A bloodstained carpet and links to a serial killer resurface in the unsolved 1975 Orange Tree Murder case.
The murder happened in her Essex home, in Westcliff. Her cafe was called the Orange Tree, and the crime became known as the “Orange Tree Murder.” Police had three suspects but made no arrests, with Patrick Mackay being one.
This year marks 50 years since her death. The murder shocked the whole country. Ivy was 48, and her cafe made her well-known. She failed to show up for work on February 4, 1975.
Her daughter found her with head wounds and a mark on her neck. A steel bar was near her. Police investigated, taking 900 statements and finding a bloody carpet.
The carpet was in a neighbor’s loft. Police arrested a suspect, but fluids on it did not match anyone known, and the case stalled. Someone called Crimestoppers in 2004 knowing details not public, but they never called again.
In 2017, police looked into a claim that Ivy may have met a mental hospital escapee who visited her cafe before she died. He posed as a doctor and had patients who also left the hospital. Again, no real evidence surfaced.
People linked Ivy’s death to Patrick Mackay, who killed others in London and Kent in 1975. Mackay murdered a priest and also killed two others. He confessed to four other murders, but then he took it back.
He knew Ivy’s cafe and thought to rob it once. People think he killed her during a robbery, although he has never faced charges for this. Ivy’s son, Victor, thinks Mackay did it.
Mackay was once the UK’s longest-serving prisoner, convicted of a killing spree in 1975. Called “Devil’s Disciple,” this serial killer was somewhat forgotten. He was found guilty of three murders and is suspected of eight other deaths.
He strangled and stabbed Isabella Griffiths, and he also strangled Adele Price. He butchered Father Anthony Crean. Mackay was charged with five murders but convicted of manslaughter for three, with diminished responsibility cited.
Prosecutors believed they had enough evidence in two other cases, but they felt a trial was not in the public interest. Ivy is one suspected victim. Mackay confessed to killing Stephanie Britton and Christopher Martin.
He also confessed to killing Heidi Mnilk, stabbing her on a train and throwing her body onto the tracks. Called the “Monster of Belgravia,” Victor said that the murder matched Mackay’s methods.
He said his mother was undressed and put in a nightdress on her bad side, with the TV on. He said the crime haunts him, and he wonders if a conviction would help. Police still want details on the case and keep it open.
They use better DNA tech now and ask anyone with information to come forward. A spokesperson said that loyalties can change over time. Family pain remains as the killer has not faced justice. People can call 101 or Crimestoppers.