Ian Murray Erskine’s death still remains a mystery to this day.
Upware is usually a sleepy village in Cambridgeshire. However, the whole county was shocked in 1990 when on Sunday, March 25, two men on the River Cam found a decomposed body wrapped in a black plastic bag floating in the water.
Dental records confirmed that these remains were of a man called Ian Murray Erskine. Ian, 44, had been working as a senior economist at the Bank of England and lived at Norland Square in Notting Hill, miles away from where he was found.
Described by his neighbours as a “very pleasant and quiet” man, Ian would frequently visit the Norland Arms pub close to his home. He often sat with a couple who were regulars at the pub.
He started to meet another man there throughout October and November of 1989. A later investigation suggested that Ian met this man through the personals in a gay magazine.
On December 13, 1989, Ian had a friend at his flat for dinner and told him he was meeting another man from the magazine. This unknown man was originally from Zimbabwe and had served in the army before moving to England.
On December 15, two days after the meeting, Ian left for work in the morning and carried out his usual day but never returned home. He disappeared for four months until his body was found miles away from London in Upware.
A police investigation was opened that revealed someone had been using Ian’s credit card and check book throughout December and had bought items including a watch, rented a car, and made several cash withdrawals. The man who had bought the items had been described as a man with a beard and a trimmed moustache.
A transaction was blocked on January 8 when someone tried to used the card to purchase a five-day return ticket to the Netherlands. The police tried to locate several people of interest in the case but were unable to find them and the murder remains unsolved.

