Railway Rapists 'may have further victims'

6:40pm Wednesday 7th February 2001

Women who believe they may have fallen prey to sadistic serial rapist and murderer David Mulcahy were this week urged to break their silence.

Mulcahy, 41, was given three life sentences for three murders including that of Potters Bar newlywed Anne Lock at the Old Bailey on Friday. He was jailed after being betrayed by his former partner in crime, John Duffy, more than 13 years after a string of brutal attacks. Duffy, dubbed the 'railway rapist', was jailed for life in 1988.

Det Supt Andrew Murphy, who led the investigation, said Mulcahy's sentence did not spell the end of the episode.

"We certainly think that there may be other victims out there victims that didn't come forward during the Eighties," he told the Barnet & Potters Bar Times. "They were maybe frightened off by their tactics, which were to demand names and addresses and threaten reprisals if victims did go to the police."

Det Supt Murphy said the duo's trail of terror, which ran from 1982 to 1986, began in Hampstead, Hendon and Kilburn but later moved to East London and Surrey.

"Duffy has admitted to all of the offences he can positively remember but he has said they all rolled into one so it could be double figures, it could be higher," he added. "Hopefully Mulcahy will serve life and never be released but that doesn't mean we won't look to prosecute for other offences."

Police could not rule out the possibility that Mulcahy attacked women alone after Duffy was jailed, although they stressed that the pair fed off each other's excitement during their crimes.

Mulcahy, a father-of-four, of Beaumont Walk, Chalk Farm, also received 24 years concurrent for seven rapes and 18 years concurrent for five conspiracies to rape.

Pronouncing sentence, the Recorder of London, Judge Michael Hyam, told Mulcahy: "These were acts of desolating wickedness. You descended to the depths of depravity in carrying them out."

If you may have been a victim of Mulcahy and Duffy, call the incident room on 020 8733 4769.

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