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The Killer Who Disolved His Victims in Acid: John George Haigh | The MurderousMinds Podcast

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Our journey into the shadows continues as we delve into Hay's criminal activities and the disturbing details of his killing spree. From his deceptive strategies to his bizarre confessions, we expose the horrifying truth of his deeds. Did you know his first victim was William McSwann and his final one Olive de Randeekon? We explore his horrific modus operandi, his obsession with acid, and the disturbing confessions he made to make himself seem insane. This episode is not for the faint-hearted, so buckle up and prepare for a spine-chilling ride into the life and crimes of John George Hay.

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Thank you for tuning in to MurderousMinds, the chilling true crime podcast that delves deep into the darkest minds. Join us as we explore the captivating stories of notorious killers, analyze their motives, and unravel the mysteries behind their heinous acts. Stay connected with us on Patreon for updates, bonus content, and behind-the-scenes insights. Remember, listener discretion is advised.

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Welcome to Murderous Minds, a documentary series started by the Top 5's YouTube channel back in 2018, dedicated to exploring the twisted minds of serial killers. The following podcast episode is the audio version of our video series over on the Top 5's Patreon page. If you would like to watch the video instead of just listening, and would also like to support our show, then please head on over to Patreon using the link in the show notes. Thank you for joining, and now let's take a journey into the minds of murderers. When police searched the workshop of John Hay in the spring of 1949, they weren't sure what they would find A gambler with a lengthy criminal history, including charges of theft and fraud. Many saw Hay as a conman, but nobody saw him as a killer. Still, his warehouse contained all sorts of incriminating evidence, from human remains to paperwork connecting him to a string of victims. Hay was promptly arrested for his heinous crimes, which earned him the name the Acid Bath Killer. But who exactly was John Hay, and what led him to commit these horrendous acts of violence? In this episode of Murderous Minds, we aim to shed light on these questions and more, as we explore the life and crimes of John Hay Early Life.

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John George Hay was born on July 24th 1909, in Stamford, lincolnshire, england. Before Hay's birth, his father, john Robert Hay, worked as a mechanical engineer and was employed by the Sheffield Corporation Electrical Supply Department. Both John and his wife, emily, were members of the Plymouth Brethren, a conservative Protestant sect, and while still in Sheffield they had found that a successful Sunday school. After the summer of 1902, they moved to Stamford where John continued to work as an engineer, taking a position as the station superintendent at the Stamford and Grantham Works. By all accounts, john was a dedicated and hard-working individual. In 1909, after 11 years of marriage, emily gave birth to her and John's only child, hay, was born at home. And when he was just a few years old his family relocated again. This time they settled in a five-roomed house at 112 Ledger Lane located in Outwood, a small mining community in Yorkshire which in 1921 consisted of less than 10,000 residents. John maintained an engineering position until his retirement in 1935.

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During Hay's childhood, his father was employed at Loft House, collery, while his mother was a homemaker. While the family weren't rich by any means, they were comfortably off. The five-room home was described as a nice, big terraced house and a comfortable house. Still, hay's mother later stated that she believed her son became a murderous criminal because when he was born, she was dealing with stress due to poverty. In his will, which he penned in 1949, john Hay described his parents as loving but noted that his background was abnormal writing. Though my parents were kind and loving, I had none of the joys or companionship which small children usually have. From my earliest days my recollection is of my father saying Do not, or though shall not, any form of sport or light entertainment was found upon and regarded as not edifying. There was only an always condemnation and prohibition. He also noted that the Protestant sect his parents belonged to emphasised their religious beliefs above all else, adding it is true to say that I was nurtured on Bible stories closely concerned with sacrifice. In later years, following his capture for his many crimes, hay would use his strict religious upbringing as his defence and were claimed that he suffered religious nightmares in his childhood.

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The family's religious commuter held his father, john, in high regard. He was often chosen to respond to complaints about troublesome members and use as the group's spokesperson when disciplinary action was necessary. Both Hay's mother and father spent much of their lives believing they were above the neighbourhood because of their position in the community. Emily later stated we used to despise the people in the village because we thought we were God's elect. Hay said of his father it was a sin to be content with this world, and there were constant reminders of its corruptness and evil. So great, in fact, was my father's desire to separate himself and his family from the evil world that he built a great wall around our garden so that no one could look in. The aforementioned garden fence was between six and eight feet high. Hay's father also had a small blue scar on his forehead, its shape similar to a distorted cross. Hay recalled that John told him this is the brand of Satan. I have sinned and Satan has punished me. If you ever sin, satan will mark you with a blue pencil. Likewise, as a child, hay often lay awake, worried that one morning he would wake up with a scar like his father's. During this same conversation, john described Emily as an angel, with Hay stating. My dismay was acute when at school this story was received with scorn. I soon dropped the idea that I must be an extraordinary person to be the child of an angel and the one man who had sinned. I have nevertheless always cherished, in a less literal sense the thoughts of my mother as an angel.

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Hay's exposure to the secular world, at least as a child, was heavily controlled by his parents. When he began reading Treasure Island in school, his father complained to the headmaster. When his peers began to talk about the things they heard on the radio, his father told him that the wireless was an instrument of the devil. And when Hay asked his father why he didn't read a newspaper, he was told it's a thing of the world. There is not time enough to read the Bible.

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It was unclear whether Hay actively liked his childhood or whether he simply suffered the hand he'd been dealt. His father had his own opinion, noting John was brought up in a strict religious atmosphere and he accepted it with delight. He loved to be among God's people, notably when he was aged between 10 and 11,. Hay began leaving home at 5am to make the three mile walk to Wakefield Cathedral where he sang in the choir. The reverend at the time described Hay as slightly beyond control in a mischievous way. Hay also reportedly became a talented pianist at some point during his childhood and developed a taste for classical music. His participation in the Cathedral Choir allowed him to attend Queen Elizabeth Grammar School in Wakefield on his scholarship. Biographers, however, have noted the conflict that this caused Hay to experience, as the views of the school teachers did not align with those of his parents, with Hay noting that. The disquieting thing was that it appeared possible to produce two equally satisfactory interpretations of the same text, which was right.

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During his childhood, hay had few friends. Instead, he sought companionship in animals, writing in 1949, dogs have always been my friends. He would share his own food with starving strays and kept pet rabbits. John described his son as a good boy and right up to the time he left home he never misbehaved. He had very good health and there was nothing wrong with him mentally. He got on very well with other boys, but I think he was too generous. This short description of Hay is a far cry from the man he would become. One journalist in 1949 wrote that to his parents he was without blemish. One thing is certain he did not know young George or what he was thinking.

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Meanwhile, members of Hay's community all recalled him differently when described him as a bully who would harm children smaller than him and stressed that he was never reprimanded because his father held a senior position in the colliery and might be able to have the complainant fired. Another man who previously attended choir with Hay described him as unreliable, adding he liked playing jokes on people but always had to have the last laugh. Another fellow student remembered the time Hay stole his blazer and threw it onto a railway track, where Hay chillingly told him there is an express coming and it will run you over and cut you into little pieces and there will be blood all over the place. Further reports of Hay during his childhood were no more flattering. One individual noted that he enjoyed spitting on passengers from the upcoming deck of the trams he used to get to school and that he exposed himself to school bills. He was also known to steal from shops and struggled to fit in with boys age. He never played football or joined in games as he didn't like anything rough and was afraid of being hurt.

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Much like reports of his social life, descriptions of Hay's academic efforts varied. In 1925 he won the school prize for geography and in 1926 he received the victor of Wakefield's prize for divinity after penning a 27 page essay titled St Peter as he appears in the Gospel and the Acts of the Apostles. He was also part of the science club and seemed to do rather well in this field. However, early on in his school career, hay began to forge school reports in his record books, imitating his schoolmaster's handwriting, and he was sometimes met with capital punishment for misbehaving. He either didn't take or didn't pass the equivalent of his GCSEs, with many of his teachers describing him as a bright individual who was not consistent or hard-working enough to succeed in school.

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In December of 1926, hay left school aged 17. He began to take on various short-lived jobs, eventually becoming a clerk in the educational department at the Wakefield Council. He was described here as a very satisfactory employee, but left the job after a year. Between July 1928 and April 1931, he worked at a garage and although he passed his probation period, he was described as unreliable as he was often late to work. His boss described him as lazy, but noted that he had charm and I had to like him. He left his job and began working as a salesman, where a colleague described him as having friendly manners, an excellent sense of humour and was not in the least insane, but noted that he had no social life.

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While Hay showed no interest in drugs, alcohol or even smoking, he was a promiscuous young man who, according to his own words, spent six years living a free and loose sex life. At one point he became embroiled in a divorce case when he was named as having an affair with a married woman, though the case was eventually dismissed. Unfortunately, hay went off sex and women in general shortly afterwards, as he became afraid of catching STDs. He would later write regarding the question what do I think about sex? The answer is quite simple it should not exist. Not only is sex unimportant, but irksome. At some intervals, desire seizes the body. I hate these instincts which rob me of self-possession. I even despise the partner of this exercise. He later added that he felt artificial insemination was the best way to procreate.

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Hay's main interest during adulthood was cars. He owned three by 1935, which he kept in a garage A Ford 8, a Talbot Darroch and an Alfa Romeo. He kept the vehicles immaculate, washing them regularly and, notably, it's unclear how he was able to afford them, since cars were still new during the time. They were too expensive for most people and generally reserved for the upper class, or at least the upper middle class. Biographers speculate that Hay resorted to fraud and embezzlement to acquire the funds needed to secure such lavish purchases. His desire for a more luxurious lifestyle didn't go unnoticed by his colleagues, who believed money was the root of his impending troubles. They allege that Hay originally planned to start legitimate businesses but ended up participating in fraud so that he could garner the money to fund them. He then realised it was easier to simply gather money via fraud, without even setting up the businesses. Hay was so charming and competent that most people didn't realise they were being fooled until it was too late. This led to him continuing his crime rather than attempting to make an honest living Around.

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This time, hay left the faith he had adopted while attending grammar school and reconnected with one which his parents practised. According to biographer Jonathan Oates, hay saw the clergy as worldly ambitious, politically minded and more interesting in earthly power and privileges than truth and forgiveness. But for all his opinions on his former beliefs, hay was, as previously described, known to indulge. He liked fancy cars, flashy clothing and the backdrop of the busy city of Leeds. He had grand ambitions, believing he would do better than his parents. He wanted everything they didn't have and felt he could achieve this as he had had a better education. But despite his beliefs and goals, hay continued to struggle to get what he wanted, as he maintained employment in low income jobs and had very little social life.

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Hay's Criminal Life. On July 6th 1934, hay surprisingly married. He had a short courtship with Patrice Hammer, and their ceremony took place at the Bride LinkedIn Registry Office. The pair are believed to have met in Leeds, where she worked, and Hay lied to her about his job, describing himself as a company director, even though he was a car salesman. At the time of their marriage, it was recorded that Beatrice was unemployed. She was just two years younger than Hay and came from a non-religious working class background. She left school as soon as possible and worked long, grueling shifts in various minimum wage jobs to help support herself and her family. Though Beatrice had ambitions to be something more, she struggled to reach her goals. Hayes' father described her way of life as being entirely different from ours, likely referencing her non-religious upbringing. The marriage fell apart after just a few months and Beatrice never spoke of it again once the couple split up. Haye, for his part, once mentioned the union to a prison doctor following his arrest. The doctor described the marriage as having not being done out of love but so that Haye could escape his parents, whom he was still living with.

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The main reason the union broke down was Hayes' criminal activities. In 1934, he began insuring signs, breaking them in transit and pocketing the money afterwards. He lost his job at the insurance company after the contents of a cash box vanished, although his father paid what was missing, allowing Haye to avoid criminal charges. Roughly one week before his wedding, haye then forged documents which defrauded the merchantile union guarantee company of Hull out of £420, the modern-day equivalent of over £38,000. A month later, in August 1934, he did a similar thing, which earned Haye a further £120, just over £10,000 today. Haye attempted to steal from other companies two more times during this period, but was unsuccessful in extracting money and ended up being caught.

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Beatrice recalled that just two months into their marriage, haye was taken away by three policemen At the station. She saw her husband behind bars and when asked about what he'd done, haye laughed and told her oh, it's nothing at all darling, I've only broken the 11th commandment. Thou shall not be found out. In reality, haye, along with two accomplices, had tried to defraud motor credit services, a finance company, and he had failed. When they were discovered by a solicitor who alerted the police, haye was sentenced to 15 months in prison.

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Despite his criminal behaviour, though, his parents were still in contact with him. They would write him letters and send him flowers, his salmate noting that he would often cower and cringe and seem genuinely afraid of these damning letters, which were often penned by his father. Though his parents remained supportive of him, haye was removed from his religion. The community wanted nothing to do with him. On May 26th 1935, beatrice gave birth to the couple's first and only child, a girl named Pauline Mary Haye. While in prison, haye made no provisions for his family and Beatrice struggled to raise the baby, eventually giving her up for adoption. There is no evidence that Haye tried to trace or reach out to his daughter and the pair never met.

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Upon his release, after 12 months behind bars, haye and Beatrice split up and he subsequently moved to London. Here he was initially employed at Walham Green Amusement Arcade. Beginning in February 1937, he convinced William Mux One, the owner of the arcade, to implement jukeboxes and hire young women to persuade young men to spend their money at the venue. The pair built a steady relationship, even meeting one another's parents. But Haye felt that he was not making enough money and began plotting. Pretending to be a solicitor named William Cato Adamson, with offices in London, surrey and Sussex, haye sold fraudulent stock shares that were allegedly from the estate of deceased clients and offered the shares at a low price. The plan was soon discovered, though, and in November of 1937, haye was approached by the police, where he claimed to simply be Adamson's clerk and knew nothing of the scheme. However, the authorities searched his room shortly afterwards and discovered incriminating paperwork, which led to Haye being arrested once more, charged with fraud and sentenced to prison. He was given four years for his crime.

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Haye's Obsession with Asset. Haye's stretch in prison was different. This time around there was a shift in the young man that saw him inwardly, move away from fraud alone and moved towards violent crime. He became interested in discussing murder, specifically using acid to have the body simply disappear. He once said to another inmate who could tell that a murder had been done. If a person completely disappeared, only the murderer would know, and if he kept his mouth shut he would be safe. He also discussed acid with another inmate who described Haye as a very embittered man who talked mainly of his release and the disposal of humans. Haye reportedly said without a body they could never do anything about a murder. Haye never explained why acid became part of his crimes. Some biographers have theorised that he had read the book Bulldog Drummond, which features a corpse being dissolved in acid. Others speculate that his interest in science had led him to this point, while it has also been proposed that he was inspired by French serial slayer George Alexandre Scarrett, who disposed of his victims' bodies in acid and was executed in 1934.

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Haye was released from prison in 1943, aged 34, after which he began working for an engineering firm. Throughout his time in jail, he had kept on good terms with William McSwann, the arcade owner who had employed Haye. After his last stint behind bars, he discovered that William was collecting money for his parents, who owned several properties which they rented out, and he grew jealous of this way of life and began plotting his demise, making sure to buy the acid he needed before carrying out the deed, the Murders. William was last seen on September 9th 1944. He was supposed to be away for the weekend but never returned home. Following his arrest in 1949, haye told investigators that on the day of the disappearance he met William in the basement of 79 Gloucester Road and hit him on the head with a lead pipe. William died within five minutes and Haye, realising how disgusted he was by the corpse, decided to leave the body where it was Not. With a shed of regret, he went back home, returning the next day and placing the body in a 180-litre drum filled with concentrated sulfuric acid, noting that the fumes choked him to the point that he frequently had to step outside for air Days later he returned to the basement to find that the body had mostly dissolved in the acid and he poured the sludge-like remains down the drain. Haye had already stripped the body of any and all valuables long before placing William's corpse in the acid-filled drum. Upon seeing William's mother and father, he explained that their son had left to avoid being drafted into the war and subsequently penned several letters where he pretended to be their child. William's parents believed the letters were real and found nothing that would cause them suspicion. Meanwhile, haye began emptying his former friend's bank account, removing a total of around £19,230 in today's money.

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Haye is considered an unusual serial killer. He never explained what led him to begin killing, but his only motive seems to be financial, which is very odd. In all of the cases we've explored in these documentaries, the reason killers act is often down to hatred, power, sex control or to perpetrate a cycle of abuse. Very rarely do we see serial slayers taking lives simply to boost their personal wealth. Haye's next victims were, tragically, the McSwans, william's parents, donald and Amy, who were becoming increasingly concerned about their son's safety, especially as World War II was coming to an end and nobody had heard from him.

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Haye would later tell investigators that on July 2nd 1945, he lured the couple to the basement floor of the Gloucester Road property, informing them that their son had returned from Scotland and was waiting for them In the basement. He hit the couple over the head and disposed of their bodies as he had done with Williams previously. Afterwards he took a document that was allegedly from William to a solicitor. The article gave him power of attorney over his former friend's properties, stocks, funds and shares. He sold several of the properties but kept some so that he could continue to collect rent from the tenants After letting them know that the McSwans had left the city by writing them letters and forging signatures. One tenant, mrs Curtin, initially didn't believe him and refused to send him any money. It wasn't until Hay made a personal visit to her and showed her fabricated evidence, likely consisting of fake documents, that she believed him. Hay got incredibly lucky at this time, as not only did she believe him, but she thought nothing of the fact that he had the Russian books of William and his parents.

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By 1947, hay had the modern-day equivalent of over £280,000 in his bank account. This tremendous amount of wealth allowed him to indulge as he had always wanted to. One of the first things he did with his newly accumulated money was buy himself a new car Armed with a new vehicle. Hay knew he could travel further away to commit his crimes and dispose of any items he didn't need from his victims. Notably, nobody ever reported the McSwans as missing people. William was a godfather but didn't seem to be missed, while his mother wrote frequently to her brother, but he believed he might have offended his siblings in his writings and didn't consider that something untoward may have happened to her. When she stopped sending him letters, the family had no further close friends or relatives that might be missing them, and at the end of the war people often came and went without warning. This allowed Hay to get away with his crimes with ease, at least for now.

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Hay began to tout himself as a businessman. After gaining more financial stability, he impressed another businessman with supposed inventions which never came to fruition, causing Hay to have to pay the band back. After numerous written threats, he proposed other inventions to an engineering company, but while the company was interested, they needed Hay to make adjustments, which he never carried out. Still, he continued with the facade, even having letterheads and business cards made to give him a more professional appearance. As none of his business ventures had led to any substantial amounts of money, though, hay soon realised that he would need to pick out some new victims. In August of 1947, he had no more than £2,400 in his bank account in today's money, and that was simply not enough to sustain his lifestyle.

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Archibald and Rosalind Henderson met Hay when they were selling their property at 22 Ladbrook Square. Hay knew he didn't have the means to purchase the home, but used it as a way to introduce himself to the wealthy couple. The three began to see each other regularly, with Rosalind inviting Hay to their home so that he could play the piano for them. Hay recalled finding the couple interesting and amusing, and we went about a good deal together. However, he also added, but we were never great friends. I never had any great affection for any of my eventual victims, though, nor did I think they greatly trusted or respected me.

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On December 22nd 1947, hay began preparing for his next murders. Early in the month he had produced Archibald's old service revolver and a gas mask, both of which he'd found in their rooms above a store they owned. The couple was last seen alive on February 12th 1948. Hay later told investigators that he took Archibald to Crawley, where he had a rented workshop on Leopold Road. He shot Archibald with his own revolver and then placed him in a tank of acid. He then returned to Brighton to collect Rosalind, claiming that her husband was ill and she needed to attend to him. Again, rosalind was shot with the revolver, placed in a tank and submerged in acid. Before placing the bodies in with the chemicals, though, hay of course made sure to rob the couple of their valuables and while handling the acid, used a gas mask. He had learned from his previous endeavors that this was the best way to protect himself against the fumes. As there was no drain in his workshop, hay disposed of the remains by pouring the sludge on a pile of rubble at the back of the property, unbothered that one of Archibald's feet had not fully dissolved. Following this, hay settled the pair's hotel bill, removed their luggage and took their dog After sowing off their most valuable items. He rid himself of the luggage and kept the dog for a short period of time before submitting him to a cell.

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Like with William McSwann, hay attempted to throw off suspicions by pretending to be Rosalie and writing to her brother, who lived in Manchester and whom she kept in frequent contact with. Hay then forged documents which convinced the couple shop cleaner that he was to take possession of the shop on Doors Road and their car in return for a loan he had given them. The cleaner provided Hay with the keys and he again wrote letters from the couple to the cleaner to make it seem as if they were alive and were simply out of town. He eventually penned letters which said the couple had gone to South Africa, as Archibald had spoken of emigrating there.

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Arnold Berlin, Rosalie's brother, was more persistent than the relatives and friends of his other victims had been Giving the siblings closeness. He had doubt about Hay's story. He had heard of Hay numerous times from Rosalie and Archibald and didn't trust him once telling Rosalie not to enter into any dealings with him because he seemed a bit too smooth for me. Arnold first learned of his sister's disappearance after calling the shop, where the cleaner informed him that the pair were simply gone. Arnold then called Hay, who assured him that he had no idea where Rosalie and Archibald were, but that he was looking after the shop for them until they returned. Hay eventually convinced Arnold that the couple were in hiding after becoming mixed up in something morally and legally dubious. He even penned a letter to him from Rosalie, which Arnold was rather persuaded by, and although he remained suspicious of Hay and believed he had some sort of link to his sister, he never asked that an official police investigation be opened.

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Hay's final victim, despite coming into the modern day equivalent of hundreds of thousands of pounds by committing murder by 1949, hay was going broke Between mounting debt and a tireless gambling habit. He was struggling to keep himself afloat, but Hay could see a way out. Henrietta Helen Olivia Robarts de Randeekon, better known as Olive de Randeekon, was a 69 year old wealthy widow who lived in the same hotel as Hay. Using his charm and salesman like tactics, he was able to worm his way into Olive's good graces, selling her goods and touting himself as an inventor and businessman. In February 1949, Hay purchased all the equipment he would need for his next kill. On the 18th he invited Olive to his Leopold Road Workshop, claiming he wanted to discuss her idea of artificial fingernails. Once there, he shot Olive in the back of the head, removed her fur coat and expensive jewellery and placed her in a tank which he filled with acid.

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Unlike Hay's other victims, though, the elderly widow had friends who worried about her. One such companion notified the police of her disappearance and a description of the missing woman was circulated, her story appearing in newspapers just days later. Several of Olive's loved ones pointed to Hay, noting that they found him suspicious and dislikable, especially as the widow had told them that she was meeting him on the day of her disappearance. Upon interviewing hotel staff where both Hay and Olive were staying, they discovered that while Hay was a respectable man, he sometimes fell behind on his bills. This led investigations to take a look at his criminal record, which further heightened the suspicions of the police, who now believe Olive was already dead. A description of the widow's jewellery and fur coat was circulating among the police.

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Hay was soon interviewed by the authorities, giving his first of five statements in regards to Olive's disappearance. He then sold her valuables and divvied up the money between some of the people he owed. After a second statement, the police remained wary of Hay and decided, on February 26th to investigate his workshop. Inside, investigators found all sorts of notable pieces of evidence three acid car boys, a stirrup pump, a rubber apron, rubber gloves and a revolver. Upon further inspection of the area, they also discovered a dry cleaning receipt for a fur coat matching the description of Olive's, as well as the McSwans ration books, the Henderson's passports and the identity cards for each of his victims. Further certifying law enforcement suspicions was the puddle of sludge discovered at the back of the property. A pathologist named Keith Simpson revealed that it contained 26 pounds of human body fat, part of a human foot from Archibald Henderson, human gallstones and part of a denture which belonged to Olive, as noted by her dentist. At Hay's subsequent trial the End of Hay In custody Hay confessed that nothing remained of Olive Durandekin as he had destroyed her body with acid.

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He also claimed that money was not the motive for his slayings, but that he had a need to drink human blood. He alleged that before dumping their bodies in acid, he would slit the throats of his victims and collect a glass of blood which he would drink before disposing of the bodies. It has been suggested that Hay told this story to make him seem insane, as he had queried earlier what the odds were that somebody would be released from the high security psychiatric facility, broadmoor Hospital. Still, newspapers at the time ran with this information, with a daily mirror dubbing and the evening news dubbing Hay the Vampire Killer. Hay went on to admit to the slayings of the McSwans and the Henderson's, as well as three other people a young man named Max, a girl from Eastbourne and a woman from Hammersmith. However, there is no evidence that these last three individuals ever existed and Hay kept descriptions of the alleged victims very vague. Additionally, no evidence of these supposed victims was found in Hay's workshop, despite the fact that he retained some kind of belongings for each victim, be it their identity cards or something else. It has been theorised that Hay claimed to have more victims, either to boost his own ego, to make him more notable to the public or to make him appear insane so that he could be sent to Broadmoor.

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During Hay's trial, which began on July 16th 1949, and was held at the county hall in Luz, he pleaded insanity and repeated his claim that he had killed only to satisfy his need to drink the blood of his victims. He claimed his dreams were dominated by the substance, even as a child, and that in 1944, when he was involved in a car accident, these dreams began haunting him once more. The dreams consisted of Hay walking through a forest of crucifixes, which turned into trees, and then blood began to drop from the branches. The Attorney General, sir Hartley Shawcross, urged the jury to reject Hay's defence of insanity, stating that the murders were premeditated. Meanwhile Hay's defence, led by Sir David Maxwell Fife, called several witnesses to discuss Hay's mental health, including Sir Henry Yellowlees, a psychiatrist, who believed Hay was suffering from paranoia. He also alleged that the killer's strict religious upbringing had had an impact on how he had developed, claiming that in carrying out what he saw in his dreams, hay was carrying out the will of a higher authority. Hay remained unfazed throughout the trial. He reportedly believed that he would not be found guilty as his victims' bodies were not recovered, at least not fully. But to his surprise, he was found guilty by the jury after just minutes of deliberation and was sentenced to death as punishment.

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On July 19th 1949, just days after his trial began, hay arrived at Wadsworth Prison as loose prison, no longer carried out executions. His date of death was set for August 10th. He continued to exchange letters with his parents up until he was hanged. They never lost their love for their son, even after discovering what horrible things he had done. Following his death, hay's possessions were sent to his parents, including a pair of 9-carat gold cufflinks. His father wrote to the prison staff thanking them for taking care of his son.

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Even after death, hay continued to lie and prop himself up as a legitimate man. He penned a 72-page memoir, part of which were edited and published by the News of the World. As part of his preface, the paper wrote there is little doubt that Hay is a man of near-genius, writer, inventor, poet, musician, and possessing a flair for finance which, had it developed upon legitimate lines, would have made him a millionaire before he was 40. For his part, hay painted himself in a way that he hoped would please the public and vindicate himself in their eyes. He played up his love for animals, leaving out the fact that he had originally used mice when experimenting with sulfuric acid, and claimed that, for his friends, there was nothing I could ever do other than good. In his writings before his death, hay claimed to have been controlled by a superior force and that he was a passive object at the mercy of forces outside itself. He didn't believe that the murders he carried out were conscious actions, but it seemed that he did this to keep any fragment of guilt or regret at bay. It eased his conscience to say that it hadn't really been him who had harmed his victims.

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Hay is described as a merciless killer as he never showed remorse for his victims. But, as Stafford Somerfield of the News of the World noted, he was also described as a chorister, a lover of nature and, to his friends, gentle, kind and thoughtful. Stafford finished with, in short, a contradiction in terms, baffling, intriguing, yet frightening enigma. Even today, hay's crimes are difficult to understand. Unlike many of his other murderous counterparts, he didn't seek power or revenge, only wealth. More modern psychiatrists have offered up their own possible diagnosis of the acid bath killer that he was a psychopath With a lack of remorse, compulsive lying and selfish ways. It seemed entirely possible that Hay was nothing more, nothing less. That he was propelled to kill by nothing more than his own unbridled greed seems less of a stretch when we consider this potential diagnosis. He cared little for the other people inhabiting the same world as him, and even less that his actions would one day lead to his very own demise. This has been Murderous Minds. Stay safe and we'll see you in the next video.