"WRITING SHOWED
ALL THE TRAITS OF A MURDERER"

Courtesy: The Hull Daily Mail.

Before Craig Belcher's murder trial even began, Erik Rees had picked out some of the character traits which led him to bludgeon a young computer operator to death.

Without the benefit of details which were to come out in the four-week trial and knowing only that Belcher had been charged with murdering a woman, Mr Rees identified the killer as a dangerous, canny liar and a control freak who is a talented dissembler, capable of snapping at any moment if the routine he depends on so much in his life is disturbed.

Using a number of letters Belcher sent to the Mail from his Doncaster prison cell as his guide, Mr Rees said of Belcher:

"The writer is seen to be strongly Mother influenced.
He has powerful feelings and urges, which he cannot properly express and concealing information is normal for him.
There is a rebelliousness within him and a yearning for independence.
Very premeditated in his actions and statements, he is depressive, with a mental maturity that is hampered by emotional immaturity, causing great frustration.
Signs of perversity are evident and he will tend to do the opposite of what is expected of him.
He resents authority and will enjoy playing the helpless and hard-done-by person, who needs assistance.
A very capable deceiver, he is pleasure-loving, promiscuous and sensuous.
Preaching one thing, he will do another and have many ideas and theories without the necessary follow-through.
He will be a clever manipulator of other people."

Mr Rees went on to describe in detail how he reached his conclusions. He said:

"The first thing which strikes one on looking at Belcher's handwriting are the heavy pressures in his down strokes, such as Gs, Ps and Ys. There is an aggressive pressure to them.

"His writing also shows an excessive slant to the left, suggesting he is 'mother-oriented'. In graphological terms, a slant to the right would indicate a tendency towards his father, the future, and a more out-going personality."

Mr Rees added:

"There is also an excessive rigidity and regularity to Belcher's script. Nothing in his handwriting is exceptional but there are more negatives than positives. Usually, it is people's upbringing which produces such negative characteristics in them, many of which are emotional. I believe Belcher is an emotional cripple.

"His handwriting is extremely regular and rigid. He won't change and can't change. He needs inner security. To maintain that he needs regularity in his life. If something throws that that, it puts him out of kilter and he becomes something of a loose canon".

FOOTNOTE: Belcher was duly convicted and sentenced for murder. A spokesman said that he hoped Belcher's conviction and the knowledge that he would be in prison for a very long time - if not for the rest of his life - would help the victim's family in recovering from her death.

Erik Rees is the son of a graphologist, and has worked as a practicing graphologist himself for many years. A founder member of the Institute, he served as Chairman until 2001, as well as having served as an Examiner. His work covers a wide spectrum with his primary concern being with commercial and security matters. Find Erik Rees' contact details on his personal page here.

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