Thirty-year-old Mark Connor, who also used the alias Peter John Joyce, was originally from Ballyfermot in Dublin, Ireland. Before moving to England in the 1990s, he was reportedly one of the biggest drug dealers in west Dublin. He owned multiple properties in England and was linked to large-scale drug smuggling operations, including possible associations with figures like Liverpool-based trafficker Curtis Warren. In 1999, a man was jailed for laundering over IR£105,000 connected to Mark Connor, highlighting the scale of his alleged criminal network.
At the time of his death, Mark lived with his partner, Amanda Joyce, in Slough, Berkshire. The couple had a son together. Mark had another flat at 16 Claire Court on Shoot Up Hill in Kilburn, North London, which he was known to use frequently, though the exact reasons for his presence there on the occasion of his murder were never fully established by police.
Mark left his home in Slough on the evening of February 11th, 2001, telling Amanda he had “business to attend to.” He was never seen alive again. His body was discovered three days later, on Valentine’s Day, by Amanda Joyce when she visited the Claire Court flat after growing concerned.
The scene was grim. Mark had been beaten about the head with a blunt instrument (sustaining six additional wounds) before being shot at point-blank range through a pillow pressed to the back of his head. His body was then placed in a filled bathtub. Police described it as a classic “execution-style” killing. He was still fully clothed. Investigators believe the murder likely occurred on or around February 11th.
The discovery triggered arrests, including for murder and perverting the course of justice. Amanda Joyce admitted to leaving the scene with two checks worth around £17,500 and burning documents related to fraud. She received a twelve-month conditional discharge. Two other men faced similar charges but were discharged when the prosecution offered no evidence. Several others were arrested and released without further action.
A man was tried for the murder at the Old Bailey in 2001, but the case collapsed due to insufficient evidence. No one has ever been convicted.
Cold-case reviews in subsequent years, including appeals in 2007–2008 and around the eleventh anniversary in 2012, have yielded no breakthroughs. Detectives have repeatedly looked toward Ireland, particularly Dublin, believing the motive and perpetrators’ connections lie there. Mark Connor’s family, including his mother Mary and sisters Lorraine, Wendy, and Anne, made public appeals for information, expressing their ongoing grief. “No one deserves to die the way my Mark died,” his mother said in one interview.
The motive appears linked to Mark Connor’s criminal activities, possibly a dispute within the drug trade or a rival gang hit. Police have suggested it may connect to other murders. Despite extensive investigations by the Metropolitan Police, however, the case is still unresolved.
Crime Immemorial 