspects they had to follow up.

[GUT]

Read the judgement of the Court of Appeal last night, Roger Matthews had better have something good if it's ever released the Court was critical of the case even being referred on so little grounds.

[Victor]

In fact Victor, there was not any forensic evidence adduced by the prosecution in the original trial; just eye-witness and circumstantial evidence.

Hi Del,

Personally I include the following as Forensic evidence:-
Ballistics data on the cartridge cases from the Vienna, and the gun and bullets from the bus
Blood typing of the semen stains from the underwear

Are you claiming that these don't count as forensic evidence?

KR,
Vic.

[Graham]

Hi Graham-No I believe they paid a visit to the Vienna on the 27th August but didn't get much from that visit.My understanding is that for some reason the police called Juliana Galves to be interviewed on 6th September

Hi Nats,

Hmmmm....neither Foot's nor Woffinden's "timelines" mention a visit to The Vienna on 27th August, but Foot states that while Alphon was being interviewed regarding The Alexandra Court business, Sgt Kilner telephoned The Vienna to check out Alphon's alibi for night of 22nd August, but doesn't say who he spoke to at The Vienna other than the 'hotel manager'. I don't think Woffinden mentions this phone-call at all. Woffinden's timeline states that Mrs Galves did indeed make a statement on 6th September regarding Alphon's alibi.

I've had an 18-month lay-off from the A6 Case, and I can tell you that now I've come back to it, it's as baffling and confusing as ever - probably even more so. "Dripping with Coincidence", as Sherrard so aptly put it.

BTW, re: libel, we all know that one major player in the A6 tragedy is still alive.

Graham

[Derrick]

Hi Del,

Personally I include the following as Forensic evidence:-
Ballistics data on the cartridge cases from the Vienna, and the gun and bullets from the bus
Blood typing of the semen stains from the underwear

Are you claiming that these don't count as forensic evidence?

KR,
Vic.

Hi Victor
I agree that the blood typing is forensic evidence but as probative evidence that could point to a single suspect then it is of little or no worth.

So to all intents and purposes the prosecution, at the original trial, had nothing forensically of any value whatsoever...the gun and its accoutrements were, are and always will be part of the circumstantial evidence.

Del

[NickB]

They had no idea who J Ryan was (and incidentally, to this day it is not clear how the connection to James Hanratty was eventually made).

On the web page advertising a novel called Deadman’s Hill, the author Roger Forsdyke explains how his story differs from the facts.

In the Author’s Note (paragraph 7) he says:
“... James Hanratty senior had taken one of the postcards written out by Gerrard Leonard to the police.”

As these postcards were written on 7th September in the name of Ryan, it would appear to be a plausible explanation of how Acott linked the name Ryan to Hanratty.

[Natalie Severn]

Hi Graham-[back in London] - looked up Woffinden [1997 edition].Here is what it says on page 58:
"The hotel had lately been the subject of police inquiries.On 27th August the Vienna had been contacted by Highbury Vale Police Station,asking about one of its guests,Frederick Durrant.Subsequently,the police needed a written record of the telephone verification.As a result Juliana Galves went to Hsarrow Road Police Station to make a statement.
Staff therefore knew,if only obscurely,that the hotel was being mentioned in connection with the A6 murder inquiry."

So you are right-it doesn't say the police went there in Woffinden's book but that the hotel was contacted by police.

[Graham]

Hi Nats,

Woffinden says that Mrs Galves went to Harrow Road police station on 6 September to give her statement. I wonder why over a week passed between Sgt Kilner phoning The Vienna and Mrs G making her statement?

Graham

[Natalie Severn]

and again Graham: [Foot's book pages 43 and 44] Alphon was questioned in Blackstock Road police station ,Highbury ,about his strange behaviour between the early evening of August 23rd- the night immediately after the murder until 27th August at the Alexandra Ct Hotel, Seven Sisters Road, Finsbury Park. He was asked by police where he had spent Tuesday night 22nd and he said he had stayed at the VIenna Hotel,Sutherland Road under the false name of Frederick Durrant.
"Sergeant Kilner phoned the Vienna Hotel and established that a man signed in in the name of Durrant for the night of August 22nd"[so this confirms the police contact on 27th appears to have only been by telephone.]

All they appear to have established in the two hours of questioning +a long statement is that Alphon had slept rough under the pier at Southend on 21st.Aug and that spent a lot of time walking around Richmond and Barnes and earned a living selling almanacs door to door and that his father worked as a records clerk in Scotland Yard's Aliens Department.
Alphon's statement was sent in to the 'murder room' at Scotland Yard.