The Beans Meet Their Match
Although the Bean clan ate the flesh of their victims, they still had to dispose of the remains. As a result, the local authorities were alerted to multiple discoveries of body parts, decayed flesh, and bones that washed up on the shore. Despite an enormous search to find the rest of the victims’ bodies or locate their murderers, the authorities came up short. By the time Bean’s sons reached adulthood, the clan was able to murder up to six people at a time and bring their remains back to the cave.
At this stage, it appeared as if the Bean clan’s murderous spree would never end, but one night, they picked the wrong target. There was a fair taking place nearby, and the gang knew there would be lots of easy pickings. They attacked a couple on horseback and pulled the woman to the ground. The unfortunate victim was stripped and disemboweled with grisly precision, and it seemed certain that her husband was next.
Despite the despair of witnessing the death of his wife, the man fought back valiantly and was able to hold the gang at bay for a short period. The commotion from the fight was heard by a group of up to 20 people who were also on their way home from the fair. The Sawney Bean clan initially held their ground but soon realized they were outnumbered and fled back to their cave. For the first time, they left witnesses alive; it would be their undoing.
Capture & Mass Execution
The man who escaped the Beans met with the Chief Magistrate of Glasgow and told him his story. The magistrate knew the perpetrators were responsible for scores of deaths and brought the matter to the King of Scotland, who was probably James VI at that time. He ordered a huge search of the Ayrshire coast, but initially, his men found nothing. That is until the bloodhounds picked up the scent of decaying human flesh near a waterlogged cave.
It was the beginning of the end for the Sawney Bean clan because the king’s troops entered the cave when they had the opportunity and carefully walked through the twisting passage to the lair of the cannibals. They were aghast at what they saw; dozens of body parts and human limbs hung up like butcher shop meat, as well as clothes, jewelry and other possessions of the clan’s victims.
The Bean clan were shocked by the arrival of the troops, and while they tried to fight their way to freedom, the troops outnumbered them, and soon, the cannibals were under arrest. The king marched them to Edinburgh and rather than receiving a fair trial, all 48 members of the Sawney Bean clan were sentenced to death. The 27 men were the first to die; their arms and legs were cut off, and they bled to death. The 21 women were burned at the stake like witches. The entire story is almost certainly fiction, but it could be based on a real cannibal from 14th century Scotland.