Seventy-three-year-old Constance Aris, better known as Connie, or sometimes “Little Granny” because of her diminutive size, lived in a house on Roman Road in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England. She had lived alone since 1978, following the death of her husband Hubert.
Connie was a well-loved, very religious woman, and had a close relationship with her son Keith, his wife Vanessa, and their children Damian and Siobhan, all of whom lived in a home only a short walk away.
On the afternoon of February 27th, 1985, Connie had been to a meeting of the Friendly Society at St. Mark’s Community Centre in Cheltenham. By all accounts, she left with a friend not long after six p.m. The friend walked her most of the way home before parting company, leaving Connie to walk a few brief minutes on her own, arriving home at approximately six-twenty-five p.m. What happened to her after she reached her residence is still a matter of some debate.
The following day, her son Keith became concerned when he didn’t hear from Connie, as they usually spoke every day. Thinking she might be ill or injured, he walked down to his mother’s house to check on her, only to be confronted with an unimaginable horror.
Connie Aris was clearly dead, her bloody form slumped over in an armchair in the living room. The TV was on and blaring through the empty house.
Police arrived and found no sign of forced entry, leading them to suspect that Connie might have known her killer, or had not felt threatened by letting them inside. The small woman had been savagely beaten to death with what was presumed to be an ax.
Authorities theorized that robbery was a possible motive, as a few things were stolen from the home, including Connie’s pension book and some inexpensive jewelry and watches. Nothing of any great value was taken, however, and Connie was not known to have money stashed in her house, so it’s unclear why someone would specifically target her.
The only clue of any significance found at the scene was a single fingerprint that likely belonged to the killer, but as of this writing, it has never been matched to a suspect.
Despite a massive investigation, the leads petered out fairly early on and the shocking homicide eventually became a cold case. It remains unsolved, nearly forty years later.
Crime Immemorial 