Today’s Charming Yet Truly Morbid Fact!
John George Haigh was a professional confidence trickster, a smooth-talker who specialized in charming wealthy, middle-aged women out of their money, and then killing them and disposing of the bodies in a bath of acid. (He is commonly known as the “Acid Bath Murderer”.) Convinced that he could not be caught and convicted without the physical evidence of the corpse, he was certain he would evade all attempts to punish him for his crimes – but he was fatally mistaken in his belief.
Fatal Charm: John George Haigh
Haigh’s last victim was a rich widow named Olive Durand-Deacon. It was his supreme confidence that led to his downfall. He admitted—off the record—that he had killed the woman, and even boasted that he had disposed of the body using acid at his workshop in Crawley, West Sussex, adding that only a layer of “sludge” remained. Sadly for Haigh, forensic pathologist Dr. Keith Simpson took up the challenge: he collected the “sludge” and analyzed it in detail. As well as traces of human fat, Simpson found evidence of dentures and a gallstone. These items were enough to provide positive evidence that the victim was Mrs. Durand-Deacon , and that her body had been disposed of in Haigh’s acid bath. Haigh was tried, convicted of murder, and hanged.
Olive Durand-Deacon: Most Unlucky in Love
Culled from: Hidden Evidence: Forty True Crimes and How Forensic Science Helped Solve Them
The Juvenile Menace
Layna sent me a link to a fascinating and typically superbly-researched article written by John Marr of Murder Can Be Fun zine fame all about the fun-filled pastime of juvenile trainwrecking. It’s an excellent read!
Choo Choo Crash Bang: The Golden Age of Juvenile Trainwrecking