Unseen - The Hertfordshire Strangler: The Case of Amanda Wright, the 4 YO Murder Witness | UNSEEN

Episode Date: September 28, 2023

“I’ll stop if you stop crying” On the morning of March 4th 1980, in Stevenage England, a milkman is heading to work when he sees smoke coming out of someone’s window, and hears a child screaming. He rushes and breaks the door down, finding a crying little girl, badly burned, and waiting in the stairs: after being rescued, 4 YO Amanda Wright is now the only witness of what really set off the fire in the home that night, unveiling a murder so disturbing that the truth of the events would only come out 36 years later, and bring to justice her mom’s killer for a second time. External footage from: The Day I Should've Died: Amanda Wright (CBS Reality, ITV), Forensics: Catching the Killer: Killed for Being Kind (Sky TV), London Live: Amanda Wright Interview (Evening Standard), The Mirror, BBC, The Daily Mail, The Comet, the Sun, ITV News, The British Newspaper Archives, Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Emergency, which service? A fire. March 4th, 1980. The city of Stevenage, England, is rocked by an inferno at the house where Susan Losen lives with her four-year-old daughter. Amanda, a passing milkman rushes in and is able to rescue the child. But sadly, her mother never made it out. The Stevenage police begin an investigation that would haunt the lives of those involved for nearly four decades. There was a few issues that I didn't particularly like.

When we moved her neck up away from the chest, we saw that that area of the neck had not been burned. Who found signs of strangulation. Susan Losen was not killed by the fire. She was murdered. What started as an investigation into a tragic accident becomes a desperate search for a killer. And the key to putting a monster behind bars lies with the sole witness,

four-year-old Amanda. I was screaming, crying my eyes out, and he said he won't stop unless I stop crying. Would not only have to face her mother's killer once, but twice. It's March 4, 1980. The small city of Stevenage, England, wakes up to smoke rising from the second floor window of the home of Susan Losen and her four-year-old daughter, Amanda. A milkman, Michael Knowles, who was out making his morning deliveries, was first on the scene of the raging fire. From outside the burning home, he can hear the cries.

and screams of a trapped child. Without hesitation, Knowles rushes in, braving the fire and thick smoke, heading into the darkness and toward the cries for help. The milkman smashed the door in, and he took me down the stairs, and I looked at my legs, and I could see I was burnt. Inside, he finds four-year-old Amanda on the stairs

waiting for rescue. She's miraculously alive, but badly injured. Nolz carries Amanda out of the blaze into safety, saving her life. Shortly after, the fire department arrives. and manages to bring the raging fire under control, finally allowing police inside to begin their investigation. In the upstairs bedroom, they find that Amanda's mother, Susan, had perished in the inferno.

Unfortunately, fires of this kind are not uncommon in the 1980s, and an official ruling is made finding the fire to be an accident, likely just another case of someone falling asleep with a lit cigarette. But what investigators will find as they dig a little deeper will unravel a shocking crime, the effects of which wouldn't be fully known for decades. Susan Losen and her four-year-old daughter, Amanda, live a quiet, peaceful life in the city of Stevenage, Hartfordshire, about 20 miles north of London.

Recently divorced, Susan is dedicated to giving the best life she can to Amanda, despite the recent turmoil. Just left me and my mom, and we were just really close. It was the two of us, so we spent a lot of our time together, and I just remember lots of fun, happy times. The two settle into a two-story house, just a few blocks from where Susan's parents live and rent out the extra space. Though they have their fair share of struggles, Susan and Amanda spend almost every minute together, and for Amanda, her mother is everything. I'd sleep in her bed with her, then with whatever was happening that day, we would generally be together.

Until all of that was ripped away on the morning of March 4, 1980. It appears at first that a tragic accident claimed the life of the young mother and left her daughter severely injured. and alone, but Detective Constable Peter Harper isn't so sure. Something about the scene feels off. The way the flame spread seems intentional. I could see burning to the left-hand side bottom of the bed, which led me to think, well, triggered me a little bit. How could the fire have started at the bottom of the bed

if Susan had dropped a cigarette in her sleep? His suspicions are overruled by the other investigators. They actually did call out a forensic scientist, and he didn't agree with my interpretation. However, a mandatory autopsy reveals something far more sinister. After examining her body, forensic pathologists uncover clear signs of strangulation that, amazingly, survived the fire. When we moved her neck up away from the chest, we saw that that area of the neck had not been burned. Stevenage police make a new ruling, as it becomes clear that they are not investigating an accidental fire, but a murder.

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With a changed perspective on the case, they look for clues as to who could have killed a single mother and left her child alone to die in a fire. In the kitchen, something grabs Detective Harper's attention. There was two cups and two plates. It struck me that it was two plates and cups. that had been used by adults rather than a mother and child. Someone else had been at the house prior to the fire being set. Only one fingerprint survived the blaze, but one is all they need. Police began the arduous task of matching the fingerprint

and, through hard work, they find a potential mesh on file, a local man named John Dickinson. At first, Dickinson seems like a perfect suspect, having a violent past and a history with police, including a conviction for burning down several apartments in the 70s, for which she served, a three-year sentence. This discovery that John Dickinson was an arsonist was a critical tipping point for the police.

But still, there was no concrete evidence Dickinson was the one who started the fire, just that he was at the house. As it was known, Susan rented out her extra room. It was more than reasonable that Dickinson could have been in the home inquiring about a place to stay. If the Stevenage police would want to make an arrest, they need more. They need an eyewitness. Although severely injured and in the hospital, Amanda,

covers. I suffered burns to my legs, both feet, and I needed to have skin graft operations for the burns. Her little legs were burnt terrible. It was when I first time I saw them, I thought, oh God, you know, she had all these graphs, and it just looked terrible. The police are also worried she may be a target for surviving the fire, so Amanda is placed under 24-hour watch to assure her safety. While she's in the hospital, Amanda's fifth birthday passes. Her remaining family, including her grandparents, aunt and uncle, do their best, but after losing her mother and her home in one grisly act of violence, the five-year-old is inconsolable.

I went down the hospital, I could hear a little girl crying, crying, mommy, mommy, and of course it was Amanda. She was just hysterical. All she wanted was her mom to come and give her a big cuddle and make everything all right, which wasn't going to happen. Each day is a challenge, and adjusting to her new life would be the beginning of a battle that would last for years.

The police know if they want to catch who is responsible, they need Amanda's help. But time is ticking away. When the police finally interview Amanda, they present her with photos of several men, hoping to narrow the search. The five-year-old studies the photos and describes every detail she can remember.

Initially, it was quite difficult for the police to interview such a young child about what had gone on. One of the things that she did say to them was that a man had been present and had hurt her mummy. They said, I had to look at first. photographs of men and I had to say if it was him or not if it was the man.

Eventually, Amanda's eyewitness testimony and the physical evidence from the scene give the police the confirmation they need to arrest Dickinson. But what Amanda does not tell the police becomes a closely guarded secret she carries with her for years to come. A secret about what else she saw the morning her world had changed forever. John Dickinson is arrested shortly after. I went to the address where he was living. He was quite aggressive.

As soon as he is in custody, he attempts to shift the blame by placing the fault on Susan herself. The following months become a media circus, with tabloids and newspapers printing every detail John Dickinson claims to be true, without question. The first week of the trial comes out with this story about how Susan had asked to be tied up in some sexual game. Then he fell asleep, and when he woke up, she was dead.

That was his flimsy excuse. The trial takes its toll on Susan's family. Every headline becomes another weapon Dickinson can use to attack Susan's memory, and he does so with the help of the media. Despite all this, in September of 1980, after two weeks on trial, John Dickinson is convicted and sentenced to 18 years to life behind bars. Because of the law surrounding incarceration in the UK, the possibility of his eventual release is likely, given the conviction.

And without her mother by her side, five-year-old Amanda begins to suffer from night terrors and even vivid hallucinations. Then I'd wake up really scared in the night. Sometimes I'd hear voices in my head, like a man's voice, echoing, murmuring. I could hear it was his voice telling me to shut up and stop crying.

I just knew I had to do something. I couldn't go on like this. I didn't know if I was mad. I just think, am I mad? Why am I like this? Why can't I just go to sleep like everyone else? The threat of Dickinson's release becomes a constant fear, and the little girl's secret

about what really happened stays buried for the next eight years. It's now 1988. Amanda is living with her grandparents in Stevenage, only a short walk from where her life changed forever. 12-year-old Amanda stumbles upon a collection of newspaper clippings her grandmother had saved about her mother's case. Every lie Dickinson had said in court was printed for the world to read. So I looked at it.

I was only a child at the time, and I was reading it, and I was absolutely shocked to what I was reading, what he'd said, Even after all he did, and after all this time, Dickinson was still finding ways to cause pain. Just for what are you done to us, and now you've made it even worse by saying this? Amanda makes a decision to confide in her grandmother and tell her the truth of what happened to her, finally sharing her secret for the first time. When I woke up, I could see that the man was at the bottom of the bed, and then suddenly, just out of nowhere, he just came flying over towards my mom and grabbed her,

and I was just in bits. I was screaming, crying my eyes out, and he said he won't stop unless I stop crying. And then he just grabbed me and got a pillow and pushed it over my face. And I just remember feeling his hands on my neck. After a while, I just wanted it all to be over with. I came round, and my mom was back in bed with me,

and there was a fire at the bottom of the bed. Dickinson had strangled and attempted to murder Amanda that morning along with her mother. Until now, no one but Amanda and Dickinson knew what really happened. She said, I know what he said at court, and she said, that was a complete pack of lies. I saw everything. I saw him actually strangled her and then set fire to the police. She didn't die that way.

She saw the way she died. So she witnessed it all. If the police had known the full story during the trial, more charges may have been brought against Dickinson, charges that could have kept him behind bars permanently, and now Amanda realizes more than ever that she will always be a target. It's now 2014. John Dickinson is released from prison after serving his full sentence for the murder of Susan Losen and the arson that destroyed her home. 34 years behind bars for devastating a family.

Now 66 years old, Dickinson is free to move back into society. For Amanda, now 39, it becomes more important than ever that the world learns a truth about what he's done. She writes a book titled Without a Mother's Life. published in 2016, detailing all she had gone through in the decades since the murder. Two readers of Amanda's book are siblings Angie Godfrey and Jamie Little. They too suffered at the hands of John Dickinson in the 70s when he was their stepfather. When the siblings learn of Dickinson's release, the fear that he may hurt someone else is too much to stand by and do nothing.

Amanda reaches out to Angie after hearing her story, and immediately the two women share a bond, an unfortunate connection because of one man. As the crispy chicken sandwich from 7-Eleven, people always call me loud. And I'm like, yeah, I know. I'm crispy. Did you expect me to whisper? If you want quiet, go eat some soup and reflect. Like, I know I'm a handful.

I'm bold, I'm juicy. Throw some pickles and barbecue sauce on me, and baby, I'm a whole meal. And with seven rewards, I'm just $4. Quiet. No. Crispy, saucy, and $4? Very. Only at 711.

Valley through 62326, participating stores only while supplies lastly out for full terms. And it was nice to talk to her, talk about our feelings and growing up, feeling guilty and bad about ourselves. Having found strength in Amanda's story, and after 40 years of fearing one man, the siblings are ready to do whatever they need to make sure John Dickinson will never hurt anyone again. And we talked about her going to the police about it because he should be punished for this disgusting crime that he's put on them. And it was just swept under the carpet. She plucked up the courage and she made that phone call to the police. With Amanda's encouragement and help,

the siblings finally bring forward the extent of the abuse they experienced to the police. Because of his history and the likelihood he would re-offend, Dickinson is immediately the focus of a new investigation. And in 2019, police have all the pieces they need to make an arrest. A search of Dickinson's home uncovers just how grave the threat was, finding handcuffs and evidence he had ordered a gun that, thankfully, was intercepted. Dickinson is once again behind bars. And finally, in September of 2020, almost exactly 40 years after his initial conviction for the murder of Amanda's mother,

John Dickinson is convicted and sentenced again, this time to 17 years for his crimes against Angie and Jamie as children. If he survives his sentence, John Dickinson will be 90 years old at the time of his release. Amanda, with the help of Dickinson's own stepchildren, has put a monster behind bars for a second time. and likely for the rest of his life. Amanda spent years of her life working through the trauma and fear of what happened that morning on March 4th, 1980. With the help of her close-knit family and a drive to find peace, Amanda made it through the darkness of her childhood.

I wanted something good to come out of this bad situation. I didn't want this man to destroy my life as well, my family's life. I didn't want it to be a sad ending. It had to be a happy ending. At 26, she found love and married, having two beautiful, beautiful daughters of her own, the eldest named after her mother. She has dedicated her life to giving her children everything that was taken away from her. Amanda continues to speak publicly about what she went through, hoping to help others who had to experience similar tragedies find the strength they need to carry on. I just feel like she gave me a loving start to my life.

We had that special bond because it was just the two of us. Amanda also pioneered a series of after-school clubs for children with working parents, providing a safe place for them to be together after school hours. And, even after four decades, Amanda holds on to the vivid, everlasting memories she has of her mother and of the time they spent together, however short that time was. It's a really good life. Don't try to fuck with me. I'm not trying to fuck with you.

The boy you see here is 8-year-old Ricky Toekart.