Never seen before personal items from a legendary Scotland Yard murder sleuth who tried to catch serial killer Peter Sutcliffe are to go under the hammer.

Artefacts from the Commander Jim Nevill's month-long secondment in West Yorkshire hunting the notorious serial killer are expected to bring £800 at auction.

They include a psychic’s impression of Bradford killer Peter Sutcliffe, photos and copy transcripts of the Wearside Jack letters that misled murder squad detectives for so long.

Nevill, who led the Yard's bomb squad at the height of the IRA campaigns of the 1970s, was drafted up to Yorkshire to help reboot the floundering investigation in 1979.

He led negotiations with Provos holed up with hostages during the Balcombe Street siege in London in 1975.

But his involvement was marred with controversy when West Yorkshire Chief Constable Ronald Gregory insisted his force did not need outside help amid severe criticism.

And despite his status as one of the Met's best cops due to his role in the 1963 Great Train Robbery, when Nevill arrived in Leeds, his advice was largely ignored.

While the press reported Nevill’s secondment was the result of a critical tv documentary, bobbies in West Yorkshire denied it.

Gregory told the press at the time that he felt Nevill “will not be able to suggest anything new” and within a month Nevill returned to London.

It took another year before cops finally unmasked the killer as lorry driver Peter Sutcliffe from Heaton - after he'd killed twice more.

Reviewing the case, Nevill suggested cops re-evaluate all suspects who had been cleared due to handwriting or a Geordie accent, a legacy of the Wearside Jack hoax.

It was later revealed West Yorkshire Police's would probably have caught Sutcliffe far earlier if the Scotland Yard man’s advice had been followed.

Jacqueline Hill’s mother, Doreen, later launched an unsuccessful £100,000 negligence claim against Yorkshire Police over the death of her daughter.

A spokesperson for John Nicholsons Auctions in Sussex, where the items will go under the hammer on January 24, said: "Against this charged and controversial background, the papers coming to auction at John Nicholson’s take on added significance.

"For instance, Nevill’s seven-page report to Gregory dated 8th January 1980, which initially appears to shore up the latter’s defence of his team’s conduct.

"The letter from the psychic describing Sutcliffe is of equal interest, if chiefly for its inaccuracy, particularly her failure to note that he had a beard while being able to describe his chin in detail."

The consignment also includes some of Nevill’s personal effects, including his warrant badge, driving licence and two presentation pewter tankards.