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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
National
Claire Harrison & Joe Smith

Moment armed police arrest triple killer and rapist as he slept in stolen car

An intense video captures the moment police arrested a sick triple-murderer and rapist.

Armed officers brought Anthony Russell’s twisted killing spree to an end as officers swarmed the stolen car where he was sleeping.

Cops smashed the windows amid shouts of ‘armed police’ to arrest Russell after they tracked the maniac to his hideout.

Russell had killed three people in seven days, starting with his friend David Williams, after the pair had a disagreement.

Then, when David's mother Julie asked Russell if he had seen her missing son, the callous killer helped her search for him, despite the fact that he was dead in his flat the whole time, Coventry Live reports .

Anthony Russell, 39, of Riley Square, Coventry, being arrested. A jury found him guilty of triple murder and rape. (SWNS)

He then violently attacked Julie, murdering her in her house in a desperate attempt to cover his tracks.

Russell then fled his bloody crimes in Coventry to the neighbouring town of Leamington, where he befriended a young woman, Nicole McGregor, who told him she was five months pregnant.

Russell raped Nicole before strangling her to death, leaving her body in parkland.

He later helped her boyfriend to search for her, in an evil parody of his earlier search with Julie for her dead son David.

Anthony Russell pleaded guilty to the murder of 32-year-old David Williams (pictured) at separate a flat in Coventry on October 21 2020 (PA)

The police raid marked the end of one of West Midlands Police's biggest ever manhunts as they sought to end Russell’s horrific rampage.

He went on the run - and police eventually found him in the car, which he had stolen two days previously, during the early hours of October 30 last year in Staffordshire.

Speaking about the footage, Detective Superintendent Shaun Edwards, said: "This was an appalling series of violent attacks.

"Don't lose sight that at the heart of this - that there are three people who lost their lives and three people who were subject to violent robberies and again, left for dead.

Russel helped Julie Williams, 58, (pictured) search for her son David, all the while his slain body lay in Russel's flat (PA)
Russell also admitted the October 26 murder of 31-year-old Nicole McGregor (pictured), who was found in woodland near Leamington Spa three days later (PA)

"Each of these, in their own way, were vulnerable people, due to mental health, due to illness, due to age."

He spoke about the chain of events behind Russell's 'callous' killing spree - starting with David Williams' murder, the first of three in just seven days in October, 2020.

"David Williams: he was an associate or friend of Russell, we don't know exactly why he killed him, we think there must have been some kind of disagreement," Det Supt Edwards said.

"David's mum Julie: obviously concerned for David, she had not seen him. She went to Russell and asked him if she had seen David.

"Knowing that he was dead, he was actually dead in his flat, he said he hadn't seen him and actually helped Julie to look for him.

"Another callous way. But then we know that he killed Julie in an attempt to cover his tracks, again a violent attack, leaving her dead in her house.

"From then, we know he knew there was a murder enquiry, and he fled from Coventry and went over to Leamington. There, tragically, he befriended another young, vulnerable person, a female, who was pregnant, Nicole McGregor . He befriended her and killed her and left her body in parkland.

Anthony Russell, 39, of Riley Square, Coventry, was unanimously found guilty on Thursday of raping Ms McGregor, after just an hour and 23 minutes of deliberations by the jury (PA)

"Again, in another callous way, he spoke to her boyfriend, who was looking for her and helped him look for her. So again, another callous way of covering his tracks but using extreme violence."

Knowing they were dealing with an 'extremely dangerous' man, the force launched one of its biggest ever manhunts to catch him, working with Warwickshire and Staffordshire to catch him.

CCTV was crucial to the case, with over 9,000 hours trawled through over six months to piece together the seven days of violence.

"He was an extremely dangerous man, he used extreme violence in all of the offences," the leading officer said.

"He has shown no remorse - indeed when he was questioned by the police, he would not be interviewed, he held a blanket over his head and would not engage with the officers interviewing him."

Russell admitted the three murders, as well as the three robberies and wounding of the carjacking victim.

Today he was also found guilty of the rape of his final victim, Nicole McGregor, on the day he killed her.

He will be sentenced tomorrow at Warwick Crown Court.

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