UK probes case of almost 40-year wrongful conviction

An investigation has been launched into the handling of the case against Peter Sullivan, who was wrongly convicted of murder in 1986 and later freed after spending nearly four decades in prison.

Sullivan was convicted of killing 21-year-old florist Diane Sindall in Wirral, Merseyside, and went on to serve 38 years in custody — widely regarded as the longest miscarriage of justice in British history.

Now 68, Sullivan was released only after DNA evidence identified another individual on crime scene samples in 2023, as per Sky News.

In a BBC interview last November, Sullivan alleged that police coerced his confession. He said officers threatened to charge him with “35 other rapes” if he did not admit to the killing.

“They threw a blanket over the top of me and they were hitting me on top of the blanket with the truncheons to try and get me to co-operate with them,” he said.

Following these allegations, the Independent Office for Police Conduct has opened an investigation into the conduct of police at the time of his arrest.

IOPC Director Amanda Rowe said Sullivan had been “a victim of one of the worst miscarriages of justice this country has ever seen” and expressed support as he rebuilds his life.

“In light of the significant impact this has had, as well as the severity of some of the allegations contained in the complaint, it is important for these matters to be independently investigated,” she said.

Rowe noted that the passage of nearly 40 years presents “substantial evidential challenges,” but added that efforts would be made to advance the inquiry as quickly as possible. She also stressed the need to ensure the investigation does not interfere with the ongoing probe by Merseyside Police into the murder of Sindall.

By Tamilla Hasanova