Donald Neilson

Nickname: The Black Panther

Reign of terror: 17/11/70- 11/12/75

Motive: Money

Crime: For five years, he was known as the Black Panther, the man involved in four post office raids in Barnsley, Harrogate, Accrington and Langley, West Midlands. These resulted in the murders of Donald Skepper, Derek Astin and Sidney Grayland, and the attempted murder of Frances Grayland.

Then on 14th January, 1975, Neilson kidnapped Lesley Whittle, having planned the crime for two years. He led the police and her family on a three week trail of clues. Whilst planting the clues, he committed the attempted murder of Gerald Smith, who saw him acting suspiciously. The police finally found the body of Lesley in a flood drainage shaft system in Bathpool Park on the 7th March, 1975. He was finally arrested on 11th December 1975. Not one to go down without a fight, he was finally also charged with the attempted murder of one of the arresting officers, Stuart MacKenzie.

Method: Lesley Whittle was hanged with a steel wire cable. All of the other victims were shot with a .22 pistol.

Sentence: Five sentences of life inprisonment.