A 92-year-old man has been sentenced to life in prison for the rape and murder of 75-year-old Louisa Dunne in what is believed to be the UK’s longest cold case to go to trial.
Ryland Headley, a former railway worker, was found guilty of the brutal 1967 attack at Dunne’s home in Easton, Bristol. The widow’s body was discovered by neighbors after Headley forced entry and assaulted her. He was 34 at the time.
For decades, the case remained unsolved. Though police found a palm print and traces of semen at the scene, the forensic tools needed to identify a suspect did not exist at the time. It wasn't until modern DNA testing was applied to preserved evidence that investigators matched the DNA to Headley.
Following the murder, Headley relocated to Suffolk and was later convicted in 1977 for raping two elderly women. Prosecutors said his history showed a pattern of breaking into homes at night and targeting elderly women.
Headley denied the charges and did not testify during the trial, but a jury at Bristol Crown Court found him guilty of both rape and murder. The judge, Mr Justice Sweeting, sentenced him to life with a minimum term of 20 years, effectively ensuring Headley will die behind bars.
“This was a pitiless and cruel act by a depraved man,” the judge said. “Mrs Dunne was a vulnerable elderly woman living alone. You treated her as a means to an end.”
The crime left deep scars on Dunne’s family. Her granddaughter, Mary Dainton, who was 20 at the time, told the court the murder had devastated her family, especially her mother, who never recovered emotionally. “The stigma around rape and murder followed us,” she said. “Even decades later, learning the killer had been caught turned my life upside down.”
Detectives praised Ms Dainton's courage and said Headley’s conviction has brought long-awaited justice. Avon and Somerset Police confirmed that other unsolved crimes involving Headley are now under review.
Charlotte Ream from the Crown Prosecution Service called the crime “appalling,” emphasizing that Dunne had been attacked in the place she should have felt safest—her home. “Time has not lessened the pain for her family,” she said.
Jeremy Benson KC, defending, offered no mitigating factors on Headley’s behalf.