A photo of Marlow Wilson, at age 16, standing in a field behind Newleaf mental hospital.
Marlow Wilson’s first recorded act of cannibalism was in 1939 at the military camps of the English army. Soldiers reported hearing shuffling at night, and seeing empty beds in the morning.
After several disappearances, a foul smell was reported to have emerged from an old latrine hole. Once dug up, MPs found the remains of many soldiers. For some time, it was unclear if the remains were of the missing soldiers, as the dog tags were missing.
Not until a few months later were the dog tags found, hidden within the bedding of Marlow Wilson’s bunk.
1940, Wilson was given section 8 and discharged from the army to Newleaf mental asylum.
Wilson’s second recorded case of cannibalism was of an orderly in Newleaf mental asylum, 1941. Wilson managed to lure the orderly into his room by spilling his water rations on his bed, and sobbing until someone came in to clean it.
Wilson bit the orderly on the arm and neck, attempting to incapacitate them, but he was unsuccessful in overpowering them.
As punishment, he was tied up to a radiator.
Wilson’s third recorded act of cannibalism was of two other children who were tied up to the same radiator he was. Elizabeth Montgomery and Gerard Harding were attacked by Wilson during the night. Doctors reported screaming, but claimed that it was a normal thing to hear in the asylum. The morning after, an orderly returned to the radiator to find what they described as “Two piles of gore and blood, and one satisfied looking monster.”
In 1942, Wilson escaped Newleaf asylum the day the above picture was taken. A journalist from the local paper was looking to do a story on Wilson, and gained permission to lead Wilson outside without supervision. The above photo was reported to have been found in “a pile of gore and hair.”
The location and state of Marlow Wilson is currently unknown.