Colin Ireland (born March 16 1954) is a British serial killer known as the 'Gay Slayer' as he specifically targeted homosexual men as victims.

Ireland, a former soldier who had picked up convictions for burglary and robbery in his twenties, decided to become a serial killer as a New Year resolution at the beginning of 1993, when he was aged 39. That year, while living in Southend, he started frequenting a pub in west London where gay men met. Ireland was heterosexual—he had been married—but feigned homosexuality in order to lure patrons of the pub into his clutches.

Murder 1: Peter Walker

A choreographer, Peter Walker, approached Ireland and the two left the pub for Mr. Walker's flat in Battersea. After he was willingly bound and gagged by Ireland, he was subjected to a beating which Ireland administered with his fists and a dog lead, although at that stage Mr Walker may have thought this was still within the boundaries of his desire for pain as part of his sex life. Ireland then killed him by suffocating him with a plastic bag.

In order to avoid detection, Ireland thoroughly cleaned Mr. Walker's flat and disposed of any items which could lead to him. While searching through personal items, Ireland discovered his victim was HIV positive.

To avoid neighbourly attention, Ireland did not leave the flat the same night, but stayed until the next morning and travelled home on the train with the rush hour commuters.

Ireland later rang the Samaritans in order to alert them as to where he had put Mr Walker's dogs (he'd locked them away before killing their owner).

Murder 2: Christopher Dunn

Two months later, after the furore over Mr. Walker's death had subsided, Ireland returned to the pub to seek his next victim. He turned out to be Christopher Dunn, a librarian. Again the murder took place in the victim's flat, which was in Wealdstone. Mr. Dunn was wearing a body harness and had been willingly handcuffed and had his feet tied together. Ireland then beat, tortured and suffocated his victim.

Prior to killing Mr. Dunn, Ireland demanded the personal identification number for his bank card, and used the card to extract money from Mr. Dunn's account in order to reimburse himself for expenses incurred. Having meticulously studied serial killing, he knew that he had to throw away the gloves and shoes he was wearing each time he killed. As an unemployed man on benefits, Ireland needed to get the money from elsewhere.

Murder 3: Perry Bradley III

Six days later, Ireland once again picked up a man at the pub. It was Perry Bradley III, who was 35 and the son of a serving US congressman. They went to Mr. Bradley's flat in Kensington, and Ireland persuaded him to be tied up (Mr. Bradley wasn't into S&M) as he couldn't get aroused otherwise. Once his victim was helpless, Ireland again used torture methods to get his bank card number. He delayed the killing until Mr. Bradley had actually fallen asleep, still trussed up, and then strangled him with a noose.

Again, Ireland carefully cleaned or removed anything in the flat which could incriminate him before leaving the next morning.

By the time Mr. Bradley's body was discovered, the police had still to connect the three killings. This was because of the time gaps between them, but also because the murders were committed in three different areas with enough distance between them to cast doubt. The complete lack of clues also didn't assist, while there was always a suspicion that the very least that could have happened on each occasion was a sex game going innocently wrong.

Murder 4: Andrew Collier

Ireland wanted publicity and hadn't got any, even after three murders. So he killed again within three days. At the pub he met and courted 33-year-old Andrew Collier, a housing warden, and the pair went to Mr. Collier's home in Dalston. Once he had tied up his victim on the bed, Ireland again demanded his victim's bank details. This time, however, nothing could extract the details from Mr. Collier. Ireland lost patience and strangled him with a noose.

Ireland left the following morning with £70 in cash, having also killed Mr. Collier's cat in an angry reaction to finding out his victim was HIV positive while rummaging through Mr Collier's personal effects, in an attempt to find the bank card number.

The undignified manner in which Ireland left Mr. Collier's body gave police a link at last to one of the previous killings, that of Ireland's initial victim, Peter Walker. As an angry reaction to finding out these victims were both HIV, Ireland had put condoms in both of their mouths.

Murder 5: Emanuel Spiteri

The fifth victim of Ireland's campaign (he had read that serial killers needed at least five victims to qualify as such) was Emanuel Spiteri, aged 41, who was a chef and whom Ireland had again met in the same pub. They went to Mr. Spiteri's flat in Catford, and again Spiteri was willingly cuffed and bound on his bed. Once more, Ireland demanded his bank number but didn't get it. He used a noose again to kill his victim.

After carrying out his post-murder ritual of cleaning and clearing the scene, Ireland set fire to the flat and left. He rang the police later to tell them to look for a body at the scene of a fire and added that he would probably not kill again. However, he had forgotten to wipe off one set of fingerprints he had left on the window.

The Connection

At last the police connected all five killings, and word spread fast among the whole of London, not just within the gay community, that a serial killer who specifically targetted gay men was operating and could strike again at any time.

Investigations revealed that Mr. Spiteri had left the pub and travelled home with his killer by train, and a security video successfully captured the two of them on the platform at Charing Cross station. Ireland recognised himself and decided to tell police he was the man with Mr. Spiteri but not the killer—he claimed to have left Mr. Spiteri in the flat with another man. However, police had also found the fingerprints in Mr. Collier's flat which matched those of Ireland.

Pleading Guilty

He was charged with the murder of Mr. Collier, then Mr. Spiteri, and confessed to the other three while awaiting trial in prison. He told police that he had no vendetta against gay men, but picked on them because they were the easiest targets. He had robbed those he killed to finance his killings because he was unemployed at the time, and he needed funds to travel to and from London when hunting for victims.

When his case came to the Old Bailey on December 20, 1993, Ireland (unusually on murder cases) pleaded guilty to all charges and was given life sentences for each. The judge, Mr. Justice Sachs, said he was "exceptionally frightening and dangerous", adding: "To take one human life is an outrage; to take five is carnage."

The Aftermath

Post-trial interviews with ex-colleagues and Ireland's ex-wife suggested that Ireland was a loner who was in need of friendship; when this didn't come, he snapped and turned to murder.

Ireland's name was on the last published list of whole life tariff prisoners, meaning that he will have to stay in prison for the rest of his natural life.