The investigation into the serial killer John Cooper is the subject of new ITV drama The Pembrokeshire Murders.
It wasn’t until 25 years later that Cooper, also known as the Bullseye Killer, was sentenced for his crimes in Wales.
He was dubbed the Bullseye Killer because his appearance on the gameshow helped put him behind bars.
Cooper murdered brother and sister Richard and Helen Thomas, then burned their house down on December 22, 1985.
Then, on June 29, 1989, he robbed Peter Dixon and his wife Gwenda, before shooting them at point blank range.
The serial killer famously evaded capture for around two decades, but was finally convicted using the most advanced forensic techniques at the time.
Where is John Cooper now?
John Cooper was finally convicted in 2011 (Image: ITV)
John Cooper, now 76, is still behind bars is an undisclosed prison.
He was sentenced to 14 years in prison for burglary and robbery in 1998, but was released in 2009.
Cooper was suspected of the murders, but spent years at large due to the lack of evidence linking him to the crimes.
It wasn’t until 2011 after a cold case review that he was arrested and convicted of two double murders dating back to the 1980s.
John Cooper was found guilty of two double murders (Image: PA)
Detectives got hold of archive footage from the Bullseye show, which is when they managed to freeze a frame where Cooper was standing in exactly the same position as an artist’s impression of the wanted killer.
The similarity of the sketch from the time of the original investigation was so similar it looked “like a tracing”.
He was also sentenced for the rape of a 16-year-old girl and the sexual assault of a 15-year-old girl.
Peter and Gwenda Dixon (left) and brother and sister Richard and Helen Thomas (right) (Image: ITV)
He was sentenced to a whole life jail term at Swansea Crown Court in May, following an eight-week trial.
Cooper tried to appeal his convictions, but he was unsuccessful, and the appeal was rejected in November 2012.
His whole life sentence means he will never be released from prison.
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
