A CONTINUING trickle of information and “intriguing” leads has followed the publication of a book examining the Island’s only unsolved murder, its author has said.
Mark Bridgeman published his account of the killing of Finnish waitress and au pair Tuula Höök last month, combining a detailed investigation into the background to the case with broader analysis of the 20-year-old’s upbringing and the time she spent in Jersey in 1965 and 1966.
The writer said in a letter to the JEP that having the book in print did not mean the quest was over.
“The publicity surrounding the launch has generated several intriguing new leads, important contacts, and some interesting new material for me to investigate,” he said. “Although this new evidence appears to support the conclusions reached in the book, I have no intention of resting on my laurels and will continue the hunt for any additional evidence required to bring her family closure.”
Mr Bridgeman’s revelation about new leads followed comments by senior officers from States of Jersey Police about cold cases.
In the JEP Saturday interview, police chief Robin Smith said: “The file is never closed – it is always left open in case we can review the evidence, and have a look at new technology to see if that can make a difference.
“Ultimately if the evidence doesn’t exist, then it doesn’t exist, particularly when the case goes back so many years, and memories fade, and people pass, and that makes that chance less and less.”
He added: “If someone has come forward with additional information prompted by the book, you often see that when there has been a serialisation – it pricks people’s interest and memory.
“Some of the information will be rumour and innuendo, but some of it may be of use.”
Certain particular strands are of particular interest, Mr Bridgeman said:
- Descendants of Leonard Luce, who was 44 in 1966 and took a close interest in the case. Mr Luce has since died and is not considered a suspect, Mr Bridgeman stressed, but the author believes he may have shared important information before his death.
- Information relating to private parties held at the Oaklands Lodge Hotel in Trinity in the 1960s, 1970s and early 1980s.
- An assault on a young woman in late 1972 or early 1973 this incident took place at Rue Laurens, the same road in St Clement where Miss Höök’s body was found on 31 December 1966.
- People who lived in Clos de Roncier, St Clement between 1965 and 1975 and may have some memories of Miss Höök or the incident in the 1970s.
- Details of parish centeniers and honorary police officers in 1966/67, particularly in Grouville, St Saviour, St Martin, and St Clement – “for some reason, I’ve found that information rather difficult to come by”, the author stated.
Mr Bridgeman said he hoped that he may unearth “a vital clue which could provide an important and worthwhile breakthrough” in the case, and has pledged to share details of his investigation with the police.
He has also worked closely with surviving members of Miss Höök’s family, including her niece, Susan Jalasti, who attended the recent launch event in St Helier.
The writer can be contacted by email – mark@markbridgemanauthor.co.uk – or by post: 39 Duntaylor Avenue, Aberfeldy, PH15 2BX.
- An interview with Mark Bridgeman, titled Inside the Investigation, is available at bailiwickexpress.transistor.fm/episodes/inside-the-investigation-tuula-a-true-crime-tragedy
