Jean-Pierre Vaquier
Encyclopedia
Jean-Pierre Vaquier was a French
inventor and murderer.
He was tried for the murder of Alfred George Poynter Jones, landlord of the Blue Anchor pub in Byfleet
, the husband of his mistress Mabel Jones, by poisoning him with strychnine
.
Vaquier had met Mabel Jones early in 1924 in Biarritz where she had gone to recover from a breakdown. Surprisingly, he spoke no English and she spoke no French, so they conducted their affair through the medium of a dictionary. When Mabel returned to Byfleet, Vaquier followed and took up residence in the Blue Anchor: he said that he planned to market a new sausage-making machine he had patented. On the morning of 29 March Alfred Jones came downstairs and took his habitual glass of Bromo-Seltzer
as a hangover remedy from a bottle in the bar parlour, where Vaquier had already been sitting for some time. Jones immediately became ill and died shortly afterwards. His doctor carried out a post-mortem and strychnine was found in the body and in the bottle. A second post-mortem was carried out by Sir Bernard Spilsbury
.
Vaquier was arrested three weeks later and a chemist in London identified him as the customer who had bought 0.12 grams of strychnine, signing the poisons book as "Wanker".
The trial took place in July 1924 at Guildford
Assizes
before Mr Justice Avory
, with Sir Patrick Hastings
as Attorney General
(who traditionally prosecuted in person in poisoning cases) and Sir Edward Marshall Hall for the prosecution; Vaquier was defended by Henry Curtis Bennett. He was found guilty and hanged by Robert Baxter
.
French people
The French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...
inventor and murderer.
He was tried for the murder of Alfred George Poynter Jones, landlord of the Blue Anchor pub in Byfleet
Byfleet
Byfleet is an inland island village forming a suburb of Woking in Surrey, England. It is in the east of the borough between the River Wey and the River Mole, and is within the M25 motorway....
, the husband of his mistress Mabel Jones, by poisoning him with strychnine
Strychnine
Strychnine is a highly toxic , colorless crystalline alkaloid used as a pesticide, particularly for killing small vertebrates such as birds and rodents. Strychnine causes muscular convulsions and eventually death through asphyxia or sheer exhaustion...
.
Vaquier had met Mabel Jones early in 1924 in Biarritz where she had gone to recover from a breakdown. Surprisingly, he spoke no English and she spoke no French, so they conducted their affair through the medium of a dictionary. When Mabel returned to Byfleet, Vaquier followed and took up residence in the Blue Anchor: he said that he planned to market a new sausage-making machine he had patented. On the morning of 29 March Alfred Jones came downstairs and took his habitual glass of Bromo-Seltzer
Bromo-Seltzer
Bromo-Seltzer , is an antacid used to relieve pain occurring together with heartburn, upset stomach, or acid indigestion. Originally produced by inventor Isaac E...
as a hangover remedy from a bottle in the bar parlour, where Vaquier had already been sitting for some time. Jones immediately became ill and died shortly afterwards. His doctor carried out a post-mortem and strychnine was found in the body and in the bottle. A second post-mortem was carried out by Sir Bernard Spilsbury
Bernard Spilsbury
Sir Bernard Henry Spilsbury was an English pathologist. His cases include Hawley Harvey Crippen, the Seddon case and Major Armstrong poisonings, the "brides in the bath" murders by George Joseph Smith, Louis Voisin, Jean-Pierre Vaquier, the Crumbles murders, Norman Thorne, Donald Merrett, the...
.
Vaquier was arrested three weeks later and a chemist in London identified him as the customer who had bought 0.12 grams of strychnine, signing the poisons book as "Wanker".
The trial took place in July 1924 at Guildford
Guildford
Guildford is the county town of Surrey. England, as well as the seat for the borough of Guildford and the administrative headquarters of the South East England region...
Assizes
Assizes
Assize or Assizes may refer to:Assize or Assizes may refer to:Assize or Assizes may refer to::;in common law countries :::*assizes , an obsolete judicial inquest...
before Mr Justice Avory
Horace Avory
Sir Horace Edmund Avory was an English criminal lawyer, jurist and Privy Counsellor.-Biography:He was the son of Henry Avory, clerk of the Central Criminal Court. He was educated at King's College London, and Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, where he was captain of boats and took the degree of...
, with Sir Patrick Hastings
Patrick Hastings
Sir Patrick Gardiner Hastings KC was a British barrister and politician noted for his long and highly successful career as a barrister and his short stint as Attorney General. He was educated at Charterhouse School until 1896, when his family moved to continental Europe...
as Attorney General
Attorney General for England and Wales
Her Majesty's Attorney General for England and Wales, usually known simply as the Attorney General, is one of the Law Officers of the Crown. Along with the subordinate Solicitor General for England and Wales, the Attorney General serves as the chief legal adviser of the Crown and its government in...
(who traditionally prosecuted in person in poisoning cases) and Sir Edward Marshall Hall for the prosecution; Vaquier was defended by Henry Curtis Bennett. He was found guilty and hanged by Robert Baxter
Robert Baxter (executioner)
Robert Orridge Baxter was an English executioner from Hertfordshire. His career lasted from 1915 to 1935, during which he carried out 44 hangings and assisted at 53 others.-Career:...
.