"You could see the evil in his face" — a former Isle of Wight County Press reporter has recalled the day she came to face with the Yorkshire Ripper in an Island courtroom.
The death of Peter Sutcliffe from Covid-19 this week brought back memories.
Judy Marriott, of Carisbrooke, was covering the Isle of Wight Crown Court in 1983 when the case of Sutcliffe v Costello was listed.
Read more: Yorkshire Ripper dies at the age of 74
Sutcliffe was representing himself after career criminal James Costello was accused of slashing him in the hospital at HMP Parkhurst, where both were inmates.
Costello was found guilty of the attack with a broken coffee jar.
Judy recalled: "You could see the slash on his face.
There was a sense of menace about him and everyone in the court room felt it.
"I even get goosebumps thinking about it now."
Sutcliffe was transferred to the Broadmoor secure psychiatric hospital the following year.
Judy worked for the County Press on and off between the 1980s and 2016. She is now retired.
Another ex-Islander with links to the notorious serial killer is Bob Bridgestock, the former West Yorkshire detective who worked on the case.
Bob retired to the Isle of Wight and together with wife Carol, wrote a number of detective novels under the pen name RC Bridgestock. They signed many copies of the books at the County Press Shop and Waterstones.
The couple have now returned to Yorkshire and Bob told the BBC this week he wouldn't be shedding any tears.
He added that after the news of Sutcliffe's death broke, people approached him saying they felt a sense of relief.
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