Prime suspect in murder of Suzy Lamplugh will STAY behind bars as parole board finds John Cannon is too dangerous to be released or moved to an open prison
- Cannan was jailed for minimum of 35 years for rape and murder of Shirley Banks
- In 2002, police unusually named him as the suspected killer of Miss Lamplugh
- The estate agent vanished in 1986 after going to a house viewing in Fulham
The prime suspect in the murder of Suzy Lamplugh is to stay behind bars after the Parole Board ruled that he is too dangerous to release.
John Cannan, 69, was jailed for a minimum of 35 years for the rape and murder of Shirley Banks in 1987, along with another sexual offence, an attempted kidnapping and two sexually motivated abduction offences.
In 2002, police took the highly unusual step of naming him as the suspected killer of Miss Lamplugh after the CPS ruled there was insufficient evidence to prosecute him.
The 25-year-old estate agent vanished on July 28, 1986 after going to show a man around a house in Fulham.
The case remains one of Britain’s most notorious unsolved crimes. Her body has never been found.
The prime suspect in the murder of Suzy Lamplugh (pictured) is to stay behind bars after the Parole Board ruled that he is too dangerous to release
John Cannan, 69, was named as the suspected killer of Miss Lamplugh (pictured) in 2002 after the CPS ruled there was insufficient evidence to prosecute him
Cannan (pictured) was jailed for a minimum of 35 years for the rape and murder of Shirley Banks in 1987, along with another sexual offence, an attempted kidnapping and two sexually motivated abduction offences
The only clue to her disappearance was an appointment she put in her work diary suggesting she was showing the property to a ‘Mr Kipper’, who has never been traced.
Three days before she vanished Cannan had been released from a hostel at Wormwood Scrubs prison, where he had been serving a six-year sentence for rape.
It later emerged that in prison he was known by other inmates as Kipper.
The former car salesman also had access to a BMW car of the type thought to have been driven by ‘Mr Kipper’ and resembled a photofit of a man seen with Miss Lamplugh outside the Fulham flat on the day she disappeared.
Her late parents Paul and Diana dedicated their lives to finding her and established the Suzy Lamplugh Trust to improve awareness of personal safety.
Cannan, who is being held at top security HMP Full Sutton, East Yorkshire, has never admitted his crimes.
A parole hearing in September was told that Cannan insists he is innocent and has refused to engage in any programmes to address the risk of reoffending.
According to a risk assessment when Cannan was imprisoned: ‘He had held a view that violence was acceptable and he had been preoccupied with sex, believing he had the right to have sex as and when he wanted to.
‘He had demonstrated a need for power and control, and had held a derogatory attitude towards women.’
Miss Lamplugh, a 25-year-old estate agent, vanished on July 28, 1986 after going to show a man around a house in Fulham
Her body has never been found and the only clue to Miss Lamplugh’s (pictured far right) disappearance was an appointment she put in her work diary suggesting she was showing the property to a ‘Mr Kipper’, who has never been traced
The Parole Board also heard that Cannan ‘disputed the need for licence conditions’ and experts ‘could not be sure that Mr Cannan would comply with the terms of any release’.
It concluded: ‘The panel was not satisfied that release at this point would be safe for the protection of the public.’
Cannan, who is currently a category A prisoner posing the highest risk to the public, also failed in his bid to be moved to open prison.
He will have to wait a further two years before he is able to apply again for parole.
Seperately, the Parole Board announced yesterday that an application for disgraced pop star Gary Glitter to have his parole hearing held in public has been rejected.
The paedophile is due to be considered for release in January.
But the hearing will take place behind closed doors because of difficulties contacting all his victims.
Glitter, 79, whose real name is Paul Gadd, was jailed in 2015 for sexually abusing three schoolgirls between 1975 and 1980.
He was automatically released in February after serving half of his 16-year sentence.
Less than six weeks later, he was taken back to prison in March for breaching his licence conditions by allegedly viewing downloaded images of children.
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