Lynne Weedon

Status:

Open

Offense Location:

Hounslow, London

Summary:

Lynne Weedon was a 16-year-old schoolgirl attacked and murdered in Hounslow, west London on September 3, 1975. She was struck over the head with a blunt instrument, raped, and died a week later in hospital from her injuries. Her murder was linked via DNA evidence in 2007 to the 1975 murder of Eve Stratford, suggesting the work of a serial killer. The case remains unsolved.

Vital Statistics

Circumstances of Offense:

On September 3, 1975, Lynne Weedon went out to celebrate her O-level exam results with friends at the Elm Tree pub on New Heston Road in Hounslow, where she lived on Lampton Road. She began traveling home at 11:00 p.m., parting company with her friends on the Great West Road. Despite having previously vowed never to use an alleyway known as Short Hedges after dark because it was frequented by prowlers, she decided to take the shortcut through it that night. At approximately 11:20 p.m., she was struck over the head with a heavy object similar to a piece of lead pipe, fracturing her skull. Her attacker then lifted her over gates into the grounds of a power substation, where he dragged her out of sight and raped her. She was discovered the following morning by a local school caretaker whose house overlooked the substation. Despite the severity of her injuries, she was still alive when police and ambulance arrived at the scene.

Additional Details:

Lynne never regained consciousness and died a week later on September 10, 1975, at West Middlesex Hospital. The cause of death was determined to be a single blow to the head that caused a skull fracture. The weapon was never recovered. In 2004, officers from the Metropolitan Police's Murder Review Group re-examined Lynne's case and recovered a DNA profile. In July 2006, following a review and advances in technology, DNA evidence determined that the same perpetrator who murdered Lynne had also murdered Eve Stratford on March 18, 1975, linking the two cases. Stratford's case was formally reopened in 2007. Investigators interviewed 16 suspects and took DNA samples from them, but none were a match. The murders are believed to be the work of an uncaught serial killer, likely responsible for other murders. Additional circumstantial evidence suggests a possible link to the murder of Elizabeth Parravincina in September 1977, which occurred one mile away from Lynne's attack site and almost exactly two years to the day after. A £40,000 reward for information leading to identification, arrest, and prosecution of the killer remains on offer. In 2015, Lynne's mother Margaret Weedon made a public plea for information. Recent documentary coverage in the 2024 television series 'West End Murders' featured the case with former Metropolitan Police detective Colin Sutton investigating. Despite advances in DNA technology and extensive inquiries over decades, neither Lynne's nor Eve Stratford's murders have been solved.

Case Last Updated:

Sep 14, 2026