Sandra Rivett

On the evening of November 7, 1974, Sandra Rivett, the 29-year-old nanny employed by the estranged Countess of Lucan, was bludgeoned to death in the basement of 46 Lower Belgrave Street in London's affluent Belgravia district. Her body was found stuffed inside a canvas mailbag. Lady Lucan, who had gone downstairs to investigate when Sandra did not return with tea, was also attacked but managed to escape to a nearby pub, where she burst in screaming that her husband had murdered the nanny.

Richard John Bingham, 7th Earl of Lucan—known as Lord Lucan—was a 39-year-old professional gambler who had been embroiled in a bitter custody battle with his wife. The prevailing theory is that Lucan had intended to murder his wife but killed Sandra by mistake in the darkened basement, as the nanny had unexpectedly changed her usual night off. After Lady Lucan's escape, Lucan drove to the home of friends in Sussex, where he wrote letters describing a 'terrible catastrophe' and claiming he had interrupted an attack on his wife.

Lucan then vanished. His car was found abandoned at the port of Newhaven on the Sussex coast, with bloodstains from both Sandra Rivett and Lady Lucan inside. An inquest jury in 1975 named Lucan as Sandra Rivett's murderer—the last time a British coroner's jury was permitted to name a suspect. Reported sightings of Lucan poured in from locations around the world for decades, including Africa, South America, India, and New Zealand, but none were confirmed.

Lord Lucan was officially declared dead by the High Court in 1999, though no body has ever been found. In 2016, a death certificate was finally issued. The case remains one of Britain's most enduring mysteries, with theories ranging from suicide by drowning in the English Channel to a lifetime spent hiding abroad with the help of wealthy friends.