Malcolm Fairley criminal case and investigation

Malcolm Fairley

Beginning in April 1984, Malcolm Fairley would burglarize, sexually assault, and rape a number of victims and was becoming bolder with each assault. The braver he become, the more careless and easily startled he was, which would lead to his apprehension in September 1984. Using paint flake analysis, coupled with eyewitness testimony, law enforcement officials were able to track down Fairley and bring him to justice. During the course of subsequent investigation, they found evidence to connect him to various assaults and burglaries, including a facemask made out of a pair of trousers.

During the summer of 1984, the British countryside would be rocked by a series of burglaries, assaults, and rapes committed by an unknown assailant who would become known as "The Fox." "The Fox" prowled the countryside beginning in April when he committed his first burglary until September, when he was identified as Malcolm Fairley and was apprehended by authorities. While paint chip analysis would lead authorities to Fairley, the trail of evidence left behind at multiple crime scenes, and a multitude of eyewitness testimony, would ensure that Fairley was brought to justice.

Fairley's reign of terror began in April when he broke in and burglarized a 74-year-old woman in Linslade, Leighton Buzzard (Malcolm Fairley -- The Hunt for the Fox, 2013). After this first burglary, Fairley's criminal activities would begin to escalate and he became bolder in his attacks. During one of his burglaries in Tring, Fairley would steal a shotgun and ammunition that he would later use in the commission of future crimes (Malcolm Fairley -- The Hunt for the Fox, 2013). This would not be the only time that items stolen from a victim would be found or used at a subsequent attack. After burgling the home in Tring, Fairley broke into a home at Heath and Ranch. In this assault, Fairley attacked the couple while wearing a mask that had been fashioned out of a trouser leg and accidentally shot the man in the hand, which curbed his attacks for about a month (Malcolm Fairley -- The Hunt for the Fox, 2013). After this burglary and accidental shooting, Fairley's assaults became more violent, especially towards the women he encountered and eventually resulted in raping women on at least two separate occasions. It would be the assault committed on August 19, 1984 that would eventually lead to Fairley's downfall. After assaulting a couple and raping the wife near Brampton, he cut away a piece of bedclothes covered with his semen, buried the shotgun stolen in Tring under some leaves, and in his rush to leave scene, reversed into some bushes that scraped paint off his car (Malcolm Fairley -- The Hunt for the Fox, 2013).