Liverpool true crime: The unsolved murder of Jaw Kay in 1946

One of Liverpool’s oldest unsolved murders surrounds the death of Jaw Kay and dates back to 1946.

Mr Kay emigrated from China in August 1913, and resided on Liverpool’s famous Scotland Road, however, just thirty years later, he would be found dead.

He lived by himself above his laundry at No.44 and is believed to have been stabbed to death between Friday 1 Febraury and Saturday 2 February, 1946.

Mr Kay was reportedly a well-liked man, known locally as “Joe” and had lived above his laundry for a year. He would regularly visit friends in the Chinese quarter, however, they had not seen him since the Wednesday.

Suspicions were raised when customers called to collect their laundry, only to find the store closed. One woman said she attempted to collect her belongings three times on the Friday, and a man claimed he had also tried several times.

After going to the back of the store on Saturday 2, the man found the back door open and entered the property, found some of his laundry and called the police.

Mr Kay was found in his bed with stabbed wounds, according to a Belfast Telegraph article from 1946, police described it as “a particularly savage attack”. His laundry and the rooms in his home had also been ransacked.

The doctor examining his body on Sunday 3 February, estimated his murder to be around 60 hours prior, and found multiple stab wounds on his body, including his throat and chest. In total, there were around nineteen stab wounds.

It was conluded that the cause of death was shock and haemorrhage following injuries caused by a sharp instrument.

Police reportedly attempted to trace a middle aged man who was seen leaving the laundry via the back door, however, he was never found.

Mr Kay’s murder inquest concluded on February 20, 1946 and it is still unsolved today.