Farmer attacked by man 24 hours before three killings, inquests told
Alexander Lewis-Ranwell confronted John Ellis, armed with a long stick and saw, at his small holding
A farmer has described being attacked by a man, just 24 hours before he went on to kill three other people.
Alexander Lewis-Ranwell confronted John Ellis, armed with a long stick and saw, at his small holding, after letting out his animals.
Mr Ellis, who is in his eighties, suffered cuts and bruises, as he defended himself, during the attack on the morning of February 9 2019 near Barnstaple.
Devon Coroner’s Court heard that hours earlier, Lewis-Ranwell, now 35, had been released from custody, after being charged with burglary.
He was arrested for a second time, for attacking Mr Ellis, but released again the following day, when he went on to kill three men in their Exeter homes.
Inquests are now taking place into the deaths of Anthony Payne, 80, who was killed with a hammer, and twins Roger and Dick Carter, 84, who were fatally injured with a shovel.
Mr Ellis told the hearing, at County Hall, in Exeter, he was attacked by Lewis-Ranwell, after his wife, Maureen, caught him interfering with livestock on their smallholding.
Before the attack, he spoke with Lewis-Ranwell, who asked him if he was a paedophile and whether his front door was open.
“He hit me with a stick, on my left side and I told him at that time to F-off. I shouted to Maureen, ‘Get the police, we’ve got trouble here’,” Mr Ellis said.
“The saw was in a big arc coming towards me, I shot my arm up to stop it hitting my head. The saw struck my arm, but at the same time, I reeled off to my right-hand side, to kind of lessen the blow.
“I ran back to home. I had three cuts in my arm where the teeth of the saw, the edge of the saw, hit my arm. But at least I was still alive.”
Mr Ellis said that after getting behind his garden gate, Lewis-Ranwell tried hitting him with the stick.
The jury also heard the 999 call, a visibly-distressed Mrs Ellis made.
Mr Ellis takes over the call and tells the operator Lewis-Ranwell is “mental”.
“He’s gone crazy. For Christ’s sake, get out here. He’s mad. He’s completely mad. He’s not resident, not local. I’ve never seen him before,” Mr Ellis tells them.
“He’s going to kill somebody. He’s just attacked me again. My God, this man’s really dangerous, I tell you.
“He’s just completely mad, this man. He’s mental.”
Mr Ellis said the next day, the police phoned him to say Lewis-Ranwell had been released from custody.
“She said we’ve had to let him go. I said ‘what? He tried to kill me’,” he said.
On February 11, he was informed Lewis-Ranwell had been arrested for a third time and later that week learned of the deaths of Mr Payne and the Carter brothers.
Asked about his reaction, he replied: “Probably relief, but great sorrow for what had happened in Exeter.
“I felt so bad afterwards, I felt guilty almost, that I let him get away. If I’d had a decent stick, then he wouldn’t have got away and nobody would have been hurt.”
Earlier, the inquests heard from Chief Inspector Zoe Parnell, who had been the custody sergeant, who released Lewis-Ranwell hours before Mr Ellis was attacked.
Ms Parnell told the hearing she had read the custody logs and knew of Lewis-Ranwell’s past mental health history and some of his poor behaviour while in detention, including urinating into a cup and threatening to punch a solicitor.
“I would say probably reading that, a general member of the public might be shocked by that,” she said.
“But as a police officer, you have a different threshold of what’s normal, in terms of acceptable and unacceptable behaviour.
“It’s not uncommon to have detainees threatening to punch solicitors.”
Ms Parnell said Lewis-Ranwell’s demeanour changed during the night and he was “calm and compliant” with officers.
His mother, Jill Lewis-Ranwell, had phoned the station shortly before Ms Parnell’s shift started, expressing her concerns about her son being released.
Ms Parnell later phoned her, to say her son was being released and going to a night shelter in Barnstaple.
“I recall her conveying her concerns about her son, I recall her mentioning that these were the hallmarks of his mental health deteriorating, I recall her being very worried about his release,” she said.
The court heard that this conversation was not recorded in the custody log, meaning that when it was later reviewed by the force medical examiner, following Lewis-Ranwell’s second arrest there was no record of it.
Ms Parnell described this as an “anomaly” and added: “It should have been recorded.
“I would say that I was doing my job properly, but perhaps I should have recorded the phone call.”
Andrew O’Connor KC, counsel to the inquest, asked: “Did you consider the possibility that this was another psychotic episode that was happening?”
“He did not present to me as having a psychotic episode,” she replied.
“I’d looked at the custody record and I’d noted that he had been seen by the healthcare and the mental health practitioner.
“Neither had raised any concerns. That would help inform me upon release.
“The entirety of my shift, he was able to understand a conversation. He was compliant. He was lucid and therefore, in my view, I felt comfortable in releasing him.”
The inquests continue.