Cheshire Police have admitted they are no closer to discovering why a mother was found murdered in her car 35 years ago. Veronica Anderson, also known as Vera, was described by people who knew her as a "fun-loving" woman.
The 42-year-old ran a business supplying sandwiches to offices in Widnes with her daughter Lorraine. But on August 25 1991, Vera was found slumped over the front seats of her blue X-reg Ford Cortina off Tannery Lane in the Penketh area of Warrington. Her neck had been sliced open.
Final movements
Vera had left her home in Hadfield Close, Widnes, at 10.10pm the evening before her body was found, after asking her neighbour Ethel Dix to watch her young son because she "had an appointment".
At the time, Cheshire Police said Vera went out after she received a phone call, and left her TV switched on, suggesting she believed she would only be gone a short time. Not long after 3am the next morning, a man out looking for a group of teenage car thieves saw Vera's car and made the chilling discovery.
Reports from the time state a Home Office pathologist estimated the time of death as being between 11.30pm and 2.30am. The pathologist also stated the severity of the wound to her neck meant Vera would have died almost instantly.
Investigation clues
Following an inch-by-inch search of the scene, no murder weapon was found, but a white 'Minette' cotton glove was recovered, stained with blood. This was later confirmed to be Vera's blood. Cheshire Police also said at the time that they were "reasonably certain" a length of cord found in Tannery Lane had been in the killer's possession.
The case featured in an episode of Crimewatch later that year. But despite the publicity, an e-fit of a suspect being released and theories that the killer may have been a long distance lorry driver, the investigation hit a stalemate.
Vera was, by all accounts, well-liked and police could not establish who would have a motive to harm her. Her daughter Lorraine previously said: "She was a really nice person. She got on with everybody. She would never hurt anybody."
"She only really started going out in later life when she was about 40, she started going to the Roll Inn. She was not really a drinker, she would go out for social reasons. She was seeing one truck driver who had plans to move in with her. She was obviously fond of him. She knew a lot of the regular drivers that were going to the Roll Inn.
"When she left my brother's dad she got her own house and was very independent. She did it up herself. She didn't have much money but she did things the right way. My brother was only seven when he lost his mum and it hit him very hard. When I speak to him about mum he goes quiet."
Renewed hope and unanswered questions
There was renewed hope of a breakthrough in March 2022, when a 70-year-old man from Widnes and a 61-year-old woman from Warrington were arrested. However, a Cheshire Police spokesperson told the ECHO this week that they were both eliminated from the investigation in 2023.
Witnesses also reported that they saw a woman matching Vera's description speaking to a man in the Crown and Cushion Pub, in Penketh, between 10.30pm and 11pm that night. But the Manchester Evening News reported in 2025 that doubts have been raised around whether the woman in the pub really was Vera, as that night she was believed to have left the house in a hurry wearing flip-flops - and friends said she would never have been seen in the pub dressed this way.
The report also revealed that police recovered a cartridge from a blank firing handgun from the footwell of Vera's car. When the ECHO asked if it's believed the woman in the pub is not Vera, a police spokesperson said they "cannot confirm either way".
When asked if the gun was fired to frighten Vera or stop her from fleeing, a spokesperson said: "Whilst police recovered what is believed to be a casing from a starter pistol during the searches, we cannot say if this was related to the murder, or the intention of its use."
Another potential clue is a brown hatchback car which was spotted at about 11.15pm coming out of the service road of the old tannery works at speed. It almost crashed into another car being driven along Tannery Lane. The spokesperson told us: "The vehicle has never been traced and remains part of the enquiry". When asked if police were any closer to establishing a motive for Vera's murder, they said no.
In 2025, a Channel 4 documentary about the case explored a theory that two people could have been involved in her murder, with one sitting in the front passenger seat of the car and another sitting in the back, who could have been the one who cut her throat. A number of potential suspects were discussed too - all of whom are now dead. Police declined to comment on these allegations.
Speaking generally about the case this week, the police spokesperson added: "While there have been no significant developments, the case remains under constant review. Our thoughts are with the family at this time of year."
Anyone with any information is urged to call Cheshire Police on 101, quoting occurrence number 0709373610, or visit cheshire.police.uk. Information can also be given anonymously by calling Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or visiting crimestoppers-uk.org.
