Murders of Jacqueline Ansell-Lamb and Barbara Mayo

 Jacqueline Susan Ansell-Lamb (21 September 1951 – 14 March 1970) and Barbara Janet Mayo (20 March 1946 – 12 October 1970) met tragic fates in separate incidents during 1970. Both young women were last observed hitchhiking along motorways in England, experiencing heinous assaults before succumbing to strangulation. Despite the temporal and geographical disparity of these events, investigators suspect a common perpetrator behind both gruesome acts. Reported connections between the two cases, often linked to DNA analysis, have proven to be erroneous. Detectives, in 1990, suggested a likely connection, but it was only in 1997 that a DNA profile was isolated in Mayo’s case. Despite extensive public appeals and reconstructions, the mysteries of both murders endure, and the elusive perpetrator, occasionally dubbed the Monster of the Motorway, remains unidentified.

Jacqueline Ansell-Lamb, affectionately known as "Jacqi," embodied the essence of a 1960s teenager. A secretary from Manchester, she, on the weekend of 7–8 March 1970, retrieved her belongings in London and attended a party in Earl’s Court. Attempting to hitchhike back to Manchester on 8 March, she accepted a ride from a man she had met at the party, traveling to the M1 motorway slip roads in London. Her journey northward from Buckinghamshire, where she shared a lift with another man for 50 miles, remains shrouded in mystery. Ansell-Lamb was reported missing on 9 March when she failed to return to Manchester.

Barbara Janet Mayo

On the day of her disappearance, she adorned herself with a blonde wig, false eyelashes, a dark blue coat, and maroon shoes, carrying a Japan Airlines bag with matching initials.

The final confirmed sighting of Ansell-Lamb was at the Opera Café in High Legh, near Warrington in Cheshire, between 9 pm and 10 pm. Witnesses, including chef Delia Brown, reported her in the company of a well-dressed man in business attire. The man ordered two coffees, engaged in conversation with Ansell-Lamb, and departed with her, possibly in a white Jaguar. An unconfirmed sighting later placed her hitchhiking on the A556 road, one mile from where her lifeless body was discovered.

On 14 March, Ansell-Lamb’s partially clothed body was found in woodland near Mere, Cheshire, close to the M6 motorway and the site of her last sighting. She had endured sexual assault, strangulation, and her body was posed. Bruises and cuts on her neck and face indicated a struggle with her assailant.

Barbara Mayo, a 24-year-old schoolteacher from Hammersmith, London, embarked on a hitchhiking journey to Catterick, North Yorkshire, on 12 October 1970. Her mission was to retrieve her boyfriend’s stranded car. When she failed to arrive, her boyfriend reported her missing two days later. Mayo was last seen in a navy-blue coat, lilac jersey, and gold and tan slacks, possibly carrying her red bag.

Four days later, her partially clothed body was discovered under leaves in an isolated wood off the M1 motorway at Ault Hucknall near Chesterfield, Derbyshire. The heinous crime involved rape, head injuries, and strangulation with a length of flex. Her body was found near Hodmire Lane, a lovers’ lane, but her bag, containing her purse, was never recovered despite an extensive search.

Mayo’s assailant was dubbed the “Monster of the Motorway,” and the murder became embedded in local folklore.

Investigation

Initial Inquiries

After Ansell-Lamb's murder, Cheshire Police initiated an extensive search involving 120 officers. Despite ruling out individuals associated with her, authorities speculated about a potential connection to Manchester City fans traveling on the M6 during the weekend of the murder.

Mayo’s brutal killing prompted Britain’s largest motorway hunt. Detective Chief Superintendent Chris Pollard from Scotland Yard led the investigation, involving over 1,500 police officers questioning more than 125,000 individuals on motorways. Checkpoints were established along 150 miles of the M1 between London and Leeds, with every vehicle at each junction being stopped and checked for a day.

A publicity campaign ensued, urging potential witnesses to come forward with information, ensuring confidentiality for those offering rides to hitchhikers.

A television broadcast, a week later, showcased a reconstruction of Mayo’s last known movements. This prompted 700 public responses, including a crucial observation of Mayo hitchhiking near Kimberley, Nottinghamshire.

“Yorkshire Ripper” Theory Investigated

In the 1970s, when the “Yorkshire Ripper” Peter Sutcliffe began his killing spree, Derbyshire Constabulary explored a connection between his murders and Mayo’s case. Sutcliffe was interrogated in 1981 but was ruled out from the Mayo murder inquiry in 1997.

Murder Investigations Linked

By 1990, suspicions grew that the murders of Ansell-Lamb and Mayo might be interconnected. Lead investigators acknowledged “striking similarities,” leading to a joint effort to solve both cases. Appeals brought forth women reporting sexual assaults in Mayo’s vicinity.

During a Crimewatch episode, forensic scientists revealed carpet fibers from Ansell-Lamb’s body, hinting at a possible connection to the carpet industry. DNA profiling in Mayo’s case occurred in 1997.

In 2001, Derbyshire Police made a televised appeal for information on "Britain’s Ten Most Wanted Murderers."

Contrary to misinformation, conclusive DNA linkage between the murders of Ansell-Lamb and Mayo was established in 1997, not 1990. Challenges persisted in isolating a DNA profile from Ansell-Lamb’s clothing.

Subsequent Developments and Theories

In the late 2000s, police explored Peter Tobin as a potential suspect but eliminated him from the investigation. In 2008, a man with newspaper clippings related to Ansell-Lamb’s murder was ruled out. In 2009, crime writer Scott Lomax suggested a football match connection in Mayo’s case. In 2015, the possibility of a link to Yorkshire Ripper Peter Sutcliffe was dismissed. Journalist Don Hale proposed in 2019 a connection to Wendy Sewell’s 1973 murder, but evidence is inconclusive.

Despite ongoing speculations, investigators appeal for information on the murders of Ansell-Lamb and Mayo. The location where Ansell-Lamb was last seen is now known as Lymm Truckstop.