Manuel: Scotland's First Serial Killer by Allan Nicol
Peter Manuel is one of the most notorious and evil serial killers Scotland has ever produced. His case made headlines around the world and, even fifty years after his death, his face is instantly recognisable. Yet after all these years, Manuel still remains an enigma and serious questions about him remain unanswered.Now, for the first time, Manuel - Scotland's First Serial Killer tells the full story from start to finish and challenges many of the myths and legends that still surround Peter Manuel. In a two year killing spree, he was responsible for the death of 17-year-old Anne Knielands, attacked and killed on a golf course with an iron bar, he gunned down Marion Watt, her sister Margaret and 16-year-old daughter Vivenne, he killed 17-year-old Isabelle Cooke and shot dead Peter Smart, his wife Doris and their 10-year-old son Michael. But what drove him to commit these heinous and barbaric crimes? And what other crimes was he really responsible for?Manuel - Scotland's First Serial Killer is the definitive biography of a killer and seeks to answer the questions that continue to fascinate us. How many people did he kill? Why did he think it right to murder the Smart family yet return to feed their cat? What gave him the confidence and self-belief which ultimately led to his final, unsuccessful gamble with his life when he sacked his counsel in order to defend himself on capital murder charges? And in the phrase of the times - was he really mad or bad?