On the morning of 2 August 1986, the body of 21-year-old Diane Sindall, of
Seacombe, Merseyside, was found half-naked in an alleyway off Borough Road in
Birkenhead. Her head and face had been beaten with a blunt object, theorised to have been either a
crowbar or a
carjack, she had been stabbed repeatedly in the chest and genitals, and had been raped. Large sections of her body had been mutilated when the attacker bit her. The night before, Sindall had left The Wellington Hotel in
Bebington where she was working as a barmaid to save money for her forthcoming wedding. She had intended to drive home, but ended up walking along Borough Road after running out of fuel in Birkenhead. Sindall was seen walking along Borough Road near the
Mersey Tunnel by passing drivers, with the last known individual seen with her was a man of a similar age, walking backwards and speaking with her, with Sindall seeming uncomfortable. He was wearing a leather jacket, jeans, and had a haircut similiar to a
crew cut. This is believed to be the only sighting of the
serial rapist and murderer known as "The Beast of Birkenhead". Witnesses reported hearing screaming, and seeing and hearing a couple arguing, between midnight and 2am on 2 August. Sindall had sustained a fractured skull and injuries to her face consistent with being beaten repeatedly with a blunt object, and had been sexually assaulted, with mutilation of the breasts and lacerated genitals. It was thought that Sindall had remained alive for some time after the attack. The cause of death was
brain haemorrhage, probably caused by multiple blows to her head. The murder caused revulsion, fear and anger in Merseyside, with many women afraid to be out alone on the streets. The murder investigation which followed was the largest in the history of
Merseyside Police. == Arrest and conviction ==