The Arrest
Early in the morning on 14th January 1958, a little over two years since his first known victim was killed, Lanarkshire police finally arrested Peter Manuel. They raided the family home in Birkenshaw, searched for stolen items from the Smart murder scene and arrested Manuel and his father for housebreaking. The aim was to get him off the street and it was while Manuel was under arrest, that the case against him made real progress.
The police knew Manuel well, and were aware of his love of attention, so they left him alone in his cell for nearly 24 hours before interviewing him. This approach had the desired effect and Manuel called from his cell saying he wanted to help police with some "unsolved cases".
He confessed to killing Anne Kneilands, the Watts, Margaret Brown, Isabelle Cooke and the Smart family. It could be that Manuel did that so he would be allowed to see his parents, with whom he had a close relationship. But it could also be argued that psychopathic killers like Manuel need to be at the centre of the story.
