Brother's Desperate Plea in 40-Year Murder Mystery
Richard Lamplugh has made an emotional appeal for police to question convicted serial killer Steve Wright regarding the disappearance of his sister, Suzy Lamplugh, in 1986. In an exclusive interview, the 66-year-old urged detectives to interview Wright in prison, stating that even a slim chance of obtaining information is worth pursuing.
New Connections to Suffolk Strangler
This plea comes just days after it emerged that cold-case detectives are reviewing potential links between Wright and Suzy's disappearance. Both individuals worked aboard the luxury liner QE2 in the early 1980s, with new witnesses providing details about their time together on the ship.
"He should be interviewed in prison. It can't do any harm. If he knows anything then I'd hope he would tell us," Richard Lamplugh stated from his home in Kemnay, Scotland.
Suzy Lamplugh, a 25-year-old estate agent, vanished on July 28, 1986, after going to meet a client known only as "Mr Kipper" in Fulham, London. Her body has never been found, and she was declared dead, presumed murdered, in 1993.
Shifting Suspect Focus
For years, police focused on convicted rapist John Cannan as the prime suspect in Suzy's disappearance. However, Richard Lamplugh now acknowledges that investigators may have been "barking up the wrong tree" with Cannan, who died in prison last year while serving a life sentence for another murder.
The renewed interest in Wright follows his recent admission to the 1999 murder of 17-year-old Victoria Hall. Wright is already serving a whole-life tariff for the 2006 murders of five women in Ipswich, known as the Suffolk Strangler killings.
Witness Accounts from QE2 Days
New evidence has emerged from former colleagues who worked with both Suzy and Wright on the QE2. Former waiter Paul Tennant recalled that Wright "tried to become a friend of Suzy's all the time." Additionally, Wright's ex-wife, Diane Cole, reported seeing her husband chatting with Suzy in the corridor near their cabins on two occasions.
Official records indicate that Wright was on the QE2 when it docked in Southampton in the early hours of July 28, 1986—the very day Suzy disappeared. Diane Cole now believes that Wright's brief visit to her home in Halstead, Essex, that day may have been an attempt to create an alibi.
Family's Search for Closure
Richard Lamplugh emphasized that his family's primary goal is to find Suzy's body and achieve some form of closure after four decades of uncertainty. "We only want to know what happened to her and where her body is," he said. "That would give us some sort of closure, we'd be able to bury her where we wanted, not where the killer wanted."
He added that if Wright was involved in Suzy's murder, it is tragic that he was free to commit additional killings. "These men are evil, they're cruel. They kill women and then leave their families with nothing, no answers," Richard stated.
Ongoing Investigation
The Metropolitan Police's cold-case homicide unit is currently reviewing Operation Phoebus, the original investigation into Suzy's disappearance. A police spokesperson confirmed that the investigation remains ongoing, with detectives committed to securing justice for the Lamplugh family.
Richard Lamplugh also reflected on the Suzy Lamplugh Trust, founded by his mother Diana to improve personal safety awareness. He noted that despite four decades passing, women still face similar risks today, with social media sometimes fueling hatred toward women.
"I wish we didn't need the Trust but women are still facing the same risks they faced 40 years ago," he remarked, highlighting the ongoing relevance of the charity's work.
