Detectives investigating the linked murders of a teenager and a bunny girl are appealing for information to catch the killer on the 40th anniversary of one of the attacks.

Schoolgirl Lynne Weedon was walking to her home in Hounslow after a night out with friends on September 3, 1975, when she was raped and murdered.

Police believe the 16-year-old’s killer had stalked her as she walked from the A4, Great West Road, into an alleyway called The Short Hedges at about 11.20pm.

She was hit with a blunt instrument and thrown over a fence into the grounds of an electricity sub-station where she was raped.

Lynne was found by a school caretaker who lived nearby and despite her horrific injuries, was alive when police and paramedics arrived.

She was taken to West Middlesex Hospital but never regained consciousness and died a week later on September 10, 1975.

A single blow to the head was recorded as her cause of death as her skull had been smashed with a heavy, blunt instrument which was never found.

In 2006, the schoolgirl’s killing was linked to the death of bunny girl Eve Stratford, 21, who was murdered six months earlier, after the same DNA was found on both victims.

Ms Stratford, who worked at London’s Playboy club, was found with her throat slashed from ear to ear in her home in Leyton, east London, on the evening of March 18, 1975.

She was last seen alive walking alone in the snow near her home in Lyndhurst Drive at about 4pm and half an hour later, a neighbour heard male and female voices in her flat before a loud thud noise.

Ms Stratford’s body was found by her boyfriend with a nylon stocking tied around one ankle and her hands bound with a scarf and eight to 12 cuts to her neck.

There was no sign of forced entry into her home and no weapon was ever recovered.

Both murders remain unsolved despite extensive investigations and in April this year, a £40,000 reward was offered to bring the killer to justice.

Detective Chief Inspector Noel McHugh, from the Homicide and Major Crime Command, said: “An extraordinary amount of time has passed since Lynne and Eve were murdered, and I am still confident that someone out there has information which could lead us to the killer.

“One phone call to the incident room could be all that it takes to bring two bereaved families closer to some closure or justice.

“I urge you to examine your conscience and if you are wavering on making that call, think of Eve’s family who have now passed away and Lynne’s parents who are in their 80s and have endured 40 dreadful years not knowing who murdered their daughter.

“Perhaps the person who killed Lynne and Eve confided in you? Please do not keep their secret for a day longer and come forward.”

Detectives said it is likely the suspect is now in his 60s or 70s, may have known the Hounslow area and the motive for both attacks was sexual.

Anyone with information should call the incident room on 020 8785 8099 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.