Police have identified two suspects in the cold case murder of a miner whose remains were found 56 years after he disappeared – but both are dead.
Father-of-six Alfred Swinscoe’s bones were unearthed in a farmer’s field 16 months ago, five miles from the pub where he was last seen on the night of January 27, 1967.
The remains were identified after Mr Swinscoe’s grandson, Russell Lowbridge who was aged four at the time, responded to a police appeal to say he recognised a pair of patterned socks found with the bones, as clothing he had seen as a child.
THE COLD MURDER OF ALFRED SWINSCOE
Nottinghamshire Police issued a fresh appeal for information about the death yesterday and said officers believe Mr Swinscoe was murdered and then buried in a grave between 4ft and 6ft deep.
He had a ‘significant’ stab injury, blunt force trauma to parts of his body and a broken hand – which could have been sustained while fighting off his attacker or attackers.
POLICE STATEMENT
Assistant Chief Constable (ACC) Rob Griffin added: ‘During our investigation we have identified two potential suspects which under normal circumstances if Alfred had been murdered today, would have been arrested and brought in for questioning.
‘We don’t have that opportunity as they are no longer alive.
‘We will continue to investigate this crime and continue to look at all new and existing avenues available to us.’
One of the suspects had a history of violence, police added.
Some of the injuries the suspect had inflicted on another man he was convicted of assaulting in April 1966, were similar to those found on Mr Swinscoe.
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THE DAY HE VANISHED
Mr Swinscoe vanished after giving his son Gary cash to buy a round at his local, the Pinxton Miners Arms in the Derbyshire village of the same name, and then leaving to use the outside loo.
Some of the bones were missing from the burial site at Sutton-in-Ashfield, five miles away over the Nottinghamshire border.
WHAT COULD HAVE HAPPENED?
Experts believe it was ‘highly likely’ Mr Swinscoe was killed at a different location, and then moved to the farmer’s field ‘at a much later date’.
