Mark Andrew Rowntree (born 1956) is a British spree killer who murdered four people in random knife attacks over a period of eight days in West Yorkshire, England in 1975 and 1976.
Mark Rowntree | |
|---|---|
 Rowntree, pictured outside Leeds Crown Court, June 1976 | |
| Born | Mark Andrew Rowntree 1956 Bradford, West Yorkshire, England |
| Occupation | Bus conductor |
| Criminal status | Incarcerated at Rampton Secure Hospital |
| Motive |
|
| Conviction(s) | Manslaughter (x4) |
| Criminal penalty | Indefinite detention within a psychiatric hospital |
| Details | |
| Victims | 4 |
Span of crimes | 31 December 1975 – 7 January 1976 |
Date apprehended | 7 January 1976 |
Rowntree's victims were typically chosen at random. All were stabbed to death within a ten-mile radius of his adopted parents' home in Guiseley, West Yorkshire.[1] His murders were motivated by a delusional belief that all women despised him, sourcing from a single instance of a woman rejecting his advances, in addition to a desire to surpass the total victim count of the then-recently arrested Black Panther.[2]
Diagnosed as a paranoid schizophrenic, Rowntree pleaded guilty to four counts of manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility in June 1976. He was committed indefinitely to detention within Broadmoor Hospital, and is currently an inmate within Rampton Secure Hospital.[3]
Due to the timing and location of Rowntree's murders, two of his victims were erroneously assumed to have been killed by Peter Sutcliffe, who was known in the press at the time as the Yorkshire Ripper, which briefly distracted contemporary police enquiries.
Early life edit
Mark Andrew Rowntree was born in Bradford, West Yorkshire, in 1956. He was the adopted son of a wealthy, middle-class couple and was raised in Guiseley, where he received a stable upbringing and a public school education.[4]
Rowntree's parents doted upon him and ensured he received a privileged upbringing. Upon completion of his secondary school education, his parents offered to pay for his university tuition fees; he rejected this offer and moved into lodgings in the town of Shipley. Shortly thereafter, he obtained employment as a bus conductor.[4]
Crimes edit
On 31 December 1975, 19-year-old Rowntree stabbed widow Grace Adamson to death, then celebrated with a beer at the local pub.[5] On 3 January 1976, he killed sixteen-year-old Stephen Wilson at a bus stop in Eastburn, West Yorkshire. The victim died in hospital, although he was first able to give a detailed description of his attacker to the police.[6]
On 7 January 1976, Rowntree visited part-time model Barbara Booth at her home and stabbed her to death, along with her three-year-old son Alan.[6] By the time he returned home, the police were waiting for him, armed with the description given by the second victim.
Arrest and confession edit
Upon his arrest, Rowntree confessed to all four murders, each of whom had been targeted to satiate what he termed "an urge to kill". He denied deriving any pleasure from his attacks and insisted they had been devoid of any motive.[1] Nonetheless, he did express regret at not having the opportunity to kill "just one more" victim in order to surpass the victim count of Donald Neilson.[7]
Conviction edit
Diagnosed with schizophrenia, Rowntree pleaded guilty to four counts of manslaughter on the ground of diminished responsibility at Leeds Crown Court in June 1976. His plea was accepted by the prosecution and he was ordered to be committed to Rampton Secure Hospital for an indefinite period.[8]
He is now one of the longest serving patients in any British psychiatric/secure hospital. He changed his name to Paul Page in the late 1990s and has been allowed out on day trips from the secure hospitals he is incarcerated in.[9]
In 1994, Rowntree partook in an adventure holiday in Kielder Forest, for which the then-Home Secretary had to apologise.[10]
In 2003, he again changed his name to Mark Allen Evans and has also used pseudonyms in an attempt to get his novels, poetry and short stories published.[11] In 1992, the Space rock band Hawkwind released an album titled Electric Tepee. One of the tracks on the album, Death of War, is co-credited to Mark Rowntree as the lyrics are taken from one of Rowntree's poems.[7]
In March 2004, Evans (Rowntree) was convicted of threats to kill a social worker at the secure hospital in Middlesbrough where he was locked up. The judge detained Evans at Rampton Hospital without time limit, which has led to speculation that he will never be released.[12]
See also edit
References edit
- ^ a b Lane & Gregg 1995, p. 322.
- ^ "Schizophrenic Killer Will Be Moved After Death Threats". The Northern Echo. Darlington, County Durham. 9 March 2004. Retrieved 14 May 2024.
- ^ "Serial Killer Locked Away Forever". Telegraph & Argus. Bradford, West Yorkshire. 5 March 2004. Retrieved 14 May 2024.
- ^ a b Lane & Gregg 1995, p. 323.
- ^ Wade 2005, p. 142.
- ^ a b Wade 2005, p. 143.
- ^ a b Abrahams 2004, p. 273.
- ^ Langley, Robert (19 June 2017) [17 June 2017]. "The Terrifying Killers Treated at Rampton Hospital". Lincolnshire Live. Retrieved 21 June 2017.
- ^ "Mystery of Flowers on Murdered Boy's Grave". Telegraph & Argus. Bradford, West Yorkshire. 2 January 1999. Retrieved 21 June 2017.
- ^ Wade 2005, p. 144.
- ^ "'I Now Know They'll Never Release Me'". Telegraph & Argus. Bradford, West Yorkshire. 26 August 2003. Retrieved 21 June 2017.
- ^ "Serial Killer Locked Away Forever". Telegraph & Argus. Bradford, West Yorkshire. 5 March 2004. Retrieved 21 June 2017.
Cited works and further reading edit
- Abrahams, Ian (2004). Hawkwind: Sonic Assassins. London: SAF Publishing. p. 273. ISBN 978-0-946-71969-3.
- Cobb, Richard Charles (2023). Convicting the Yorkshire Ripper: The Trial of Peter Sutcliffe. Barnsley: Pen and Sword Books. p. 163. ISBN 978-1-399-01190-7.
- Dunning, John (1992). Mindless Murders. Great Britain: Mulberry Editions. ISBN 1-873-12333-7.
- Lane, Brian; Gregg, Wilfred (1995) [1992]. The Encyclopedia Of Serial Killers. New York City: Berkley Books. pp. 322–323. ISBN 978-0-747-23731-0.
- Safarik, Mark; Ramsland, Katherine (2019). Spree Killers: Practical Classifications for Law Enforcement and Criminology. Oxfordshire: Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-1-000-72745-6.
- Wade, Stephen (2005). Foul Deeds and Suspicious Deaths around Bradford. Barnsley: Wharncliffe Books. ISBN 1-903425-83-2.
- Whittington-Egan, Richard; Whittington-Egan, Molly (1992). The Murder Almanac. Glasgow: Neil Wilson Publishing. ISBN 978-1-897-78404-4.
- Wilson, Colin; Wilson, Damon (2007). The World's Most Evil Murderers: Real-Life Stories of Infamous Killers. Bath: Parragon Publishing. ISBN 978-1-405-48828-0.
External links edit
- Contemporary news article detailing Rowntree's arrest
- 2004 Telegraph & Argus news article pertaining to Mark Rowntree
- Mark Rowntree at truecrimelibrary.com