Detectives investigating the murders of two lovers shot dead 35 years ago have launched a fresh appeal for information after crucial evidence was lost.
Peter Thurgood, 47, and his lover Lindy Benstead, 49, were killed with a shotgun at point-blank range in a country clearing on Chapel Common in Rake, West Sussex, in 1986.
Mr Thurgood was found slumped by the side of a hire car with gunshot wounds to his head and chest while married mother-of-three Mrs Benstead was found on the ground nearby.
Detectives at the Surrey and Sussex Major Crime Team have now launched a fresh appeal for information over the double murder – which was dubbed the Lovers’ Lane killings.
On the day of the shooting, Mr Thurgood, a divorced bricklayer, hired a silver Mazda and drove to the Old Thorns Golf Club in Liphook, Hampshire, where Mrs Benstead worked as a cleaner.
Peter Thurgood (left), 47, and his lover Lindy Benstead (right), 49, were killed with a shotgun at point-blank range in Rake, West Sussex, in 1986
They then drove to the open area on Chapel Common off the A3 in Rake near north of Petersfield.
But just a few hours later a driver who stopped for a rest found Mr Thurgood’s body.
He and Ms Benstead had both been killed by shotgun blasts at point-blank range, police said.
However last month it emerged that key pieces of evidence, including the shotgun cartridges and Mrs Benstead’s skirt, had gone missing.
Today police used drones to scour the wooded area just off the old A3 where the car and the bodies of the victims were found 35 years ago.
The pair lived in Whitehill and the neighbouring village of Bordon, close to the West Sussex border with Hampshire, and the fact that they were having an affair was common knowledge in the area, according to Sussex Police.
Peter Thurgood’s sons, David and Terry Thurgood, along with Karen Benstead, Lindy Benstead’s daughter, said they had been ‘haunted’ by the ‘terrible killings of our loved ones’.
In a joint statement the families said: ‘These terrible killings of our loved ones have haunted both families for 35 years now, and we remain united in our desire to support any enquiries that will help bring justice and closure for us all.
‘We ask anyone who has any information they have not yet brought to the police, to come forward now. It is never too late to do the right thing.’
David and Terry Thurgood added: ‘When we were growing up in the Bordon and Whitehill area in the 1980s everyone knew everyone as they were only small villages and somebody must know something.
‘Now is the time to come forward to the police and help both our families put closure to this horrific crime.’
Today, detective superintendent Emma Heater of the Surrey and Sussex Major Crime Team confirmed a fresh appeal for information had been launched.
Today Surrey and Sussex Major Crime Team used a drone to scour the wooded area just off the old A3 where the car and the bodies of the victims were found
Sussex Police have urged anyone with information that might lead to new lines of enquiry to come forward
She said: ‘This tragic case was thoroughly investigated in 1986 and subsequently, and has since been reviewed several times.
‘Many of our lines of enquiry over the years lead us to believe that the answer to the mystery of these dreadful crimes lies somewhere in the Whitehill and Bordon areas, from which the victims came.
‘While we cannot rule out the possibility of an attack by a random stranger, it is still likely that someone with information from within those areas will provide vital leads.
‘It is now 35 years since these tragic deaths and it may be that feelings and loyalties have shifted over the years, perhaps to a point at which someone is ready to disclose to us something they have never disclosed before.’
Following the double murder, Lindy Benstead’s husband, Mick, was questioned at the time but had a clear alibi.
One lead came in the form of a witness in the US who claimed in 2018 to have known the killer, but there was no evidence to corroborate the allegation, police said.
Det Supt Heater added: ‘Our most recent full review in 2014 confirmed that there were no new lines of enquiry at that time, but it is subject to regular two-yearly re-assessment as part of our continuing review process.
‘In 2018 for example we received information as a result of which officers from the Surrey and Sussex Major Crime Team flew to the United States and talked to a man living there.
‘Whilst this witness gave information naming a possible suspect there was no evidence to corroborate this allegation.
‘At the time of these tragic murders and since, numerous people have been named as allegedly being involved and two arrests were made.
‘All these leads were thoroughly explored but have not led to any further developments or arrests.
‘There remain ongoing forensic enquiries, and further items are currently undergoing examination using techniques developed since 1986.
‘We remain in contact with both families and they will be updated with any significant developments.
‘Although there have been no other developments, as in all such cases we always pursue any new information or forensic opportunities whenever they arise.’
Anyone who has information can contact Sussex Police online or by calling 101, quoting Operation Bardwell.
