Stephanie Slater, the estate agent kidnapped at knifepoint during a house viewing and then held in a coffin-like box for eight days, has died.

She was only 50 and had been diagnosed with cancer just 11 days before her death.

The case shocked the nation, and following the Suzy Lamplugh disappearance, once again drew attention to the vulnerability of estate agents on viewings.

Stephanie, then 25, worked for Shipways in Birmingham. She had only been with them for six weeks.

On January 22, 1992, she had gone to a property in Great Barr to show around a man who called himself Mr Southwall.

In reality he was Michael Sams, who had already murdered a woman.

Sams pulled a knife on Stephanie as she showed him the property. He blindfolded her and drove her to Newark, in Nottinghamshire, cramming her into the makeshift ‘coffin’ which was inside a wheelie bin.

The appointment had been Stephanie’s first of the day. By lunchtime, her colleagues were worried that she had not returned.

At 12.22pm, the phone rang and the receptionist heard a man’s voice say: “Stephanie’s been kidnapped. A ransom demand will be in the post tomorrow. If you contact police, she will die.”

Sams’ objective was to get £175,000 ransom money from Shipways.

Sams made Stephanie record the ransom demand.

Days later Shipways branch manager Kevin Watts had a call from Sams – recorded by police – which asked him if he had the money.

Watts was prepared by police to make the ransom drop, but it went wrong because a radio link did not work.

In thick fog he was made to follow a trail across the Pennines from phone box to phone box.

The actual ransom drop was exactly that: a terrified Watts was unaware that he was standing on a bridge and thought he was putting the money on the wall. Instead, it literally dropped as Sams pulled the bag down with a rope and made off with it.

Stephanie was released and the total news blackout was lifted. Her kidnapping had not been reported by any media at the request of police.

A huge manhunt was mounted and Sams was eventually caught following a Crimewatch programme.

Sams had taunted the police throughout Stephanie’s ordeal, but he made a mistake in not disguising his voice in one phone call. His voice was recognised by his ex-wife who tipped off police.

Sams had bludgeoned Julie Dart, an 18-year-old prostitute, to death with a hammer just months before he kidnapped Stephanie.

Julie had also been held in a coffin-like box. She had been made to write a ransom note to her boyfriend. When she tried to escape, he killed her with a hammer.

Stephanie felt unable to return to work as an estate agent and went to live on the Isle of Wight after her ordeal. Years later, she revealed Sams had raped her. It was never clear as to the extent to which Stephanie got her life back on track.

Writing on Twitter last Friday, her best friend said: “It took him 25 years but Michael Sams finally killed my best friend Stephanie Slater. I am heartbroken.”

Sams was given four life sentences and ten years, but no recommended term was given in court. He is now 75 and still in jail, despite speculation that he would be eligible for parole this year – something which triggered an outraged petition.

Shipways remains very much in business with ten branches in the midlands, and is now part of Sequence, a Connells Group brand. It was owned by Royal Sun Alliance at the time of the kidnap.