Trevor Hardy
Encyclopedia
Trevor Joseph Hardy also known as the Beast of Manchester, is a convicted British serial killer
who murdered three teenage girls in the Manchester area between December 1974 and March 1976. In 1977, he was found guilty and was sentenced to life imprisonment
.
. Wanda Skala, 17, was murdered in July 1975 on Lightbowne Road, Moston
while walking home from the hotel where she worked as a barmaid. She had been hit over the head with a brick, robbed, and sexually assaulted
. Her body was found partially buried on a construction site. In March 1976 after walking home from a staff party, Sharon Mosoph was stabbed and strangled with a pair of tights prior to being dumped in the Rochdale Canal
at Failsworth
, Oldham
. The bodies of Skala and Mosoph were found stripped and mutilated.
At the height of the hunt for the serial killer, 23,000 people were stopped and searched.
he had arranged with his partner, Sheilagh Farrow, and because he had filed his teeth so they would not match the bite marks found on her body. He would go on to kill Mosoph six months after being freed.
Trevor Hardy was arrested for the murders of Wanda Skala and Sharon Mosoph in August 1976. He confessed to the murders and to that of Janet Lesley Stewart - who until then had been a missing person. Prior to Stewart's murder, Hardy had been released on parole
for battering a man with a pickaxe
. He reportedly mistook Stewart for a schoolgirl with whom he was infatuated. Hardy removed Stewart's ring and gave it to another girl as a "love token". Morris had also kept Skala's blood-stained clothes and her handbag as "grisly trophies". The investigation revealed that Morris killed Mosoph after she witnessed him attempting to burgle a shopping centre at night.
At his trial, Hardy fired his attorney
and attempted to confess manslaughter
; however, the plea was rejected and he was found guilty of murder. On 2 May 1978 at the Manchester Crown Court, Hardy was sentenced to three life sentences for the murders.
More than 30 years after his arrest, Hardy is currently serving his sentence at Wakefield Prison in West Yorkshire
where he is reported to have a "good work record".
He maintains his innocence and reportedly sent a letter to Mosoph's relatives blaming his parents. On 23 February 2008, The Times
revealed that Hardy was one of up to 50 prisoners in Britain
who had been issued with a whole life tariff
and were unlikely to ever be released. The whole life tariff was reaffirmed in June 2008 by the High Court
.
Manchester locals had long suspected Hardy in the 1971 murder of 17-year-old Dorothy Leyden, and in 2004 family members requested that the Greater Manchester Police
re-examine old evidence. Detectives reviewing the cold case believe forensic evidence exonerates Hardy in the murder of Leyden, as DNA samples examined more than 30 years after the crime were found not to match Hardy.
Serial killer
A serial killer, as typically defined, is an individual who has murdered three or more people over a period of more than a month, with down time between the murders, and whose motivation for killing is usually based on psychological gratification...
who murdered three teenage girls in the Manchester area between December 1974 and March 1976. In 1977, he was found guilty and was sentenced to life imprisonment
Life imprisonment
Life imprisonment is a sentence of imprisonment for a serious crime under which the convicted person is to remain in jail for the rest of his or her life...
.
Murders
Janet Lesley Stewart, 15, was stabbed to death on New Years Eve 1974 and buried in a shallow grave in Newton Heath, North ManchesterNewton Heath
Newton Heath is an urban area of the city of Manchester, in Greater Manchester, England. It is east north east of Manchester city centre and has a population of 9,883....
. Wanda Skala, 17, was murdered in July 1975 on Lightbowne Road, Moston
Moston, Greater Manchester
Moston is a district of Manchester, in North West England, approximately 3 miles north east of the city centre. Historically a part of Lancashire, Moston is a predominantly residential area, with a population of about 12,500 and covering approximately .-History:The name Moston may derive...
while walking home from the hotel where she worked as a barmaid. She had been hit over the head with a brick, robbed, and sexually assaulted
Sexual assault
Sexual assault is an assault of a sexual nature on another person, or any sexual act committed without consent. Although sexual assaults most frequently are by a man on a woman, it may involve any combination of two or more men, women and children....
. Her body was found partially buried on a construction site. In March 1976 after walking home from a staff party, Sharon Mosoph was stabbed and strangled with a pair of tights prior to being dumped in the Rochdale Canal
Rochdale Canal
The Rochdale Canal is a navigable "broad" canal in northern England, part of the connected system of the canals of Great Britain. The "Rochdale" in its name refers to the town of Rochdale, Greater Manchester, through which the canal passes....
at Failsworth
Failsworth
At Failsworth lies north-northwest of London. It shares common boundaries with Manchester and Oldham, on its west and northeast respectively. Failsworth is traversed by the A62 road, from Manchester to Oldham, the heavy rail line of the Oldham Loop and the Rochdale Canal, which crosses the...
, Oldham
Oldham
Oldham is a large town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies amid the Pennines on elevated ground between the rivers Irk and Medlock, south-southeast of Rochdale, and northeast of the city of Manchester...
. The bodies of Skala and Mosoph were found stripped and mutilated.
At the height of the hunt for the serial killer, 23,000 people were stopped and searched.
Arrest, trial, and conviction
Although Hardy was arrested for Skala's murder after bragging about it to his younger brother, he was freed on the basis of an alibiAlibi
Alibi is a 1929 American crime film directed by Roland West. The screenplay was written by West and C. Gardner Sullivan, who adapted the 1927 Broadway stage play, Nightstick, written by Elaine Sterne Carrington, J.C...
he had arranged with his partner, Sheilagh Farrow, and because he had filed his teeth so they would not match the bite marks found on her body. He would go on to kill Mosoph six months after being freed.
Trevor Hardy was arrested for the murders of Wanda Skala and Sharon Mosoph in August 1976. He confessed to the murders and to that of Janet Lesley Stewart - who until then had been a missing person. Prior to Stewart's murder, Hardy had been released on parole
Parole
Parole may have different meanings depending on the field and judiciary system. All of the meanings originated from the French parole . Following its use in late-resurrected Anglo-French chivalric practice, the term became associated with the release of prisoners based on prisoners giving their...
for battering a man with a pickaxe
Pickaxe
A pickaxe or pick is a hand tool with a hard head attached perpendicular to the handle.Some people make the distinction that a pickaxe has a head with a pointed end and a flat end, and a pick has both ends pointed, or only one end; but most people use the words to mean the same thing.The head is...
. He reportedly mistook Stewart for a schoolgirl with whom he was infatuated. Hardy removed Stewart's ring and gave it to another girl as a "love token". Morris had also kept Skala's blood-stained clothes and her handbag as "grisly trophies". The investigation revealed that Morris killed Mosoph after she witnessed him attempting to burgle a shopping centre at night.
At his trial, Hardy fired his attorney
Queen's Counsel
Queen's Counsel , known as King's Counsel during the reign of a male sovereign, are lawyers appointed by letters patent to be one of Her [or His] Majesty's Counsel learned in the law...
and attempted to confess manslaughter
Manslaughter
Manslaughter is a legal term for the killing of a human being, in a manner considered by law as less culpable than murder. The distinction between murder and manslaughter is said to have first been made by the Ancient Athenian lawmaker Dracon in the 7th century BC.The law generally differentiates...
; however, the plea was rejected and he was found guilty of murder. On 2 May 1978 at the Manchester Crown Court, Hardy was sentenced to three life sentences for the murders.
More than 30 years after his arrest, Hardy is currently serving his sentence at Wakefield Prison in West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire is a metropolitan county within the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England with a population of 2.2 million. West Yorkshire came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972....
where he is reported to have a "good work record".
He maintains his innocence and reportedly sent a letter to Mosoph's relatives blaming his parents. On 23 February 2008, The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
revealed that Hardy was one of up to 50 prisoners in Britain
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
who had been issued with a whole life tariff
Whole life tariff
This is a list of prisoners who have received a whole life tariff through some mechanism in jurisdictions of the United Kingdom.Eight of these prisoners have since died in prison, while three of them have had their sentences reduced on appeal, meaning that there are currently at least 48 prisoners...
and were unlikely to ever be released. The whole life tariff was reaffirmed in June 2008 by the High Court
High Court of Justice
The High Court of Justice is, together with the Court of Appeal and the Crown Court, one of the Senior Courts of England and Wales...
.
Manchester locals had long suspected Hardy in the 1971 murder of 17-year-old Dorothy Leyden, and in 2004 family members requested that the Greater Manchester Police
Greater Manchester Police
Greater Manchester Police is the police force responsible for law enforcement within the metropolitan county of Greater Manchester in North West England...
re-examine old evidence. Detectives reviewing the cold case believe forensic evidence exonerates Hardy in the murder of Leyden, as DNA samples examined more than 30 years after the crime were found not to match Hardy.