The Hunt for the Silver Killer

The Shocking True Story of a Murderer who Remains at Large

David Collins

• Publisher: Simon & Schuster UK
• Year: 2022
• eBook ISBN:
  9781398505353
• Print ISBN:
  9781398505360

**AS SEEN ON TV**

*HIGHLY COMMENDED FOR BEST AUDIOBOOK OF THE YEAR AT THE TRUE CRIME AWARDS 2023*

'A truly astonishing murder mystery – this is proper journalism' Jeremy Clarkson

Following a long investigation by the world-famous Sunday Times Insight team, David Collins tells the truly unique story of a string of murder-suicides in north-west England and poses the terrifying question: are they the work of a serial killer who has been operating undetected since the mid-nineties?

In 1996 and 1999, two elderly couples died in the small town of Wilmslow, Cheshire. In each case the husband was blamed for turning berserk and killing his wife using a horrifying level of violence. The police failed to make a link between the deaths – despite the similarities. That might have been the end of the matter. But when two coroner's officers began to piece together the evidence, it revealed a pattern which may prove the existence of a sadistic attacker known as 'the silver killer'. Using interviews with dozens of witnesses, including police investigators, forensic and crime scene experts, coroner's officers and family members, the author pieces together the clues in an attempt to solve the mystery of what really happened.
 
A gripping true-crime investigation, the book reveals how suspicions were aroused and set investigators on a new trail to uncover the truth. Collins, whose reporting helped the police to convict the serial killer Levi Bellfield of killing Milly Dowler, has written a brilliant account of a crime that nearly went undiscovered which is sure to become a classic of the genre. 

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Prologue
• Chapter 1: The Ainsworths
• Chapter 2: The Gucci Gang
• Chapter 3: Growing Doubts
• Chapter 4: Death Without Dignity
• Chapter 5: The Wards
• Chapter 6: Hunting a Killer
• Chapter 7: The Backdoor Murders
• Chapter 8: Occam’s Razor
• Chapter 9: The Real Cracker
• Chapter 10: Ghosts of the Past
• Chapter 11: Pandora’s Box
• Chapter 12: The Review: Ainsworths
• Chapter 13: The Review: Wards
• Chapter 14: Death in Didsbury
• Chapter 15: Salt Lake City
• Chapter 16: ‘Stop Rattling My Fucking Cage!’
• Chapter 17: ‘They Were 100% Murdered’
• Chapter 18: Reprisals
• Epilogue: Cracks in the System
• Copyright