Age: 49
Sex: female
Date: 22 Apr 1986
Place: A3, Rake, Midhurst
Peter Thurgood and Lindy Benstead were shot in a car in a layby on the A3 at Rake, West Sussex, on 22 April 1986.
They had been lovers and the murder was generally referred to as the Lovers' Lane killing.
Peter Thurgood had been a bricklayer from Whitehill in Hampshire and had five children and was divorced. He had lived in a detached house in Forest Road, Bordon.
Lindy Benstead had lived in Suttonfield, Whitehill and had worked at the Old Thorns Golf Club and Hotel near Liphook as a cleaner and was married with three children. She had lived in a council house.
Peter Thurgood and Lindy Benstead were described as having been darts-playing friends.
Peter Thurgood was said to have met Lindy Benstead at her place of work in a silver Mazda car that he had rented after which they drove to the track off the A3 where they were then shot.
The police said that they arrived at the track between 11am and 2pm on the Tuesday.
It was thought that they had been shot by someone with a double-barrelled shotgun and that after the first two shots were fired that Lindy Benstead had managed to get out of the car and run a few yards as the gunman reloaded before she was then shot dead in the head.
Peter Thurgood had gunshot wounds to the head and chest.
Their post mortem examinations stated that they both died from gunshot wounds to the head.
They had both been shot in the head in what was described as an execution style killing. The police said that they thought the murder weapon had been a 12-bore shotgun, but the gun was never found.
It was noted that they had been due to have played darts that night in a mixed-pairs tournament at Alton.
Lindy Benstead's husband was initially detained in relation to the murder, but soon after released, having had a clear alibi. He had run a skip hire business in Whitehill.
It was noted that three other members of the victims’ families had also been detained from the outset, but also released.
A general timeline of events is:
It was noted that whilst Peter Thurgood and Lindy Benstead had been having an affair, it was relatively common knowledge in their village and they were often seen with each other. The police said that although they had been having an affair, they had been unable to determine whether that was the reason they were shot.
A 34-year-old man was questioned by the police in September 1987 after receiving an anonymous call, but no charges were made. He had been detained at his place of work in St Austell, Cornwall. It was said that the man had lived in the same area of East Hampshire as the victims at the time of the murder.
The police said that they were also trying to trace the writer of a passionate love letter that had been sent to Peter Thurgood by a woman that had lived in Aldershot. The police noted that if she didn't come forward that they might make her name public. It is not known whether the woman was traced or whether there were any developments along that line.
It was reported that in 2018 a person living in America said that they knew who the murderer was, but there was no corroborating evidence to support the claim.
The case was reviewed in 2021, however, it was noted that by then, many of the exhibits had gone missing, including gun cartridges found at the scene and items of clothing.
The police said:
The part of the A3 where they were murdered is now called the B2070.
