Andrew Malkinson: Greater Manchester Police criticised over trial evidence

The condemnation of a antheral who served 17 years successful situation for a rape helium did not perpetrate was "unsafe" due to the fact that a constabulary unit failed to disclose evidence, entreaty judges person ruled.

Further to this Greater Manchester Police (GMP) did not uncover photographs to the proceedings which showed the unfortunate scratched the attacker, judges said.

Mr Malkinson said that "caused his "wrongful condemnation nightmare".

Following the ruling, helium added that helium felt "vindicated by the court's uncovering that [GMP] unlawfully withheld evidence".

GMP has been contacted by the BBC for a response.

Mr Malkinson was jailed successful 2004 for an onslaught connected a pistillate successful Salford.

The constabulary grounds which was not disclosed astatine his proceedings included photographs of the victim's hands which showed the fingernail of the rape victim's near mediate digit was noticeably shorter than her different fingernails, which corroborated her grounds that she scratched her attacker's face.

In his judgement, Lord Justice Holroyde said the nonaccomplishment to disclose the photographs had "prevented the appellant from putting his lawsuit guardant successful its champion airy and strengthened the prosecution lawsuit against him".

Mr Malkinson's defence squad was truthful incapable to item to the assemblage that helium had nary specified scratch wounded to his face.

Lord Justice Holroyde said: "If the photographs had been disclosed, the jury's verdicts whitethorn person been different".

In his judgement, it was besides noted that 2 eyewitnesses who identified Mr Malkinson had convictions for dishonesty offences.

Lord Justice Holroyde said if the erstwhile convictions had been disclosed during the proceedings it "would person been susceptible of casting uncertainty connected their wide honesty and susceptible of affecting the jury's presumption arsenic to whether they were civic-minded persons doing their champion to assist."

He added: "In our judgement, the situation to the quality and credibility of those 2 identifying witnesses would person been susceptible of affecting the jury's wide presumption arsenic to whether they could beryllium definite that the appellant was correctly identified."

Following the ruling, Mr Malkinson said helium felt "vindicated by the court's uncovering that Greater Manchester Police unlawfully withheld evidence, denying maine a just proceedings and causing my wrongful condemnation nightmare".

He added: "The grounds needed to overturn my condemnation has been sitting successful constabulary files for the past 2 decades.

"Yet the [Criminal Cases Review Commission] did not fuss to look and it fell to the tiny foundation Appeal to bring it to light."

He said that outgo him "extra years down bars for a transgression I did not commit".

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