Harry Roberts (criminal)

Harry Roberts
Born (1936-07-21) 21 July 1936 (age 88)
Wanstead, Essex, England[1]
Other namesRonald Ernest Hall[1]
OccupationCarpenter[2]
Criminal statusReleased on lifelong licence
Parent(s)Harry Roberts
Dorothy Roberts[3]
Conviction(s)Murder
Criminal penaltyLife imprisonment

Harry Maurice Roberts (born 21 July 1936) is an English career criminal and murderer who in 1966 instigated the Shepherd's Bush murders, in which three police officers were shot dead in London.[4] The murders took place after plainclothes officers approached a Standard Vanguard estate car,[5] in which Roberts and two other men were sitting in Braybrook Street near Wormwood Scrubs prison in London. Roberts feared the officers would discover firearms his gang were planning to use in a robbery.[citation needed] He killed two, while one of his accomplices shot dead the third.[citation needed]

After Roberts had spent nearly 48 years in prison, in 2014 the Parole Board for England and Wales approved his release, at the age of 78. Having far exceeded his minimum term of 30 years, he was one of the United Kingdom's longest-serving prisoners, having remained in custody since 1966. His release was controversial due to the nature of his crime.

  1. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference times1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ "Woman says Roberts told her: 'Yes, it was us'". The Times. No. 56808. London. 7 December 1966. p. 10.
  3. ^ "ITN Reporting 66: The way to Braybrook Street: the life of Harry Roberts". itnsource.com. Retrieved 23 October 2014.
  4. ^ Burrell, Ian (17 October 2002). "Police killer will ask High Court to clear way for his release". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on 9 January 2008. Retrieved 18 September 2010.
  5. ^ The Murders of the Black Museum: 1870-1970 ISBN 978-1-854-71160-1 p. 517