According to some authorities, Joe was supposed to be frantically worried about this because he knew Bernard Oliver, who had done some odd jobs stacking tapes for Joe. However, there has never been any supporting evidence for this statement, or even a source, so I feel it must be treated with at least a little caution. It has been turned into a major issue, which supposedly drove Joe to suicide, but I think the truth is a little more mundane.

Firstly, I am not even willing to state with certainty that Joe knew Oliver at all. The only source for the information is one un-named informant, which I am not prepared to accept as concrete evidence. On the other hand, I can believe that Joe may have been a little concerned about the impending police investigation because of their threat to track down and interview all known homosexual offenders in the London area; and although the 1963 arrest was minor, Joe was a 'known' offender. Therefore, he probably would have been interviewed eventually. Of course, he would not have wanted to go through that; it was a horrible enough experience for him the first time around, particularly as he believed that he had been framed in 1963, and to be interviewed about a murder which he knew nothing of just because he was homosexual would have added to the trauma and embarrassment, and once more he would have had to worry about his Mum finding out. No doubt he was upset by the prospect, and thought the whole thing tiresome; he may even have been frightened at the prospect of being interviewed, but he knew he was an innocent man and it would have been a stretch of even his imagination to think he would be framed for the murder. Given the state of mind he was in sometimes, he may have had periods where he worried more than others, but being framed for soliciting and being framed for murder are two very different matters.

Some years ago, it was suggested, only half-seriously, that the artist's impression of the man the police were seeking to question bore a faint resemblance to Joe in build and hairstyle. Facially the picture was nothing like him, and this was the only suggestion of the kind ever made. The suitcase murder has enjoyed vast over exposure in relation to Joe, and I feel this comparison was symptomatic of that.

Incidentally, although the murder was never officially closed, the police now feel fairly certain that it was committed by a visiting seaman, who was never charged because of his transient nature and lack of evidence.

For a small selection on newscuttings on the "Suitcase Murder", click here

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