Detectives have launched a fresh appeal for information on the 25th anniversary of the unsolved murder of Cornish mum Linda ‘Lyn’ Bryant.
A substantial reward of £20,000 has been offered by independent charity Crimestoppers for information which leads to the arrest and conviction of the offender.
The 40-year-old was killed on Tuesday, October 20 1998 as she walked the family dog in quiet rural lanes near her home in Ruan High Lanes on the Roseland peninsula
Her body was found in a field gateway between Ruan High Lanes Methodist Chapel and Treviles Manor. She had been stabbed a number of times in a prolonged attack.
A quarter-century after the murder, detectives remain convinced that someone holds vital information that could help to apprehend her killer.
Only information passed through Crimestoppers will be eligible for the reward.
Senior Investigating Officer Detective Inspector Rob Smith, from the Force Major Crime Investigation Team, said: “For 25 years the family of Lyn Bryant have lived with this terrible loss and uncertainty. However, time has not diminished our commitment to bring the killer to justice and to give the family some peace.
“We know 25 years is a long time, but we remain convinced someone knows what happened to Lyn and for some reason, they have never come forward.
"Allegiances may have changed with the passage of time, and those who found it difficult to talk to police may now feel able. Now is the time to contact us.”
Advances in DNA have enabled police to produce a partial DNA profile which is believed to be that of the killer. Since October 2016, officers have been retaking DNA samples from people across the UK to check them against the partial profile.
Some are selected from the National DNA Database while others are being drawn from 6,000 individuals who gave DNA to the original enquiry. So far 224 samples have been retaken and tested.
A 20th anniversary appeal in 2018 generated more than 200 messages from the public, providing 60 new actions or enquiries.
In the last five years, detectives have completed 450 enquiries and actions as part of the long-running investigation. Of those, 112 were DNA samples taken for comparison.
DI Smith added: “We constantly review this case against new scientific techniques, the national DNA database and intelligence systems. Every piece of information received from the public is thoroughly investigated.
“The discovery of the partial DNA profile was a significant step forward. We now need the public to give us the name of anyone they suspect had involvement in Lyn’s death so that we can match the DNA.”
The death of the mum-of-two is one of the largest and longest running unsolved murder enquiries carried out by Devon and Cornwall Police.
In 1998 police pieced together Lyn’s final movements, including critical witness reports of three unknown men seen in the area at the time: a man seen speaking with Lyn at the chapel, a scruffy bearded man in a small white van, and a man walking in a nearby field.
The van has never been traced and all three men remain unidentified. The sightings remain a key part of the investigation into Lyn’s murder.
White van sighting
On the morning of her death Mrs Bryant went to work as a cleaner at a local house and visited her parents who lived nearby. At around 12.45pm, she drove her grey Ford Sierra to former Harris Garage at Tregony, but it was out of fuel. She drove to Chenoweth garage at Ruan High Lanes and bought fuel and groceries.
A white van driven by a heavy set man in his 50s with a full scruffy beard pulled onto the forecourt. He remained in the van but appeared to follow Lyn when she drove away. The van had been seen in the area in previous days but neither the man nor the vehicle were known to locals.
More than 6,700 similar white vans have been traced and eliminated over the course of the investigation.
“Why has this man never come forward despite repeated appeals?” said DI Smith. “If anyone remembers him or the van, then we would still very much like to hear from them.”
The man at the chapel
Lyn returned home after the garage and had lunch with her 19-year-old daughter, Erin. They talked about Lyn’s upcoming 41st birthday and watched Emmerdale.
Just after 1.30pm Lyn set out on her regular walk with Jay, the family’s tan and cream-coloured pet lurcher. She took her often-walked circular route from Ruan Lane opposite her home.
Due to wet weather she was wearing a brown Barbour-style wax jacket, a blue jumper, jeans and walking boots; she walked the dog habitually every afternoon, whatever the weather.
Several people who knew Lyn saw her in the quiet lane heading towards Ruan High Lanes Methodist Chapel, now a private home.
A motorist passed by between 1.45pm and 2pm and spotted Lyn talking to a man at the junction by the chapel.
DI Smith added: “The man was around 5ft 9ins tall, of slim build, and was wearing light-coloured clothing, possibly a light grey top and trousers. He had no other distinguishing features.
"The sighting is critical because this is likely to be the last time that Lyn was seen alive. Again, despite repeated high-profile appeals, this man has never come forward.”
Lyn’s body found
Shortly afterwards at 2.30pm Lyn’s body was found in the field gateway by a woman driving from her holiday stay at the manor. She immediately raised help and returned with a local farmer who recognised Lyn.
Police and ambulance were called at 2.34pm and the air ambulance arrived at 2.50pm but, sadly, Lyn died at the scene.
There had been no attempt to conceal her body and she was left lying in the gateway. She had suffered knife wounds to her back and neck, and a fatal stab wound to her chest.
“We know that she must have fought against her attacker. Her clothing had been disturbed which leads us to conclude that this was a sexually-motivated murder,” added DI Smith.
“The weapon, believed to be a single-edged blade such as a penknife or a small kitchen knife, has never been found.”
The man in the field
The next critical sighting was between 2.45pm and 3pm when another local farmer spotted a man randomly walking across a field near to the murder scene.
He was described as being in his mid-30s, of medium height and medium to stocky build. He had short dark hair and was wearing a light-coloured top, possibly a sweatshirt, and darker-coloured trousers.
DI Smith said: “This was very unusual as this field does not have a footpath and was not generally used by walkers. He was wearing normal clothes and shoes. Was he connected to Lyn’s murder, and was he the same man from the chapel? He is another man we need to trace.”
Blue fibres
A vital piece of evidence was the presence of vivid blue polyester cotton mix fibres, commonly used in polo shirts and sweatshirts, which were found on Lyn’s body.
They are believed to have been left by the attacker as they did not match anything belonging to Lyn or her home.
“Lyn must have spent some time in contact with her attacker during a struggle in that muddy gateway,” said DI Smith.
“Lyn’s clothing was left mud-splattered. Did anyone return home with mud or blood on their clothes, anxious, and not wanting to speak about why they were in that state or where they had been? We would be very keen to trace anyone who matches that description.”
The glasses
Lyn was wearing tortoiseshell glasses at the time of her death but these were not found during a fingertip search of the crime scene and surrounding area.
Four months later, on 2 February 1999, the glasses reappeared on top of the mud in the gateway.
“The reappearance of Lyn’s glasses remains a real mystery in this case,” said DI Smith. “Why were they put back there? Were they found by somebody and returned to the scene or were they put there by the murderer?”
Local connection
Detectives remain convinced that the offender had a local connection due to the isolated murder location.
“Lyn’s walking route took her from the A3708 Tregony to St Mawes main road into a very remote rural area. It is not an area that you would expect someone to just happen upon,” said DI Smith.
“It is more likely that someone had a reason to be there, whether through work, family or another connection. For this reason, we believe they were local at the time.”
Community in shock
The murder shook the close-knit community of Ruan High Lanes and prompted Operation Grenadine, one of the Force’s biggest murder enquiries.
Over the course of the enquiry, officers have traced 1,600 people to establish their whereabouts at the time, taken 7,863 statements, completed 3,144 house-to-house forms with locals, and traced and eliminated 6,573 vehicles.
All males aged 14-70 and living within a one-mile radius of the murder were traced and their movements on and around 20 October 1998 investigated. Officers traced all males who had passed within a one-mile radius of the scene between 9am and 4pm on the day of the murder.
As part of the 25th anniversary, appeal police are calling on people to come forward with critical information, however small, that they may have withheld at the time, possibly due to divided loyalty or half suspicions.
DI Smith added: “Lyn lived in Ruan High Lanes her whole life and was very popular with so many people. She was a wife, mother, and grandmother, and loved family life. She would have felt extremely safe in that area and walked for miles each day with her dog around the quiet lanes.
“For her life to be taken in such a brutal and horrific way is extremely sad. Her family have never found peace knowing that the offender remains free – 25 years have gone by, but this has not lessened the pain of what happened to her that awful day.
“We maintain the view that the public holds the key to this investigation. I would urge anyone who had suspicions about any relative, friend or colleague who was acting suspiciously around the time of the murder to please come forward and help us bring some peace to Lyn’s family. Now is the time.”
The public can report information through the Major Incident Public Portal: Public Portal (mipp.police.uk)
Information can also be passed anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555111 or via their non-traceable online form at www.crimestoppers-uk.org. More information about how to claim and the eligibility for the reward can be found on the Crimestoppers website.