CovSoc member Peter James tells us the interesting story of Derek Barrowcliff, a Warwickshire pathologist who could have starred in his own “Silent Witness”.
In September 2011 Derek Barrowcliff went for a walk from his home in the Valbonne district of Southern France. He disappeared after being last seen walking in woodlands by a river. His body was discovered a few days later in a forest. Derek was 92 years old and there were no suspicious circumstances.
Derek was born on 6th April 1919 and studied medicine at Oxford University and then trained at a London hospital before joining the Royal Army Medical Corps. In 1950 Derek was engaged by Warwick Hospital later becoming a consultant and head of the Pathology Laboratory.
Working as a pathologist he had been involved in a number of post war murder cases. One of which became known as the Stratford Tombstone Murder which occurred in 1954. A local midwife was discovered drowned in the River Avon. She was Olive Bennett and her long woollen scarf had been used to tie her body to a tombstone. It was a Victorian tombstone that had been removed from a graveyard at nearby Holy Trinity Church. Unfortunately the murderer was never found. During his career he had worked with the police force on a number of occasions and was awarded the Queen’s Jubilee Medal for public service.
In 1969 Dr. Derek Barrowcliff was called upon to perform a post mortem on Beryl Waite of Stoneleigh. Although a GP had diagnosed gastroenteritis as the cause of death Derek was not convinced. He suspected arsenic poisoning and used blotting paper, ink and lacquer to test her hair. He discovered 1000 times more arsenic in her body than would normally be expected and also stomach ulceration.
As a result Beryl’s husband William Waite appeared at Kenilworth Magistrates Court accused of her murder. In February 1970 at Birmingham Assizes after a 15 day trial he was found guilty and was sentenced to life imprisonment. William had been chauffeur to Lord Leigh and it transpired that he’d had an affair with Judith Regan who worked in the Stoneleigh Estate Office. They had been having an affair since 1968 visiting pubs together and staying in hotels as man and wife. Waite had probably been poisoning his wife for 8-12 months. The final dose had been given in a sleeping capsule left by a GP. It had been tampered with and powder and arsenic added. Traces of powder containing arsenic were discovered in William’s workshop. He had the only key! He later became known as “ The Gentle Poisoner ” because he had shown tenderness and concern during her illness.
William Charles Waite died in Marlborough Wiltshire in September 1983 at the age of 53. Photographs and exhibits associated with the murder are held at The National Archives at Kew. Reference ASSI 13/1149. This record is closed for 87 years with an opening date of 1st January 2058. The closure criterion states :- Contains sensitive personal information which would substantially distress or endanger a living person or his or her descendants.