Bristol murderer and sex offender John Cannan dies in jail at the age of 70
A Bristol man convicted of killing a woman and suspected of murdering a missing estate agent has died in prison at the age of 70.
John Cannan was jailed in 1989 for the abduction and murder of Bristol newlywed Shirley Banks from Bristol.
He was also the prime suspect in the 1986 disappearance of estate agent Suzy Lamplugh.
The Prisons and Probation Ombudsman says it is investigating Cannan's death.
Mrs Banks was 29 and from the Clifton area of the city. She was shopping in Broadmead, in Bristol city centre, on the evening of 8 October 1987 when she was abducted by Cannan.
Mrs Banks had arranged to meet her husband for a drink after shopping and he searched for her in bars when she did not arrive.
When he called her work the next morning, he was told she had phoned in sick with an upset stomach 15 minutes prior.
Police were then alerted. Officers believe that Banks was held overnight in Cannan's flat and that he then persuaded her to phone in sick to her work, after pretending he was going to release her.
Around 150 police officers spent around 140,000 hours on the case. Police put out television appeals and searched the Bristol Docks.
Three weeks after Mrs Banks disappeared, Cannan - who was living in the Leigh Woods area of Bristol - was arrested for assault and his car was searched.
They found Mrs Banks' Mini car - painted blue - and Mrs Banks' car tax disc in a lock-up garage at his block of flats.
Cannan had no alibi for the night of Mrs Banks' disappearance and claimed he had bought the Mini from a man at an auction.
After further evidence was found and witnesses came forward, Cannon was charged with Mrs Banks' kidnap and murder on 23 December 1987.
In April 1988, Mrs Banks' body was found in a stream in Bridgwater, Somerset. According to pathologist Bernard Knight, she was killed by being hit repeatedly on the head with a rock.
Cannan’s trial started in April 1989. He was charged with the murder of Mrs Banks', and a further eight charges including rape and kidnap, indecent assault and abduction for sex.
The trial lasted three weeks the jury found Cannan guilty of all charges after 10 hours of deliberation and he was jailed for life.
In 2002, Cannan was named as the prime suspect in the 1986 disappearance of estate agent Suzy Lamplugh, which he denied.
Ms Lamplugh was declared dead, presumed murdered, after going missing in July 1986 at the age of 25. Her body has never been found.
Cannan was questioned in prison in connection with the incident. However, no charges were brought.
In 2018, police carried out excavations at Cannan’s mother’s former home in Sutton Coldfield but nothing was found.
Following his death, a Prison Service spokesperson said: “HMP Full Sutton prisoner John Cannan died on 6 November. As with all deaths in custody, the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman will investigate."
In October 2023 the parole board found he was too dangerous to release.
The panel heard that Cannan still insisted that he was innocent and had not engaged in any accredited programmes to address the risk of reoffending while in jail.
It was told that at the time of his crimes, Cannan thought he was entitled to sex whenever he wanted it, preferred it to include violence and wanted power and control over women.
He was a category A prisoner, those who pose the highest risk to the public.
The panel concluded: “After considering the circumstances of his offending, the progress made while in custody and the evidence presented at the hearing, the panel was not satisfied that release at this point would be safe for the protection of the public.
“Nor did the panel recommend to the Secretary of State that Mr Cannan should be transferred to an open prison.”
Following Cannan's death, Prisons and Probation Ombudsman Adrian Usher said: “The Prisons and Probation Ombudsman are carrying out an independent investigation into the death of Mr John Cannan at HMP Full Sutton.
Our final investigation report will be published after the inquest concludes.”