Alan J Leppard

Alan Leppard was shot at his home on East Monday 1 April 1991.

He was shot with a 12-gauge shotgun when he went to answer his door at about 10.40pm.

Eight months later his lover, Brenda Long, was killed in her bath.

Alan Leppard was said to have had no criminal connections and no known enemies.

Three weeks before Easter in 1991 at the local pub, The White Stag in Monkton near Ramsgate in Kent, the landlord said that he had just opened his pub up at about 6.15pm when a man walked in and asked, 'Is Mr Leppard in here', adding that someone had told him that he had drunk in there. The landlord said that the man was smartly dressed in a suit with a red tie on and had a gold bracelet on one wrist and a gold watch on the other. He said that the man had black swept back hair, quite piercing eyes, a square jaw, and with lines sunk back from the sides of his nose into his face around his mouth. He was described as being about 30 to 35 years of age.

It was noted that Alan Leppard lived two doors down from the pub, having moved to Monkton four months earlier with Brenda Long with whom he was planning to get married. They were both divorced, although Alan Leppard was still waiting for his divorce to be completed.

On Easter Monday, 1 April 1991, Alan Leppard had been digging in his garden and later on, both he and Brenda Long decided to stay in and later went to bed watching the television.

Later that evening, a white Cadillac-style American car was seen driving around Monkton.

It was first seen at about 8.30pm by a woman who had been sitting in her lounge. She said that she was attracted to look out of her window by the sounds of a scuffle outside and that when she looked out of her window she saw some boys arguing and then shortly after that she saw the big white American car cruising up and down the street, driving along very slowly. She said that she saw the car go up and down then for the next couple of hours.

Brenda Long said that whilst they were in bed watching TV that Alan Leppard had dropped off to sleep and that at about 10pm someone knocked at their door. She said that she went to look and saw two people at the side of a large white car but said that they then went away.

The white American car was seen at about the same time a short distance down the road by two holiday makers from a nearby caravan park. They said that when they passed the car, they got a good view of the white car's driver, saying that he had a blue top and white hair. He was described as being in his late 40's, possibly about 5ft 7in tall.

The car was seen again in the same spot 20 minutes later by a man who was leaving his girlfriend’s house. The man said that it was about 10.20pm when he saw the white American car parked where he usually parked. He said that he then saw a man walk past the pub and get into the left-hand side of the white car and drive away.

It was said then that for 25 minutes the white car disappeared from Monkton.

Brenda Long said then, that at about 10.40pm or 10.45pm that there was another knock at the door and said that that time Alan Leppard went downstairs to answer it. She said that she then went to the window again and said that she saw that it was the same people with the white car.

She said that they both went downstairs, and that Alan Leppard then went out through the door and said that she then heard a bang and a scream, and that Alan Leppard then came back into the house and collapsed on the floor and died.

The police said that they could not identify a motive, although hinted that they had some ideas, although added that Alan Leppard was an entirely innocent victim.

They also said that they didn't know what sort of car the murderers had been driving about in, but said that it appeared to be a large light coloured, possibly white, American style saloon motorcar. The police added that they were interested in tracing the car.

The police noted that a large white American car was also seen later that night at about 11.10pm in the village of Minster, which was next door to Monkton. It was seen in the New Inn car park with two men getting into it. The New Inn was noted as being in the centre of the village.

The police also noted that they had spoken to most of the people that had been staying at the Foxhunter caravan park nearby, but said that there had been about 300 caravans there and it was an Easter weekend and that they didn't think that they had spoken to everyone and asked for anyone that had been staying there that they had not spoken to to come forward.

Brenda Long was later found dead in her bath ion 28 December 1991 and it was thought that she had been put to sleep with diethyl ether and then drowned. Her murder too, is unsolved. It was noted that she might have been murdered because she was a key witness in the murder of Alan Leppard and that neither murder could be looked at without looking at the other.