The mother of one of the Moors murders victims formed a friendship with the notoriously violent Kray twins.
Ann Downey, mum to Lesley Ann, who was raped and murdered on Boxing Day 1964 when she was just 10 years old, used to write to Ronnie and Reggie while they were locked up in the 1990s.
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According to Ann's son, Terry West, the London gangsters became obsessed with his sister's murder and regularly sent letters to their grieving mother.
But it was only after Ann's death in 1999 that Terry discovered the haul of letters and notes they had exchanged.
Terry, 68, told Mirror Online: "They are not the kind of letters you would expect from criminals like the Krays.
"Everyone knows how vicious the Krays could be. Maybe mum was trying to find out more about Brady in prison.
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"I'd no idea until after mum died they had been writing to one another."
The Krays had known Moors murderer Ian Brady, who was locked up on the same wing as them in HMP Durham in the late 60s and early 70s.
And Terry believes his mum was trying to find answers about her daughter's killer.
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He said: "Maybe she was trying to get information about Brady in prison, I honestly can't tell. It's funny to think of my little mum talking to these two ruffians.
"Only now do I really know the extent of the relationship.
"She only ever wanted to know more about what happened to her daughter. If they brought her comfort then I can understand why she wrote to them."
Lesley Ann was one of five young children murdered by the sadistic killers.
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Ann West died in 1999 aged 69, and had successfully campaigned to keep Brady and Hindley locked up until they died - Hindley in 2002, aged 60, and 79-year-old Brady just last year.
Though he says the letters are almost impossible to read, some of the messages sent from the Krays appear to be heartfelt and show that they had tried to meet Ann and her husband Andy.
A letter from Reggie, reads: "Thank you for your letter and I pray that you have peace of mind [and] soul."
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In a message from 1990 Ronnie wrote: "I am very sorry but I won't be able to see you in September as we arranged as I have had all my visits cut down to seven a month, but I will keep in touch from time to time. God bless."
Brady once bragged at a mental health tribunal that he was close to the Krays during his time in prison, but Terry says the East End gangsters would have turned on the child killer if they'd had the chance.
He said: "I think that was another one of his lies. Brady wanted to change the perception of himself from a paedophile serial killer to some sort of Ned Kelly gangster. He wanted to play with the big boys.
"If they had got anywhere near him you can only imagine what they would have done to him. I think they would have seriously hurt him.
"I know they were ruffians and gangsters and all of that but they didn't hurt children."
Lesley Ann's remains were found in 1965 and laid to rest near her home, though they were later moved to a secret location after being vandalised.
Brady and Hindley even wrote to Ann, gloating about the sickeningly brutal murder of her young daughter.
And more than 50 years since his sister's death, Terry says still feels guilty for having been bed-ridden with flu the day Lesley Ann was abducted.
He said: "I see the 60-something man in the mirror and the mental scars of pain look back at me.
"The pain of her death will never get easier, and I think about it every day.
"But I am happy my mum and sister are at peace together.
"I imagine them both as angels sitting in heaven - just like the angel on top of the Christmas tree."
Featured Image Credit: PATopics: UK News, Interesting