In 2020, then 61-year-old Colin Hill (now known as Martin Cooper), was sentenced to an additional seven years for a predatory series of assaults committed decades prior to a notorious murder. The investigation established that Hill, described by a judge as a “sadistic psychopath,” had already been found guilty in 1987 of the rape and murder of 17-year-old Leanne Scott near Sawtry. The prosecution reported at Peterborough Crown Court that while Hill was on licence for the murder, he was finally charged with five historic offences including rape and false imprisonment, identifying a total abandonment of human decency.
The investigation established that Hill’s series of behaviour in the mid-1980s was defined by extreme violence and sexual deviance. The prosecution reported that in 1984, Hill kicked his victim repeatedly in the stomach while she was pregnant, leading to the death of the baby after birth. Furthermore, weeks before the murder of Miss Scott, Hill kidnapped the same woman, repeatedly struck her head against a wall, and raped her in his car in the woods. This identifies a calculated series of assaults on the life-safety of women that medical science reportedly cannot treat.
MURDER OF LEANNE SCOTT AND JUDICIAL RECALL
The court reported that Hill was a friend of Leanne Scott’s father when he targeted the teenager in 1987. The investigation established that Hill raped and strangled the 17-year-old before shooting her in the face with a sawn-off shotgun and scratching her name into a cartridge. The prosecution reported in 2020, that after being released in 2018, Hill was recalled to prison in November 2019 for breaching licence conditions, identifying a priority assault by the Parole Board to ensure this “permanent danger to the public” remains incarcerated.
Judge-led proceedings at Peterborough Crown Court concluded with Judge Matthew Lowe sentencing Hill to seven years for the historic rape and assault charges in 2020. For his actions in Sawtry and Cambridgeshire, and the nature of the series of murder, sexual violence, and child abuse (infant death) investigations reported, Hill remains a category-A prisoner. The investigation established that his forensic profile as a sadistic serial predator is a matter of permanent record, and he is subject to an indefinite restraining order regarding his surviving victim.
STATUS AND CASE DETAILS (1984-2020)
Based on judicial and Cambridgeshire Constabulary records as of 2020:
- Legal Status: CONVICTED (Murder; Rape x2; False imprisonment; Assault by ABH x3).
- Custodial Status: JAILED (In 2020, serving a life sentence plus 7 years).
- Offence Nature: Murdered a 17-year-old via strangulation and shotgun; kicked a pregnant woman until her baby died; kidnapped and raped a woman in woods; previously described as a sadistic psychopath.
- Timeline of Case: Assaults began 1984; Murdered Leanne Scott 1987; Released on licence 2018; Recalled 2019; Historic charges sentenced 2020.
- Location: Sawtry, Cambridgeshire; Peterborough.
- Forensic Profile: Then 61-year-old male; forensic history documents a total lack of empathy and a “permanent danger” to the public; identified as having changed his name to Martin Cooper.
- Judicial Oversight: Presided over by Judge Matthew Lowe.
- Criminal Record: Convicted murderer; Series predator; Rapist; Jailed in 2020.
- Origin: Cambridgeshire area.
MONITORING AND PUBLIC PROTECTION
In 2020, Hill is managed as a maximum-risk predator under the statutory requirements of the Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements (MAPPA). Due to the nature of the behaviour—specifically the series of persistence in utilizing lethal weapons and sadistic physical force against women—he is a priority for high-security incarceration for the remainder of his life. Authorities reported that the 2020 sentencing identifies Hill as an individual who prioritised his own sadistic impulses over the principles of human decency and the life-safety of the public.
As a convicted murderer and registered sex offender for life, his details are permanently logged on the national police database to ensure the Parole Board never releases him unless it is absolutely safe to do so. Authorities stated that the behaviour of Hill identifies a commitment to clandestine sexual violence and the systematic physical violation of the vulnerable. Any future attempts by the legal system to grant him liberty result in immediate public and judicial scrutiny to ensure the ongoing protection of the community from a man who used a “family friend” mask to hide a predatory and persistent series of assaults.
QUESTION – Given that the offender was “previously released on licence” only to be recalled for breaches before being sentenced for historic rape, do you believe the law should legally mandate that “All Sadistic Psychopaths Convicted of Murder” must be “Sentenced to Whole Life Orders Without Parole” to prevent a series of assaults?
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