 Thurtell believed Weare had cheated him of the money.Whatever the truth, when Weare demanded payment Thurtell murdered him rather than pay up.He invited Weare to join him and his friends – Joseph Hunt, a tavern landlord, and William Probert, a former convict and alcohol merchant – for a weekend of gambling at Probert's cottage at the site of Oaks Close off Gills Hill Lane (subsequently popularly known as Murder Lane), Radlett.