Bio

John Robinson was born in 1891 in England. He grew up in a working-class familyt can be. It inferred that his family faced financial challenges common in lower-income households at the time.

As he grew up, Robinson struggled to maintain stable employment. He eventually became an estate agent but faced significant difficulties in his professional life. His business attempts were unsuccessful, and he experienced bankruptcy. This failure likely contributed to his troubled lifestyle.

In his personal life, Robinson made drastic decisions. He had two marriages. His first wife and four children were left behind when he married again. His second wife worked at the Greyhound Hotel, where he was known to have stayed. This situation reflected his complicated personal relationships and choices.

As a young adult, Robinson lived in various places, including Kennington and Westminster. These locations were part of his life in London as he tried to manage his business and personal affairs. Throughout these years, he maintained a low profile, but his struggles became more pronounced as time went on.

Murder Story

On May 6, 1927, a man left a large black trunk at the left-luggage office of Charing Cross Station in London. After giving instructions for careful handling, he left the station in a taxi. A few days later, on May 10, an attendant noticed a foul smell coming from the trunk. Suspecting something was wrong, he called a policeman to investigate.

When the police opened the trunk, they found five parcels wrapped in brown paper and tied with string. Each parcel contained parts of a woman's body, wrapped in clothing and towels. The body was identified as Minnie Alice Bonati, a 36-year-old woman who had been a prostitute. A doctor concluded that she had died of asphyxiation about a week prior to the discovery of her body.

The police traced some items in the trunk, including a pair of knickers with a laundry tag leading to a Mrs. Holt. She confirmed the body was that of Mrs. Rolls, Bonati's alias after leaving her first husband for another man. Investigators also found a shopkeeper who recognized the trunk as one he sold to a man fitting Robinson's description. A taxi driver provided further details, saying he helped a man carry a large trunk from a building identified as Robinson's address.

John Robinson was connected to the trunk when police found a telegram addressed to him and discovered that he had married a woman while still married to another. After fleeing his lodgings, he was arrested on May 23. He initially denied involvement but confessed in a later statement that he had indeed killed Bonati and disposed of her body by cutting it up and placing it in the trunk.

During his trial at the Old Bailey, which began on July 11, 1927, Robinson's defense claimed that Bonati had attacked him, leading to her accidental death. However, the prosecution argued against this, stating that her injuries were too severe for that to be true. The medical examination revealed signs of suffocation. The jury found Robinson guilty of murder.

On July 13, 1927, he was sentenced to death. He was executed by hanging at Pentonville Prison on August 12, 1927.