Cannock Chase child killer Raymond Morris died of leukaemia
Child killer Raymond Morris died in prison from chronic myeloid leukaemia, an inquest heard.
A verdict of death due to natural causes was recorded on the 84 year old, who was serving a life sentence. He was jailed in 1969 for the rape and murder of seven-year-old Walsall schoolgirl Christine Darby, two years before.
The sadistic killer was also the prime suspect in the killings of Diane Tift, aged five, of Bloxwich, and Margaret Reynolds, six, of Aston, who vanished in 1965.
All three bodies were found dumped within miles of each other beside the A34 on Cannock Chase in 1966 and 1967. Each had been sexually assaulted and strangled.
See also: Few will shed tears for killer Raymond Morris
Morris, a former engineer of Green Lane, Walsall, was a prisoner at Preston prison, but died on March 11 this year. The inquest into his death at Preston Coroner's Court was told yesterday he had myeloid leukaemia for more than a year.
Morris was spoken to four times but slipped through the net when his wife gave him an alibi. She later became a key prosecution witness. One officer involved today said his death helped to bring some closure.
Morris was sentenced to life in prison after a trial at Staffordshire Assizes in Stafford found him guilty of the murder and rape of Christine Darby. He had denied the charges.
