Robert Black (21 April 1947 – 12 January 2016) was a Scottish serial killer and paedophile who was convicted of the kidnap, rape, sexual assault and murder of four girls aged between 5 and 11 in a series of killings committed between 1981 and 1986 in the United Kingdom. <br /> <br />Black was convicted of the kidnapping, rape and murder of three girls on 19 May 1994. He was also convicted of the kidnapping of a fourth girl, and had earlier been convicted of the kidnapping and sexual assault of a fifth. He was sentenced to life imprisonment, with a recommendation that he serve a minimum of 35 years. <br /> <br />Black was further convicted of the 1981 sexual assault and murder of nine-year-old Jennifer Cardy in 2011, and at the time of his death, was about to be charged with the 1978 disappearance and murder of 13-year-old Genette Tate. Black may also have been responsible for several other unsolved child murders throughout Britain, Ireland and continental Europe between 1969 and 1987. <br /> <br />The nationwide manhunt for Black was one of the most exhaustive UK murder investigations of the 20th century. He died in prison in 2016. <br /> <br />ROBERT BLACK <br /> <br />Born 21 April 1947 <br />Grangemouth, Scotland <br /> <br />Died 12 January 2016 (aged 68) <br />HMP Maghaberry, Northern Ireland <br /> <br />Cause of death Heart attack <br /> <br />Criminal penalty Life imprisonment <br /> <br />Conviction(s) Murder <br />Kidnap <br />Preventing the lawful burial of a body <br />Sexual assault <br />Attempted kidnap <br />Killings <br />Victims 4+ <br /> <br />Span of killings <br />12 August 1981–26 March 1986 <br />Country United Kingdom <br /> <br />Date apprehended <br />14 July 1990
