logo
episode-header-image
Jul 2024
57m 25s

Episode 584: Peter Manuel: The Beast of ...

Morbid Network | Wondery
About this episode

When Peter Smart failed to show up for work on the morning of January 6, 1958, officers in Lanarkshire, Scotland were dispatched to Smart’s home to conduct a well-being check. When no one came to the door, the officers forced their way inside, where they found Smart, his wife, and their eleven-year-old son all dead from gunshot wounds to the head.  A week later, Peter Manuel was arrested and charged with the murders of the Smart family, but in time the police in Lanarkshire would learn that was only one of Manuel’s horrific crimes.

Thank you to the incredible Dave White of Bring Me the Axe Podcast for research!


References

Birmingham Post and Gazette. 1958. "3 shot dead: no gun found." Birmingham Post and Gazette, January 7: 1.

Coventry Evening Telegraph. 1956. "Three dead in bungalow beds." Coventry Evening Telegraph, September 17: 1.

Daily Record. 1956. "Fifth tee murder." Daily Record, January 5: 1.

—. 1956. "Fifth tee murder: dramatic appeal." Daily Record, January 6: 1.

—. 1957. "Teenager vanishes." Daily Record, December 30: 1.

—. 1958. "Two sensations as trial opens." Daily Record, May 13: 7.

Daily Telegraph. 1958. "1958." Daily Telegraph, May 15: 15.

Evening Sentinel. 1956. "Bloodstains found on bed sheets." Evening Sentinel, September 17: 1.

—. 1957. "Tjhick snow hampers moors hunt." Evening Sentinel, December 11: 1.

Hull Daily Mail. 1957. "Police seek fresh clues in murder mystery." Hull Daily Mail, December 10: 5.

Lundy, Iain. 2007. "Psychopath who brought terror to the west." Evening Times, December 27.

MacLeod, Hector. 2009. Peter Manuel, Serial Killer. Edinburgh, Scotland: Mainstream Books.

Nottingham Evening News. 1956. "Bungalow riddle: two women and girl dead in bed." Nottingham Evening News, September 17: 4.

Silvester, Norman. 2022. The story of Scotland's first known serial killer Peter Manuel. October 10. Accessed June 9, 2024. https://www.glasgowtimes.co.uk/news/23034356.story-scotlands-first-known-serial-killer-peter-manuel/.

The Times. 1958. "Statement on 8 murders." The Times, May 22: 5.

Western Mail. 1958. "Watt denies shooting his wife." Western Mail, May 16: 5.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Up next
Today
Episode 688: The Last Call Killer (Part 2)
Between 1991 and 1993, the dismembered bodies of five gay and bisexual men were discovered in garbage bags along the highway in New York and New Jersey. The cause of the death for each was multiple stab wounds, and each victim had been disarticulated into eight pieces and placed ... Show More
48m 41s
Jul 7
Episode 687: The Last Call Killer (Part 1)
Between 1991 and 1993, the dismembered bodies of five gay and bisexual men were discovered in garbage bags along the highway in New York and New Jersey. The cause of the death for each was multiple stab wounds, and each victim had been disarticulated into eight pieces and placed ... Show More
1h 11m
Jul 3
Episode 686: Glen Helzer and the Children of Thunder (Part 2)
When Ivan and Annette Stineman disappeared from their home in Concord, California in the summer of 2000, it immediately raised red alarmed with those closest to the elderly couple. Those alarms proved to be justified when, a week later, the remains of the Stinemans and three othe ... Show More
41m 5s
Recommended Episodes
Apr 2021
Monsters Of Ayrshire: Part 3 - The Beast In The Cage
Our Monsters Of Ayrshire trilogy concludes this time around on The True Crime Enthusiast Podcast, where, alongside the horrific murder of Mhairi Julyan, we learn of some of the other evil acts that Gavin McGuire is responsible for, and the reasons why I considered that one word b ... Show More
1h 8m
Sep 2021
Thriller - Part 9: The Aftermath
The culmination of the Thriller arc of this series of The True Crime Enthusiast Podcast drops here in this final episode, where we see just what David Mulcahy's conviction meant for so many - the victims, as well as the side of law and order. We catch up with developments over th ... Show More
1h 15m
Dec 2022
S2 E9: The Blackout Ripper on the Run
Greta Heywood is being strangled in a Piccadilly doorway when a passerby interrupts the Blackout Ripper, who disappears into the night. Greta survives the attack and the killer leaves vital clues as to his identity. The police are now closing in on their man - but can they catch ... Show More
40m 36s
Feb 2025
The Peggy Hettrick Case - Part 1
Part one of the investigation into the murder of 37-year-old Peggy Hettrick. In February 1987, her mutilated, half-naked body was discovered in a field near the Colorado home of Tim Masters, a 15-year-old boy. He told police he had seen the body on his way to school but, thinking ... Show More
49m 30s
Nov 2019
184: A Sick Twisted Series of Murders - November 4 2019
Keep up with current episodes of Morning Cup of Murder at morningcupofmurder.com On November 4th 1998 a man was arrested after walking into a Northern California police station and confessing. When asked what proof he had, to everyone in the stations horror, he pulled a severed b ... Show More
5m 48s
Feb 2025
The White House Farm Murders
On August 7th, 1985, an entire family was murdered at their farmhouse in Essex, England. Authorities initially believed it was a murder-suicide, but suspicion soon turned to Jeremy Bamber, the surviving family member who called police to the house that night.Join Mike and Gibby a ... Show More
1h 19m
Dec 2024
The Cotton Club Murder | Friday the 13th | 5
On the night of May 13th, 1983, Roy Radin makes plans for a dinner meeting with Lanie Jacobs, only to be ambushed in the back of a limousine. The chilling details of how Radin was murdered are finally revealed, as detectives get a prime suspect to confess to the grisly plot. But ... Show More
40m 50s
Apr 2023
Adult Twins Kill Their Father Over 12 Cats and Home Sale [Current Affairs]
On this week's current affairs, 38-year old twins have been arrested in Rhode Island for the murder of their father. Jessie and Andie also provide an update on the Polish girl who thought she might be Madeleine McCann, the arraignment of Brian Walsh in the murder of his wife, and ... Show More
10m 7s
Mar 2023
Ministry of Secrets | 5. The Confession of Eduard Koltsov
Giles and Sarah’s Russian fixer, Masha, finds a remarkable video interview with a former KGB diver, Eduard Koltsov – the last person to see Lionel Crabb on the day of his secret dive. His deathbed confession is graphic, shocking and believable. But can he be trusted? Subscribe to ... Show More
34m 42s
Mar 2025
Episode 391 - The Menendez Brothers Part 1: Silver Spoon Killers
In this long-awaited episode, we dive into one of the most infamous true-crime cases in American history: the story of Lyle and Erik Menendez. The brutal 1989 slayings of their wealthy parents, José and Kitty Menendez, divided a nation: but where do we stand?In Part 1, we take yo ... Show More
1h 20m