S14 Ep11: The Killer of Leo Ross
Blood Ties Podcast
Peter Shevlin
4.4 • 668 Ratings
🗓️ 4 May 2026
⏱️ 29 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In this episode of Blood Ties, Geoffrey and Molly Wansell explore the shocking murder of 12 year old Leo Ross, killed in a seemingly random knife attack on his walk home from school in Birmingham.
They examine the disturbing profile of a 14 year old killer who had already carried out violent assaults on vulnerable strangers in the days before the crime. Drawing on court testimony and police insight, the episode unpicks questions of motive, mental health, and missed warning signs.
Geoffrey and Molly consider how such a senseless act could happen, and what it reveals about youth violence today. A deeply affecting story, this episode asks whether justice can ever match the scale of loss, and how communities are left to cope in the aftermath of tragedy.
CREDITS:
Presenters: Geoffrey and Molly Wansell
Producer: Peter Shevlin https://pod60.com/
Artwork: George Leigh
Music: Dan Wansell
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | This week on Blood Ties. |
| 0:12.0 | He'd, in fact, in the same park in Birmingham, had attacked three elderly women in the days leading up to Leo's killing. |
| 0:33.3 | One of whom he pushed in the river and she got out and he said, I to drown you and now I'm going to kill you he started hitting her with her own stick |
| 0:43.4 | and so here you have someone who was clearly on the radar of the authorities, clearly random. |
| 0:57.1 | I mean, he didn't know Leo Ross from, you know, his next door neighbour, he had no idea. |
| 1:02.1 | But what is absolutely clear is that he was looking for a victim. |
| 1:05.5 | Music Hi, I'm Molly Wonsall. |
| 1:18.6 | And I'm Geoffrey Wonsall. |
| 1:20.6 | We're a father and daughter, as those of you who listened to Blood Ties in the past will remember, |
| 1:24.6 | and we meet every week and often our conversation has turned to murder, |
| 1:29.0 | which is why we originally launched blood ties and why we've now decided to bring it back |
| 1:33.9 | in its new fresher form. |
| 1:36.2 | We're really excited to be back and we would love it if you could also check out our Patreon. |
| 1:41.2 | Just search Blood Ties on Patreon. |
| 1:43.2 | Thanks so much. |
| 1:44.0 | Thank you. Thank you. |
| 1:51.0 | Hi, everyone. |
| 1:51.9 | Welcome back to the Blood Ties podcast. |
| 1:53.6 | I'm Molly Wansall and I'm here with my father, Jeffrey Wansall. |
| 1:56.3 | Hello, everyone. |
| 1:57.1 | Welcome back to Blood Ties 2.0. |
| 1:59.4 | Thank you for listening. |
... |
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