John Rhys Williams' final statement (lost audio recording of British murderer; 1964)

This article has been tagged as NSFL due to its disturbing subject matter.

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1st November 1964 issue of the Sunday Mirror's headline regarding the audio tape.

Status: Lost

On 23rd September 1964, the decapitated body of railway ganger John Rhys Williams was discovered on the Chester-Holyhead railway line at Connah's Quay in Wales. Upon searching Williams' home, Flintshire police found the body of his wife Annie. An inquest concluded that Williams stabbed and battered his wife to death before later committing suicide. A crucial piece of evidence was an audio tape Williams recorded where he confessed to the killing, a move deemed unique for murderers at the time.

Background

John Rhys and Annie Williams had lived together in a cottage at Connah's Quay for twelve years before the incident. The couple were both employed by British Railways; aged 48, John was a long-term railway ganger who additionally volunteered as a waiter for a British Legion Club based in Shotton. Annie's sister Sarah remembered him as a "quiet, level-tempered man". His neighbours stated he was also highly regarded and well-liked across town. Meanwhile, 42-year-old Annie worked as a "highly efficient" gateswoman for the Maude Street level crossing. In her personal life, neighbours remembered Annie as being "exceptionally kindly", going out of her way to assist the community.

Their marriage appeared to be fruitful based on their neighbours' recollections. Not even Sarah had witnessed any rows between the pair. However, there were some signs of animosity, as Sarah recalled Annie resenting John's excessive drinking and for inexplicably disappearing at night on occasion. Annie had also previously experienced mental health difficulties that warranted treatment at the North Wales Hospital. However, Sarah claimed that her sister had since recuperated.

Murder-Suicide Investigation

On the morning of 23rd September 1964, Chief Inspector J. E. Evans received a tip concerning an incident on the Chester-Holyhead railway line. Acting on this, he and Sergeant Walter Millward travelled to the location, where at 7:10 am they discovered a man's decapitated corpse twelve yards away from the Maude Street level crossing. Having previously been acquainted with the ganger, Evans quickly identified the body as belonging to John. The officers promptly drove to the Williams household; after receiving no response, Evans smashed the door down and entered at 7:30 am. There, he discovered Annie's body on the living room floor, with a blanket placed on top of her. She had been battered and stabbed three times in the throat. Following a search, a bloodstained angler's knife and hammer were identified as the murder weapons.

A forensic team sourced from the Forensic Science Laboratory at Preston were brought in to commence a murder inquiry alongside Flintshire police. Word of John's death had spread around the neighbourhood. However, a hearse's presence at the Williams home confirmed Annie's passing too, much to everyone's shock. The inquest into the deaths commenced the following day, with Evans giving evidence concerning the bodies' identifications. The coroner subsequently adjourned the case until all evidence could be collected. It resumed on 31st October, with a jury ruling that John had committed a murder-suicide. Aside from determining this based on the way John and Annie died, the jury also received a crucial piece of evidence John intentionally left behind at the house.

During their search, Flintshire police uncovered a bloodstained audio tape recorder. On top of it was a note simply reading "Message inside". Upon playing back the recorder, police discovered John had published his final thoughts moments before he left to commit suicide. According to John's account, his marriage had been far from happy, with constant rows. He claimed Annie's mental health had again deteriorated over the past few months. This time, John was unwilling to have her recommitted to a psychiatric hospital. Annie's death occurred on 20th September; John alleged that when he returned home from work on Sunday night, his wife suffered a breakdown. Suddenly, she brandished a knife right in front of him, which prompted a struggle between the pair. Though John initially implied his actions were of self-defence, he admitted that he "must have lost my head" when he killed Annie. Traumatised by his actions, John continued working for the next two days while in a "trance". On Tuesday evening, John recorded his confession and informed listeners that he planned to kill himself. His body was discovered the following morning.

Some individuals have notably confessed to killings outside of official police interrogations. An infamous example involved Brian Draper and Torey Adamcik recording themselves confessing to murdering Cassie Jo Stoddart, mere moments after it happened. Another example witnessed Keith Hall admitting to killing his wife Paula. It was recorded by an undercover policewoman pretending to be a date, though the evidence was declared "unreliable" by the judge and Hall was later found not guilty. But these incidents occurred decades after Williams' recording. Indeed, Evans declared Williams' taped murder confession as being "unique in the annals of criminology" for the 1960s.

Transcript

The audio tape transcript was published verbatim in the 31st October 1964 and 1st November 1964 issues of the Leicester Daily Mercury and the Sunday Mirror respectively:

I was compelled to do this. I did not want her to go to the mental home. I am very sorry that this has happened but I could not stick it no more. She had been playing hell. She had been awful over the last three or four months and I could not stand arguing no more. So whoever it concerns, will you please play it back on the tape. Thank you very much.

Ladies and gentlemen, I don't know what to say, but this is it. That's the lot. I came home on Sunday night off my work and the wife came in and had a cup of tea and the wife was running about banging doors. She came face to face to me with a knife in her hands so we had a little bit of a struggle. I must have lost my head.

This was Sunday night. Perhaps it would be about 12 o'clock. I'm talking to you just now. It is Tuesday night. I have been to work on Monday and Tuesday. I have been in a trance. I did not know what to do. I have been here, there and everywhere, so now I am going to finish it off.

Availability

Some taped confessions have been made publicly available, especially in modern times. For instance, on 10th March 1994, Hall's audio recording was publicly released following a court order. In contrast, the audio of John Rhys Williams' final statement has remained locked away, with only its transcript being found thanks to newspaper reports.