Lord Lucan accused makes statement on claims he is missing aristocrat murderer

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A pensioner accused of being missing aristocrat Lord Lucan hiding in Australia said: “If I am Lord Lucan what the f**k you going to do? Put me in prison?” The son of Sandra Rivett, the nanny murdered by Lucan, had tracked the man down.

The Mirror originally reported in 2020 that Neil Berriman was confident he discovered the legendary Lord in Brisbane. Three new BBC documentaries, which begin airing tonight, now incorporate fresh dramatic moments to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the crime that shook the world.

The Mirror also reports the feeble pensioner with a posh English accent denies being Lucan but admits to officially changing his name four times. Berriman confronted him off camera and he said the OAP told him: “If I am Lord Lucan what the f**k you going to do? Put me in prison?”

If still living, Lucan would be 89 years old. After the encounter, the mystery man agreed to do an on-the-record on-camera interview without Berriman present. He said: “On the birth certificate it says Derek Bell Crowther. I think”

When questioned, he stated he was raised in London, attended Eton, and had ties to the Royal Family. The old man said: “I grew up around London. Different places." Asked if he went to Eton he replied: “Yeah I was sent there. I went to school, but I was also thrown out.”

He added: “Part of the family was English aristocracy, Buckingham Palace.” In the past there were even reports of links to Princess Margaret.

He said: “I haven’t been on the run for 40 years - I’ve been trying to find reasonable places to live, companions and friends. I do not know who the hell Lord Lucan is... ok. Now if you’re finished I’m getting bored with this interview.”

But he insisted in a message to Berriman: “Wherever you are Neil I can assure you I am not that man, never have been, never will be.”

The building contractor from Hampshire, Berriman, was reduced to tears as he spoke about his 17 year search for his mum’s killer. His investigation led him to Australia where he believed Lucan was living as a Buddhist monk in a retreat.

But the man added: “I’m not a f**king buddhist - I’m not anything.” In a rambling interview he claimed to have worked as a window dresser in the posh London toy store Hamleys. He also strangely claimed his grandfather had been involved in launching the original Daily Mirror.

And he claimed to have been the “western incarnation of the Dalai Lama". Sandra Rivett's boyfriend at the time of her murder in 1974, John Hankin, joined Berriman in confronting the man. By coincidence, Hankin actually moved to Australia and lives near Brisbane. Although never speaking about Sandra's death, he has bonded with Berriman in recent months as they continued to mourn the death of their loved one.

When he saw the man in Queensland Hankin said immediately: “That’s Lord Lucan. I’d swear on my mother’s grave.” Hankin paid tribute to the investigative work of Berriman.

He said: “He certainly has got some of his mother’s guts. He’s a good man, he’s tenacious. I don’t think he should be a builder - he should be a bloody police officer. Sandra was a good person, a really good person. It’s important that somewhere down the track she gets a bit of justice. I was thinking about it the other night and I realised that I’m the only one who actually knew her.”

It will be 50 years tomorrow since Sandra was murdered by Lord Lucan. She gave up Berriman for adoption shortly after his birth and he only discovered his background through a letter left for him after his mum's death.

Lord Lucan fled and was never seen again after the murder. It was thought by some he committed suicide by jumping off a cross channel ferry - many others believed he escaped with the help of well-connected friends.

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Lucan was declared dead officially by the High Court in 1999, but there have been reported sightings in Australia, Ireland, Africa and New Zealand, and even claims he fled to India and lived life as a hippy called "Jungle Barry". Lucan's car was found soaked in blood and abandoned in Newhaven, East Sussex, and an inquest jury formally declared him the killer a year later.

Lord Lucan's son Lord George Bingham inherited his title in 2016 as the eighth earl after he applied for a death certificate 42 years after his father vanished, under the Presumption of Death Act. However, Berriman remains convinced “the man in Australia is Lord Lucan” and said his enquiries will continue in memory of his mum.

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