Author Topic: The Clydach Murders - Miscarriage of Justice or right person convicted?  (Read 4262 times)

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Offline CountryCat

I remember these shocking Murders happening and the subsequent news coverage but over the years it had slipped from my mind. I recently was recommended  a book to read by a friend as they knew about my interest in true crime and it has Piqued my interest in the case.

Mandy power and her family were beaten to death at their home in South Wales in 1999 before the house being set on fire. In a case full of twists and turns it became apparent that Mandy had a lesbian lover who was a married policewoman. Her lovers husband and his twin brother were also policemen and initially they were all arrested but eventually a local man David Morris was convicted as it became apparent he was also having an affair with Mandy. The conviction centred on the finding of his gold chain in the house despite no DNA evidence linked to Morris being found.

It’s a very interesting case, Morris has always protested his innocence and the new book does seem to cast doubt on the conviction. Fascinating to read, there’s lots online to read about the case, you can then make your own mind up!


https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07P6ZJR75/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1


https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/free-dai-morris-clydach-murders-17345351

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/the-clydach-murder-mystery-281708.html

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2845510/Who-REALLY-murdered-married-WPC-s-lesbian-lover.html



Offline barrier

Re: The Clydach Murders - Miscarriage of Justice or right person convicted?
« Reply #1 on: January 01, 2020, 10:17:58 AM »
I remember these shocking Murders happening and the subsequent news coverage but over the years it had slipped from my mind. I recently was recommended  a book to read by a friend as they knew about my interest in true crime and it has Piqued my interest in the case.

Mandy power and her family were beaten to death at their home in South Wales in 1999 before the house being set on fire. In a case full of twists and turns it became apparent that Mandy had a lesbian lover who was a married policewoman. Her lovers husband and his twin brother were also policemen and initially they were all arrested but eventually a local man David Morris was convicted as it became apparent he was also having an affair with Mandy. The conviction centred on the finding of his gold chain in the house despite no DNA evidence linked to Morris being found.

It’s a very interesting case, Morris has always protested his innocence and the new book does seem to cast doubt on the conviction. Fascinating to read, there’s lots online to read about the case, you can then make your own mind up!


https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07P6ZJR75/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1


https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/free-dai-morris-clydach-murders-17345351

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/the-clydach-murder-mystery-281708.html

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2845510/Who-REALLY-murdered-married-WPC-s-lesbian-lover.html


Very interesting,thanks for bringing it up.
This is my own private domicile and I shall not be harassed, biatch:Jesse Pinkman Character.

Offline mrswah

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Re: The Clydach Murders - Miscarriage of Justice or right person convicted?
« Reply #2 on: January 01, 2020, 05:40:36 PM »
There is lots of stuff regarding this case on You Tube------I need to get around to watching some of it!

Offline Nicholas

Re: The Clydach Murders - Miscarriage of Justice or right person convicted?
« Reply #3 on: October 17, 2020, 09:59:30 PM »
According to a ‘Mr G Young’ who wrote a comment in May 2020 on Amazon re Michael O’Briens book ‘The death of justice’
here https://www.amazon.co.uk/Michael-OBrien-Death-Justice-Innocent/dp/B00NBG3MXW

Referring to O’Brien
He is now actively involved in the case of Dai Morris another person wrongly convicted of murders that SW serving police officers at the time were accused of. As a result of this his car has twice been vandalised but this only makes him stronger
« Last Edit: October 17, 2020, 10:06:00 PM by Nicholas »
Who wants to take on this great massive lie?” Writer Martin Preib on the tsunami of innocence fraud sweeping our nation

Offline Nicholas

Re: The Clydach Murders - Miscarriage of Justice or right person convicted?
« Reply #4 on: October 17, 2020, 11:05:16 PM »
March 2013 - The monster who murdered our family'

THE brutal murder of a family of four rocked the close-knit Swansea Valley community of Clydach to its core.

The murders of Mandy Power, 34, daughters Katie, 10, Emily, eight, and grandmother Doris Dawson, 80, in June 1999, sparked the biggest murder hunt in modern Welsh criminal history.

It took 21 months for police to arrest builder and former scrap metal dealer David Morris. He was found guilty of the crimes, but his convictions were quashed on appeal in May 2005 and a retrial was ordered.

And seven years after firefighters discovered the bodies in the home at Kelvin Road, Morris was unanimously found guilty of their murder.

Members of the victims' family sobbed uncontrollably as the jury delivered the unanimous verdicts after almost 20 hours of deliberation at Newport Crown Court.

Morris, smartly dressed in a light grey suit, stood immobile and apparently emotionless as the verdicts were delivered.

High Court Judge Mr Justice McKinnone then gave Morris four mandatory life sentences, to run concurrently.

He told Morris that "early release provisions should not apply to you because in my judgment you should not be released early.

"Life should mean life and you should never be released."

The judge's comments followed a 15-minute summary of the case which graphically detailed the savage brutality of the murders.

The judge spoke of Morris' "sadistic motivation" in the murder of the two children Katie and Emily.

He also told Morris, "It is clear that the motivation for the murder of the three vulnerable people must have been to defeat justice."

The judge had earlier detailed how Morris had attacked Mandy Power, who is believed to have been the first of Morris' four victims.

He told Morris it would probably never be known exactly what his motivation had been for the attack, whether it was a rebuffed attempt to have sex with the mother-of-two, or to find out why his own partner had apparently been called a "slapper".

The judge said that it was not known exactly what happened during the initial attack, but it may well have been that Mrs Powers' daughters had carried the pole - which became the murder weapon - to their mother themselves so she could defend herself.

Morris then turned it on her to fatal effect and later used it on the two vulnerable children and the grandmother.

The judge outlined in graphic detail the savage injuries which each family member carried as a result of the attack.

He said that Mandy Powers' face was smashed in 10 places and she had sustained at least 10 blows.

Her daughter Emily had had her skull smashed into 20 pieces, her sister Katie had head injuries and the pole used in the attack had been pulled through her fractures. Their grandmother sustained fractures to her face.

On the steps of Newport Crown Court the family of Mandy Power raised their hands in jubilation at yesterday's verdict.

Her sister Sandra Jones said justice had been done.

"David Morris can rot in hell," said an emotional Mrs Jones.

"Nobody will ever know how much we've gone through. Hopefully we can now go forward."

But the family of Morris were still insisting that he was innocent.

His sister Debbie said, "We will fight this every step of the way. He has no chance in Wales, and he is up against the police."

Morris' father Brian added, "One thing's for sure he will never get a fair trial in Wales."

Lifelong friends of Mandy Power were pleased with the jury's verdict.

Susan Felstad, 40, of Clydach, said, "It's fantastic. The verdict has never been in any doubt in our minds."

Julie Noble, another friend of Mandy Power, said, "I'm just glad it's over for the family. They shouldn't have had to go through with it twice."

A statement read on behalf of the Power family said, "The last seven years have been a living nightmare for us and have not been helped by the poster campaigns and petitions by Morris' family claiming him to be innocent.

"Two guilty verdicts say it all. Anyone who has sat in that courtroom listening to lie after lie, and not just from Morris, will know that he's the evil monster who brutally murdered our family. Throughout this trial we have had to sit and listen to the lies about Mandy and hear her name and character being dragged through the mud. The hardest part was not being able to stand up and defend her. Our only consolation is knowing that everyone who knew the real Mandy knows what a kind, generous and loving person she was, not the uncaring, good-time party animal she was portrayed as by David Morris and his team."

People in Clydach are still concerned that David Morris was not arrested until 21 months after the murders, even though they suggested his name as a suspect within days.

Around a week after the murders at Kelvin Road, Clydach, local people were even calling the tattooed 40-year-old "Dai the Murderer".

And they had handed the 50-strong murder squad a dossier containing 20 "coincidences" which they believed should have placed Morris as the prime suspect.

The dossier pointed out how Morris had lost his distinctive gold chain, a key piece of evidence which eventually helped secure his conviction.

It also pointed to his record of violence, including an iron-bar attack on a neighbour, Karl Wassell, two years before the murders.

In a chilling echo of what was to come at Kelvin Road, Mr Wassell's home at Craigcefnparc was broken into by Morris, who smashed his head so hard with the iron bar he needed 66 stitches. Pieces from his broken skull had to be taken from his brain by surgeons at Morriston Hospital.

A Crown court trial was scheduled over the incident but witnesses did not want to testify.

The dossier given to police also referred to scratches seen on Morris' face the day after the Power killings.

But police told them, "We have our prime suspects", and spent 21 months wrongly focusing on Mandy Power's lesbian lover Alison Lewis and her husband, South Wales Police Sergeant Stephen Lewis.

Craigcefnparc councillor Ioan Richard said, "It is not a question of being right or wrong but what matters is that we were eventually proved right and we spent 21 months with a man who was effectively a mass-murderer in our midst."

Morris was given an alibi by his girlfriend Mandy Jewell and it was only by chance he came back under the police spotlight.

An off-duty policewoman in the Orange House pub in Swansea's city centre bumped into Morris's cousin, who casually mentioned that Morris had "been there" on the night of the infamous killings.

Morris was brought in for questioning and paint from his home was later found beneath bloodstains on his chain found at the murder scene.

The lesbian lover of murdered Mandy Power, who was initially arrested on suspicion of murder, yesterday described her relief that justice had finally been done.

Alison Lewis, pictured, 39, a former policewoman, was arrested a year after the Clydach killings.

But although later released, and now cleared of any involvement in the murders, she said she still feels surrounded by suspicion. Following yesterday's guilty verdicts at Newport Crown Court, she said, "David Morris is a violent thug. I hate him with every bone in my body."

But she said she was relieved that justice had been done and that he will "spend the rest of his life being punished for what he did".

She said, "It was the right verdict. David Morris has put everybody through so much. Hopefully, now Mandy's family and myself can get on with rebuilding our lives. The memory of Mandy Power will live on and will never be forgotten."

She added, "I used to feel bitter at being arrested for the murders, but I'm now fully supportive of South Wales Police and the CPS."

Former policewoman Ms Lewis and her former husband Stephen, then an acting inspector with South Wales Police, were arrested on suspicion of murder a year after the bodies of Ms Power and her family were discovered.

Stephen's brother Stuart Lewis, a police inspector, was also arrested on suspicion of perverting the course of justice.

All three were questioned for four days before being released without charge. Both Ms Lewis and her ex-husband strenuously denied playing any part in the deaths.

In a press conference following the retrial, police detective Chris Coutts said the arrest of Alison, Stephen and Stuart Lewis had been a "false trail".

But yesterday Ms Lewis said she still felt surrounded by suspicion. She said, "I think it is because I was arrested.

"I went from being Mandy Power's gay lover, to being a suspect, to being arrested and being interviewed to being put on bail for six months. I can understand people, because of the way it has been handled, perhaps having doubt over certain aspects of the case. But then I think that is just because the case has been handled badly."

Yesterday she also hit back at the announcement by Morris' family that they would fight the conviction "every step of the way".

She said, "How many juries need to find this man guilty before they believe he is a cold-blooded murderer? I am just glad justice has been done."



https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/the-monster-who-murdered-family-2321705
« Last Edit: October 19, 2020, 08:05:56 AM by Nicholas »
Who wants to take on this great massive lie?” Writer Martin Preib on the tsunami of innocence fraud sweeping our nation

Offline Nicholas

Re: The Clydach Murders - Miscarriage of Justice or right person convicted?
« Reply #5 on: October 17, 2020, 11:21:09 PM »
Morris has always protested his innocencel

So has Jeremy Bamber
Who wants to take on this great massive lie?” Writer Martin Preib on the tsunami of innocence fraud sweeping our nation

Offline Nicholas

Who wants to take on this great massive lie?” Writer Martin Preib on the tsunami of innocence fraud sweeping our nation

Offline Nicholas

Re: The Clydach Murders - Miscarriage of Justice or right person convicted?
« Reply #7 on: October 17, 2020, 11:45:13 PM »
According to a ‘Mr G Young’ who wrote a comment in May 2020 on Amazon re Michael O’Briens book ‘The death of justice’
here https://www.amazon.co.uk/Michael-OBrien-Death-Justice-Innocent/dp/B00NBG3MXW

Referring to O’Brien
He is now actively involved in the case of Dai Morris another person wrongly convicted of murders that SW serving police officers at the time were accused of. As a result of this his car has twice been vandalised but this only makes him stronger

by Satish Sekar © Satish Sekar January 19th 2009

The Long Wait for Justice

For more than twenty-one years Michael O’Brien has waited for an apology. South Wales Police intend to keep him waiting, despite paying half a million pounds to O’Brien and one of his co-defendant’s Ellis Sherwood to keep allegations of bad faith from being aired in court more than two years ago. Despite writing a book, several media appearances, reopened investigations and legal action, he is still waiting.

The decision to abolish the discretionary scheme for compensation and cap the amount awarded to the wrongly convicted may actually result in more civil actions being brought against police, eradicating the proposed savings. This case alone is likely to have cost the public around £1m.

It was re-opened in September 2003 after a cold case review. The murderer(s) of Phillip Saunders have not been brought to justice, nor are we any closer to discovering what went wrong in the original investigation.

Responsibilities

O’Brien has received no apology and the force has not admitted liability. It has been more than five years since the case was re-opened, yet there has been no breakthrough. It appears that attention was actually focused on the original defendants despite compelling evidence of their innocence.

During the re-opened investigation people close to O’Brien and Sherwood were arrested, but later released without charge. Over five years after the case was re-opened the perpetrator(s) remain at large.

Credible Evidence?

On October 12th 1987 Phillip Saunders was viciously attacked and robbed outside his home in Anstee Road, Cardiff. He died five days later. O’Brien, Sherwood and Darren Hall were subsequently convicted of his murder. There was no credible evidence against them. Their convictions were quashed in 2000 after a year on bail pending their appeal.

After the historic settlement of the legal action by O’Brien and Sherwood, Deputy Chief Constable David Francis said, “Over a period of six years we [South Wales Police] have consistently maintained our position that the officers who worked on the inquiry into the murder of Phillip Saunders did so in good faith and the Force was not liable for malicious prosecution or misfeasance”.

Violations

The Newsagent’s Three, as they came to be known, were referred back to the appeal court in 1998 by the Criminal Cases Review Commission. Detective Superintendent Alan Partridge, then of Thames Valley Police, reviewed police conduct in this case. He found 115 violations of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act. This included handcuffing all of the defendants to radiators.

“Presumably, Mr Francis, police lawyers and the Police Authority believe that handcuffing us to radiators is a sign of good faith”, said O’Brien. “They used criminals against us, threatened our witnesses with prosecution and dropped serious charges against known criminals to get evidence against us. And then they used prison informers and a police officer with a history of overhearing confessions that hadn’t been made”.

Unnecessary Burden

Francis claims that the action was settled in order to avoid unnecessary expense to the public. To date he has failed to explain why it was necessary to run up legal fees for six years including fighting all the way to the House of Lords O’Brien’s attempts to adduce evidence about that officer, who claimed to have overheard incriminating admissions in the cell area of Canton Police Station between O’Brien and Sherwood.

A then Detective Sergeant Stuart Lewis had a history of overhearing so-called confessions in the that area. Five years before the arrest of the Newsagent’s Three, Robert Griffiths – one of the defendants in the Cardiff Explosives Conspiracy trial – was acquitted despite Lewis swearing on oath that Griffiths had confessed in the cells area. Lewis was involved in other controversial cases and was unlikely to give evidence on medical grounds.

If this investigation had been conducted in good faith and without misfeasance, why did they agree to compensate O’Brien and Sherwood and if the only reason was to save an unnecessary financial burden on the public, why did it take six years to reach this conclusion, racking up legal expenses on both sides in the process?

https://fittedin.org/fittedin/?p=696


By Satish Sekar (January 28th 2009)

Apology?

Michael O’Brien’s quest for an apology for over eleven years of wrongful imprisonment has so far been unsuccessful, but he secured the highest ever compensation to a victim of a miscarriage of justice in a civil action against the police. South Wales Police paid O’Brien and his then brother-in-law Ellis Sherwood a total of half a million pounds in 2006.

“In accordance with counsel’s advice payment into court have been made in full and final settlement of the claims by Mr. O’Brien and Mr. Sherwood without an apology”, said Deputy Chief Constable Dave Francis. “It is emphasised that this has been done without any admission of liability”.

Bad Faith

Francis went on to claim that O’Brien and Sherwood had chosen to accept the payments rather than take their allegations to court, but O’Brien says he had no choice but to accept the payment, because he faced bankruptcy if he pursued his claim and the court awarded him less than the police paid into court.

“I stand by all of my allegations against the police”, said O’Brien. “They acted in bad faith. Let them sue me if they dispute this”. OʼBrien has made no secret of his allegations of bad faith. South Wales Police and those accused, especially Lewis have never sued him.

His solicitor who helped him to bring the historic claim was unimpressed with the way the settlement had been portrayed as well. “South Wales Police are trying to depict their payment of £500,000 plus legal costs of probably the same amount again as a commercial settlement,” said Sarah Ricca. “I wonder if anyone is fooled by such a claim.”

The Newsagent’s Three have yet to receive an apology from either the police or criminal justice system. Nor is there an investigation into unlawful conduct by police officers in this case despite the conclusions of former Detective Superintendent Alan Partridge and the endorsement of the appeal court.1

Refusal

“Their refusal to apologise after all that they put me and my family through clearly shows that they refuse to accept the findings of the CCRC and appeal court”, said O’Brien. It has had a detrimental effect on the Forceʼs attempts to move on past the discredited methods of policing at that time

“I do not trust them to investigate this crime impartially any more”, OʼBrien said. “I tried to give them the benefit of the doubt, but they refuse to investigate my claims of bad faith in the original investigation, let alone allow the Crown Prosecution Service to decide whether there is sufficient evidence to prosecute any of them. Only a fully independent public inquiry can get to the truth of what happened in my case and other miscarriages of justice in South Wales”.

Consistent Critic

Since his release O’Brien has been the most vociferous critic of South Wales police over miscarriages of justice, including his own. A tireless campaigner for a public inquiry into several Welsh cases including the Cardiff Five and that of Annette Hewins, O’Brien has been a consistent thorn in their side.

Ironically an apology and an investigation into proven police malpractice in his case could have avoided the expense to the public that Francis appears so keen to avoid years ago.

Justice

“The fact that they paid such a large amount into court has nothing to do with concerns for the public purse and everything to do with the strength of the evidence against South Wales officers,” said Ricca. “There now needs to be a public inquiry into this and other cases involving South Wales police officers which raise such serious allegations of police misconduct.”

Nobody wants the murder of Phillip Saunders solved more than Michael O’Brien, so much so that he offered a reward of £50,000 for information leading to the convictions of the real murderer. All he ever wanted was justice.

https://fittedin.org/fittedin/?p=700
« Last Edit: October 17, 2020, 11:51:41 PM by Nicholas »
Who wants to take on this great massive lie?” Writer Martin Preib on the tsunami of innocence fraud sweeping our nation

Offline Nicholas

Re: The Clydach Murders - Miscarriage of Justice or right person convicted?
« Reply #8 on: October 18, 2020, 06:30:49 PM »
Clydach murders: Five years working on a ‘hopeless case‘ by Brian Thornton - Nov 2014

‘The murders in Clydach 15 years ago were almost unimaginably brutal. A disabled grandmother, a mother and her two little girls were killed with a ferocious intensity that takes the breath away.

These four people were murdered in their own home without a sound being heard by anyone. There was no shouting, no cries for help.

Doris Dawson, Mandy Power and her daughters Katie and Emily were all well known in the village and were well loved by their friends, family and neighbours. The story of the Clydach murders is one of complexity, secrets and ultimately profound sadness. Four innocent people died that night in 9 Kelvin Road, but the crime has had a deep and devastating effect on a huge number of people.

A few days ago David Morris, the man convicted of carrying out the murders, made a second application to the CCRC asking for his case to be investigated. The 52-year-old former builder is in Long Lartin serving a life sentence. Morris is as guilty – from a legal point of view – as anyone could possibly be. He’s had two trials in which both juries were satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that he was the murderer. He’s had one application to the CCRC rejected. Some of the most senior police officers in Wales (and England) have investigated the case. A legion of forensic scientists have analyzed the exhibits. A posse of eminent barristers and solicitors have worked on the documents. All have come to the conclusion that David Morris is guilty.

One very senior QC that I approached for advice in the early days of my investigation told me to give it up. ‘It’s a hopeless case, it would be much better to put your efforts in another case where you might get a result,’ he said.

To be honest, there have been many times over the past five years when I wished I’d followed his advice. The case is big – more than 300 lever arch files – and fiendishly complex. When it first arrived at Winchester University in December 2009, I was utterly defeated by the scale of it. The first few months were spent just trying to organize the files and the students. We made little or no impact in those early days and I felt completely out of my depth.

What could I – a journalism lecturer with no formal legal training – and a bunch of undergraduate journalism students do with a case that had already been checked and signed off by some of the country’s most experienced legal minds?

That stage was very demoralizing – and was made worst by the fact that I had also taken on three other cases where prisoners were also claiming they were wrongly convicted. As I tried to juggle the casework with my actual job – lecturing – the workload became almost unmanageable.

If it hadn’t been for the advice and guidance I received from people like Julie Price and Dennis Eady, of the Cardiff Law School Innocence Project and police expert Des Thomas I’d have struggled to complete the investigations. The reason casework is so hard is because there’s no guidebook, no tried and tested way to investigate a possible miscarriage of justice.

A convicted mass murderer writes to you to say he’s an innocent man, you agree to take a look at the case, 300 files arrive in a truck. What then? The past five years have been a catalogue of mistakes, disheartening dead ends and very occasional moments of revelation.

I’ve tried my best, the students have tried their best, but I do have regrets. One in particular. Our investigation took too long. This shouldn’t have taken five years, it should have taken half that. When I met David Morris in prison I told him I was sorry that the investigation had taken so long, something that he found funny – I guess because people in his position don’t get many apologies.

Despite all of this the breakthroughs did come.

Painstakingly we added each new piece of fresh evidence to the CCRC application, building it up to the 30 page document that the commission is now about to consider. David Rose’s excellent Mail on Sunday article outlined some of the key issues – but there are many worrying issues that we discovered over the last five years that are included in the application that aren’t appropriate to make public at this stage.

Francis Fitzgibbon QC and Maslen Merchant are the legal team behind the application and their dedication, creativity and skill have made all the difference. People like Francis and Maslen don’t get involved in cases like this for the money – which is good, because there is no money in cases like this. They are two rare examples of lawyers in this country who are still willing to take on ‘hopeless cases’ like this and they deserve a huge amount of credit for the work they’ve done.

I once spent a few days ringing every solicitors firm in the phone book in Hampshire looking for someone who did pro-bono work, only to be told again and again that ‘we don’t do pro bono work in Hampshire’. And Hampshire is by no means the exception.

When the CCRC is roused it can be an unstoppable force – dedicated and brave  – and we are appealing for the commission to go the extra mile in their investigation of this case.

Cases like Sam Hallam show the commission operating as it was designed to – as the miscarriage campaigners of the 80s and 90s hoped that it would. But there is also another CCRC – the CCRC that carried out the first investigation into the Victor Nealon case. A CCRC that can be lazy-minded and overly officious.

What we – David Morris, his legal team and everyone who has worked on this application – are asking, is for the CCRC to see this application for what it is, a plea for help.

We see the CCRC as a partner in this process, and with such a complex case we cannot do it alone.

But we want, and need,  the Sam Hallam CCRC – with fire in its belly and up for the fight – to seek out the truth of this case, wherever it lies.

None of us know 100% that David Morris is innocent – the fact is, we will probably never know for certain what happened in Clydach that night. But given what we know through our investigations, it is very difficult to see how any jury in full possession of the facts would now convict David Morris for these horrendous crimes.
https://www.thejusticegap.com/clydach-murders-five-years-working-hopeless-case/
« Last Edit: October 18, 2020, 06:36:08 PM by Nicholas »
Who wants to take on this great massive lie?” Writer Martin Preib on the tsunami of innocence fraud sweeping our nation

Offline Nicholas

Re: The Clydach Murders - Miscarriage of Justice or right person convicted?
« Reply #9 on: October 19, 2020, 09:07:17 AM »
‘Woman lied about night of murders‘ - July 2006

‘The girlfriend of the man accused of killing a family of four has said she lied to police about the time he came home on the night of the murders.

Mandy Jewell told Newport Crown Court she lied about David Morris' movements because she was afraid she was a suspect herself.

She had quarrelled with Mandy Power, who was killed along with her daughters and mother, earlier in the week.

Mr Morris, 44, of Craig-cefn-parc, denies murder. The trial continues.

The court heard Ms Jewell had lied to the police at first when questioned about the night of the murders in Clydach, near Swansea, and had said Mr Morris had come home to the flat they shared earlier than she thought he had.

The prosecution said by providing herself with an alibi, she had also provided Mr Morris with one.

The trial had already heard the couple had been in the pub for most of the day on 26 June 1999 but she had left about 2100 BST after they had argued.

Prosecuting, Patrick Harrington said Ms Jewell must have been worried that Mr Morris was involved in the murders for a number of reasons.

During the day, he had mentioned Mandy Power, a friend of Ms Jewell, saying he did not like her, and also he had been drinking, which made him violent.

However Ms Jewell said she had not been worried as his only real connection to Ms Power was through herself.

The court heard she did not think the police were suspicious of Mr Morris when they first came to see her.

But giving evidence, Ms Jewell's mother Mavis Lewis said her daughter had told her immediately after the first visit from police she thought they suspected David Morris.

"Why would she lie to me?" she asked.

Mr Harrington also accused Ms Jewell of lying to the police and the jury when she said there was only a small amount of violence between her and Mr Morris.

The court heard from a statement Ms Jewell had made to police before the murders accusing him of attacking her and threatening to kill her, and threatening to put a tyre over her head.

Mr Morris also threatened to burn her house down, and she had accused him of burning all her clothes, Mr Harrington said.

Ms Jewell told the court she had been livid with Mr Morris when she made the statements and withdrew the complaint.

She said: "If I thought he had anything to do with the murders I would not lie to protect him."

Ms Jewell was asked about phone conversations she had had with a friend of Mr Morris, Mark Reilly, last weekend.

The prosecution alleged she had been asked about phone calls which had been made from her flat the day before Ms Power died.

The court had heard Mr Morris claim he had slept with Mandy Power the day before the murders, during which time he had left a necklace found at the murder scene at her house.

The prosecution said phone calls had been made from the flat during the time he alleged he was with Mandy Power.

Ms Jewell was asked if Mr Reilly had asked whether she could have come home early from work that day.

She said she told Mr Reilly the same as she told the court on Thursday, that as far as she was aware, she was in work at that time.

The prosecution also asked whether hundreds of calls made by Mr Morris to her in the weeks before he gave evidence were to make sure she got her story right, but she said Mr Morris had phoned regularly since he had been on remand and that had not changed.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/5182058.stm

Who wants to take on this great massive lie?” Writer Martin Preib on the tsunami of innocence fraud sweeping our nation

Offline Nicholas

Re: The Clydach Murders - Miscarriage of Justice or right person convicted?
« Reply #10 on: October 19, 2020, 09:18:27 AM »
Sexual adventurer' among family of four killed by 'scrap dealer' - May 2006

’Three generations of one family were the victims of a "horrific multiple murder", a court heard today.
Former scrap metal dealer David Morris, 44, of Craig-cefn-parc, in the Swansea Valley, south Wales, is accused of killing a family of four.

Mandy Power, 34, children Katie, 10, and Emily, eight, and bed-ridden invalid grandmother Doris Dawson, 80, were "bludgeoned" to death by a long pole in Clydach near Swansea in June 1999.

Morris denies four separate counts of murder.

Opening Morris's retrial at Newport Crown Court today, prosecutor Patrick Harrington QC told the jury: "In the early hours of Sunday June 27, 1999, an horrific multiple murder was committed at a house in Clydach in the Swansea Valley.

"Three generations of one family were brutally put to death, we say by the defendant, who exploded into an uncontrollable rage."

The prosecutor said that the family were: "Victims of the most appalling and grotesque violence. They were each bludgeoned to death by a long pole."

He said that: "The injuries they suffered were simply awful, and led to the death of them all."

He said that in each case the attack had been focused on the head of each of the victims with such force that their skulls were smashed.

He said: "This was not merely a murder, this was a massacre."

He said that the Crown's case in the retrial of Morris would be that the defendant was "a violent thug" with a strong history of "violence towards women".

He said that Ms Power had 38 separate sites of injury. She was smashed in the face whilst in her children's bedroom and attacked again in her own bedroom before suffering her final injuries in her mother's room.

Mr Harrington said that Ms Power struggled against her attacker and in that struggle she may have inadvertently "yielded the most important clue to the killer's identity, a gold chain".

He said that the chain found in the house was thought to have been ripped from the neck of the killer during the struggle and "may be the clinching piece of evidence in this case".

Mr Harrington said the injuries inflicted on Mandy Power and her family were "horrific".

He said Ms Power was found to have a cluster of injuries behind her left ear, and her skull was stoved in with a fracture.

He said Doris Dawson's face was "crushed with blows of monumental force - her injuries were nothing short of horrific".

He said Katie suffered a massive laceration to the back of her head and the murder weapon was forcibly pushed into her brain three times.

Mr Harrington said: "Emily sustained severe facial fractures and a severe fracture of the skull. Part of her skull was found on the bedroom floor, her jaw was fractured and many teeth were knocked out.

"She suffered a number of blows after she died. Emily, let me remind you, was eight."

Mr Harrington said that after she was killed, Mandy Powers' body was defiled and the murderer stripped her naked and inserted a sex aid into her vagina.

Mr Harrington said: "Having committed four murders, what the defendant did next was to set the house on fire, with at least four sets of fire being set.

"He decided to try to attempt this to disguise the manner of the deaths by doing that, obviously hoping the fires would take hold leading to the physical destruction of the house and the evidence it contained, including the four corpses of his victims."

Mr Harrington said Morris would have succeeded had he not left behind a vital clue - his gold chain.

The court heard the fixing mechanism of the chain was already damaged before Morris went to the house, but came off during the struggle and was found covered in Mandy Powers' blood at the scene of the "most extreme violence".

Mr Harrington said that Morris was eventually compelled, in the most dramatic circumstances, to admit the chain was his.

He said: "He was seen wearing it by a number of impressive witnesses in a public house a 14-minute walk away from Kelvin Road in the hours leading up to these killings.

"In a public house when he was heard to revile Mandy Power in the clearest terms, and where he showed an obvious antipathy towards her.

"In a public house where, fuelled by drink and drugs, he set off for a murderous spree which killed four people and destroyed the lives of many others."

Mr Harrington warned the jury of six men and six women that they would be appalled, outraged and shocked by some of the evidence they would hear during the course of this trial, but he urged them to approach it without emotion.

Mr Harrington said that the "unique and complex background" of the case had led to a number of false trails, with potential evidence being obscured.

The "false finger of suspicion" was pointed at three other people, instead of Morris, the jury heard.

Mr Harrington said that suspicion pointed at a woman named Alison Lewis, Ms Power's lover, with whom she was in a "settled and loving lesbian relationship".

Former police officer Ms Lewis was an "accomplished sportswoman", representing Wales in women's rugby as well as participating in other sports.

Her husband Stephen Lewis, an acting police inspector at the time of the murders, became another suspect, the jury heard.

The third suspect was his twin brother Stuart Lewis, a serving police officer who by chance arrived at Kelvin Road when the fire was discovered.

It was clear that Ms Power was "the central victim of these crimes", said the prosecutor, and her background was "complex and in some senses unconventional".

She lived in a "happy household" and was loving and caring to her daughters and her mother.

Her social and personal life was of interest, and she had been "something of a sexual adventurer" before settling down with Ms Lewis.

Even on the day before the murders it was obvious "that she was extremely happy with her lot" and was not interested in sexual dalliance with anyone else.

Mr Harrington said that it may well have been sexual rejection of the defendant that led to her death and that of her loved ones.

Mr Harrington said it was because of these elements that the finger of suspicion had been pointed at Alison and Stephen Lewis and that suspicion for complicity in the murders had fallen on all three.

He said that in July 2000 all three were arrested. Their homes, personal possessions and workplaces were searched, their alibis checked and the most "sophisticated investigative techniques pursued".

But police finally had to accept the futility of their inquiries.

"Quite simply, they were looking at the wrong people," said Mr Harrington.

"The defendant, meanwhile, was smirking, thinking he had got away with it. He was and is wrong in that hope."

Mr Harrington said that the "trauma and ordeal" that the Lewis family had suffered as a result meant that he would repeat a public apology made on behalf of the police and the prosecution.

He said that the relationship Mandy Power and Alison Lewis had added a "frisson" of interest to the inquiries in addition to Ms Lewis's physical fitness and strength. He said that the whole inquiry had been played out under a glare of intense media interest.

Forensic evidence that appeared to link the two women had also led the police to suspect Ms Lewis.

Cellular material from Mandy Power's thigh was found to match a DNA sample volunteered by her lover and DNA material from Ms Lewis was also found on a vibrator that had been inserted into Ms Power's body after death.

"This was attractive and some thought compelling evidence that Alison Lewis had been in close proximity to the victim before her death.

"There was a flaw in this apparently logical process. Alison Lewis and Mandy Power had enjoyed steamy and protracted sex sessions together, not just one, not just two, but three and the sex aid was used as a device as part of the couple's loving relationship."

He said that any DNA material left on the vibrator was as a result of this activity.

He said that on the night of the murder Alison and Stephen Lewis were in bed together and that Stephen Lewis had left for work bright and early that morning.

He told the jury that while it may be unusual to explain the details of the police investigation in this way he had no doubt that the defence case would be pointing the finger at the Lewises.

The reason that the defendant had "not appeared on the police radar" any earlier than he did was down to the "ease and fluency with which he lied", said Mr Harrington.

One lie, about the ownership of the gold chain found covered in Ms Power's blood, he had "sustained for years right up until 2002".

Twenty-one months after the murder, the jury heard, Morris was arrested following some "loose talk" from a relative. He continued to deny that the chain belonged to him saying that he owned a neck chain but never took it off.

"He must have been pretty chuffed that he thought he had got away with lying about the chain," said Mr Harrington.

But just five days before Morris's first trial evidence was uncovered that proved the chain was his, the jury heard.

In a "brilliant" piece of detective work brick dust and paint were discovered on the chain found in Ms Power's house.

Mr Harrington said: "It is possible to reconstruct the circumstances of the killing to show what he did and probably what caused him to do it.

"At the time of the murders David Morris was living with a woman called Mandy Jewell.

"Mandy Jewell had been a close friend of Mandy Power. David Morris had never approved of that friendship and resented it.

"Things came to a head a few weeks before the murder when there was a big fall out between the two Mandys.

"From that time in particular, David Morris nursed a particularly strong antipathy towards Mandy Power.

"His emotions, just like his temper, were uncontrollable."

Mr Harrington said that although Morris hated Miss Power, in a sexually predatory way he also wanted to have a sexual relationship with her.

Morris had told police that he had intercourse with her on two separate occasions, the final time being three to four weeks before the murders, said Mr Harrington.

The jury heard when Morris went into the witness box during his first trial he changed his story to say he had sex with her on June 25, the Friday morning before she died.

Mr Harrington said there was a lot of evidence from dependable eyewitnesses who said Mandy Power was actually frightened of Morris and that she didn't actually like him.

Her dislike of Morris, coupled with the fact that she in an intense physical and emotional relationship with somebody else, would throw into doubt any suggestion she had a sexual relationship with the alleged killer, said counsel.

Mr Harrington said there would be evidence from a neighbour on Kelvin Road, called Moira George, who said she saw Mandy Power leaving her home in a car driven by Alison Lewis on the morning that Morris claimed he had sex with her.

There would also be evidence from telephone records which showed a call was made from the home of Alison Lewis to the school which Miss Power's children attended.

Mr Harrington said: "How do we know it was Mandy Power? Alison Lewis never rang the school. Alison Lewis had no connection with the school. Mandy Power did."

The jury heard that Morris had been a habitual drugs user and had taken quantities of amphetamine sulphate on three consecutive days leading up to the murders.

"He combined the substantial use of amphetamine with over a gallon of strong lager," said Mr Harrington, adding: "We say this clouded his judgment."

He said Morris was seen wearing his gold chain in the New Inn pub before the murders and expressed hostile feelings towards Mandy Power.

"Those who heard it described it as chilling," said Mr Harrington.

The court heard that Morris left the pub after 11pm and made his way to Kelvin Road which would have taken him less than a quarter of an hour.

Whether Morris got in the house before Mandy Power returned from baby-sitting, or whether she allowed him, was not known.

'Explosion of violence'

Mr Harrington said something happened that triggered "an explosion of violence" in Morris which was likely to have been spurned sexual advance.

"In a fit of controlled rage he carried out the killings," said counsel.

From forensic findings and from distribution patterns it could be established that Mandy was attacked in her own bedroom and she then fled to her mother's room where she was further attacked and struck to the ground, striking her head on a knob of furniture as she fell down, the court heard.

There was a further struggle in Doris Dawson's bedroom which resulted in Morris's chain being pulled from his neck.

Mr Harrington said Doris Dawson never left her bed and was brutally attacked.

"Possibly her last sighting in life was seeing her own daughter murdered before her eyes," he added.

Mr Harrington said Emily was attacked and killed in her bedroom and Katie was killed on the landing. The murder weapon was a pole held in a two-handed manner.

Mr Harrington said that after the murders Morris set about destroying the property and any clues by starting a fire.

Morris avoided leaving fingerprints by having white sports socks over his hands or gloves as fibres were found on an envelope, the court heard.

Mr Harrington said that before Morris left the house he went into the bathroom and showered off some of the blood which had landed on his clothes and body as a great deal of bloodstained water was detected there.

Mr Harrington added: "Shortly after 4am in the morning the fire was discovered by neighbours. Emergency services were summoned and they responded quickly.

"At first they thought it was just a house fire but the full horror gradually emerged and it led to this inquiry."

The murder inquiry was said to be the biggest in Wales.

Building a profile of the person responsible for the murders, Mr Harrington said "the killer plainly had a number of attributes".

He said: "He had a track record of explosive rage and extreme violence.

"He was a person who was forensically aware ... He was prepared to take a risk in an established relationship to seek short-term sexual gratification.

"He was a person wearing a heavy gold chain."

The jury heard the killer was known to the victims - "otherwise why kill all four?"

He said the murders were "committed by a man who would swear on his children's lives that A was B, when, in fact, X was Z".

Mr Harrington said that after his arrest, Morris said he had had sex with Ms Power in her bedroom, explaining any physical contact.

He said there was a broken gold chain on a windowsill which looked like his own "and he picked it up and handled it".

Mr Harrington added: "He said his account to the police and it is all lies. He said it very convincingly."

The prosecutor said Stephen Lewis "categorically" did not have knowledge of his wife's infidelity as Ms Power had been a "welcome guest" in the couple's home, where he had advised her on issues regarding her former husband and children.

Mr Harrington said Mandy Power came from a large, close knit family.

When she married baker Michael Power in 1986 the couple returned to the family home, also in Clydach, to live with Mandy's mother, Doris Dawson.

Mrs Dawson, a widow, had suffered a brain haemorrhage decades previously and her health was failing. But she remained "stoical" about her condition and was liked by all who knew her.

She welcomed the newly married couple into the family home and she and her daughter continued to live together until their deaths.

The couple's daughters were both born in May and Mr Harrington told the jury that last Thursday would have been Katie's 17th birthday and yesterday Emily's 15th.

But Ms Power's marriage broke down some time around 1998, said Mr Harrington, and when Michael left Mandy was "bereft".

Financial difficulties meant Ms Power, her mother and the two girls were forced to move to rented accommodation in nearby Kelvin Road.

One of the items that the owner of the house left when he rented it to Ms Power was the heavy pole that was eventually to become the murder weapon, said Mr Harrington.

He told the jury that the owner had put the pole in the second bedroom of the Kelvin Road house for his wife to use against intruders.

"The irony will not be lost on anyone," he added.

The jury was shown the pole, which weighed about a kilo. Its original purpose was unknown, they were told.

They also heard that some of the regular visitors to Kelvin Road included Ms Power's friend Mandy Jewell, who was at that time living with the defendant.

But the two fell out after Ms Power began a deception that she was suffering from cervical cancer.

Mr Harrington said Ms Power's reasons for the lie "will never be known".

David Morris in contrast, said Mr Harrington, was a man with a "volatile temper."

"David Morris is a violent man with an explosive and uncontrollable temper."

The court heard that after Mandy Power's marriage broke down she embarked on a series of brief affairs.

Among the men she started seeing was Howard Florence who was a married golfing partner of her husband.

She also had a brief fling with divorced neighbour Robert Wachowski before having a lesbian love affair with Alison Lewis.

Mr Harrington said the two met through the local women's rugby team where Miss Lewis was a player and Miss Power was a spectator.

"By the time they met Alison Lewis realised she was gay and she was attracted to Mandy Power," said Mr Harrington.

"Love blossomed between the two and it became a physical relationship very quickly.

"It made Mandy Power very happy. It became intense and loving and Mandy said she didn't want to go with a man again."

Mr Harrington said that people who knew Mandy Power well said it was "absurd" to say she would have an affair with Morris.

"What were Mandy Power's feelings to David Morris?

"She knew of his violence first-hand because he assaulted her and she knew how he treated her friend Mandy Jewell. He frequently beat her up."

Mr Harrington added: "You have to consider whether this very happy Mandy Power would want any sexual congress with him."

The prosecutor said there was an impression that Ms Power did not like Morris "and it was a mutual thing".

He listed examples of "bizarre behaviour" between Morris and Ms Jewell, including Ms Jewell's clothing being burned.

Ms Power would advise Ms Jewell to leave Morris, although, Mr Harrington admitted, Ms Jewell herself was "no shrinking violet".

Mr Harrington told jurors that they may conclude that on the night of June 26-27 "the last thing Mandy Power would want is a sexually predatory David Morris in her home".

The trial continues


https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-386734/Sexual-adventurer-family-killed-scrap-dealer.html
« Last Edit: October 19, 2020, 09:22:18 AM by Nicholas »
Who wants to take on this great massive lie?” Writer Martin Preib on the tsunami of innocence fraud sweeping our nation

Offline Nicholas

Re: The Clydach Murders - Miscarriage of Justice or right person convicted?
« Reply #11 on: October 19, 2020, 11:04:32 AM »
According to Helen Hignett - ‘Former police officer, author and justice campaigner’ - she has written for Unity News on the case

‘Unity news’ apparently being ’a group of people from all walks of life who couldn’t bear to see the bias in mainstream media any longer. So four years ago we decided to find out what was going on with actual people and report their stories directly to you.

She writes,

Imagine Being Locked Up For A Crime You Did Not Commit‘

‘That’s what happened to David ( Dai ) George Morris.


More here https://www.unitynews.co/imagine-being-locked-up-for-a-crime-you-did-not-commit/

Article on Helen Hignett here https://www.businessupnorth.co.uk/salford-born-mum-celebrates-becoming-2nd-time-best-seller-as-she-shares-behind-the-scenes-story-of-the-police/



Who wants to take on this great massive lie?” Writer Martin Preib on the tsunami of innocence fraud sweeping our nation

Offline Nicholas

Re: The Clydach Murders - Miscarriage of Justice or right person convicted?
« Reply #12 on: October 19, 2020, 01:14:41 PM »
‘Who REALLY murdered married WPC's lesbian lover? The disturbing question 12 years after man was given four life sentences amid shocking police cover-up‘ by David Rose - Nov 2014

Excerpt:

Morris is one of the few criminals in Britain who will almost certainly never be freed: Not because he was given a whole-life tariff, but because he still protests his innocence and so will not be considered for release.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2845510/Who-REALLY-murdered-married-WPC-s-lesbian-lover.html

« Last Edit: October 19, 2020, 01:18:03 PM by Nicholas »
Who wants to take on this great massive lie?” Writer Martin Preib on the tsunami of innocence fraud sweeping our nation

Offline Nicholas

Re: The Clydach Murders - Miscarriage of Justice or right person convicted?
« Reply #13 on: October 20, 2020, 06:33:53 PM »
’Man named police informant in new Clydach murders book 'threatened with torture' as a result‘ - Nov 2017

’A man named as a police informant in a book about Wales' notorious Clydach murders claims to have been threatened with being doused in petrol and electrocuted as a result.

Mark Riley says he has been the victim of threats following publication of The Clydach Murders - A Miscarriage of Justice.

David Morris was jailed for killing Mandy Power, 34, her daughters Katie, 10, and Emily, 8, and their disabled 80-year-old bedridden grandmother Doris Dawson in 1999.

Scrap metal dealer Morris, now 55, of Craigcefnparc, was sentenced to four life terms for the brutal killings in 2002.

The new book, which argues Morris was innocent, makes claims that Mr Riley, aged 56, from Portmead, Swansea was a police informant who was also involved in drug dealing.

Mr Riley has admitted being a “small-time crook” but said he had never committed the serious offences claimed in the book written by author John Morris.

WalesOnline has been shown a copy of Mr Riley’s criminal record, which was released from the National Police Chiefs’ Council ACRO Criminal Records Office.

It suggests he had no convictions for the drug offences he is said to have carried out in the book.

However, in a joint statement, both Seren Books and the author Mr Morris said the book was factually accurate and based on extensive research of court papers and official documents in the public domain and any concerns raised about the book had been addressed.

They said they have invited further responses from those who have concerns.

Mr Riley, who has complained to the author along with the publishers Seren Books, also denied the claims he acted as a police informant.

He said: “People have been saying ‘he needs to be dealt with’ and they want to throw petrol at me and set me alight and electrocute me.

“I have been stressed about this book - my son came back as white as a ghost when he heard the threats - he’s 18 and does not know about the Clydach murders.

“I was walking around the market thinking someone was going to knock me down.

“It makes me so angry people think I was a grass and a drug dealer - I was a small time crook and didn’t tell the police anything.”

Mr Riley claims a second edition of the book was changed and his name taken out.

“All the libraries in Swansea have got the first edition,” he added.

Mr Riley said he had been advised by a number of solicitors he had a case for defamation.

“It’s maddening that I can’t do anything about the book because I have no money,” he said.

The book, which argues that Morris was an innocent man against whom justice was miscarried, says no forensic evidence or DNA connected him to the crime and he was convicted due to a lack of a solid alibi.

It claims he was only convicted because his gold chain was found in the Powers’ house and because he had been in trouble for minor offences and had initially lied to the police.

The book has also come under fire from another man who appears in it.

Stephen Newell, aged 62, of St Thomas, says it is incorrect that he served a 12-year sentence in Swansea, which is a Category B/C men’s prison, and that he was an old acquaintance of Morris, as is claimed in the book.

Mr Newell, who had been serving an eight year sentence for GBH, kidnapping and false imprisonment said he had complained directly to the author.

“I was in the cell with Dai Morris for a couple of days - I did not discuss Mandy Power,” he said.

“I went up to HMP Prison Stocken in Leicester, I was there for about three years.

“The police came to see me and they said that David Morris sold the chain to me for drugs and tobacco but I told the police he did not sell the chain to me.

“I did not do the deal with the police to come out early - I did my time.

“I got in touch with the publishers the same day the book was out, on the Saturday the author phoned me.

“He said ‘I have been trying to get hold of you for months’, I said I am not that hard to get hold of.

“He said out of courtesy I have asked the publisher to take my name out of the text but I am not happy with it.

“I told him ‘I bet you want to make more quid off my name’ - I was angry.”

He added: “I am thinking of the Power family at this time - they have had enough to deal with.”

Carolyn Harris, MP for Swansea East, said she had dealt with a series of complaints from a number of constituents against the book and added: “You have to think about the family of those murdered and understand the family of Dai Morris are aggrieved.

“The book is obviously causing hurt, Mr Riley is not the only one who contacted me - I have had contact from other people.”

Publisher Seren Books and author John Morris, in a joint statement, said: “Seren and the author believe that the narrative of the book is factually accurate, based on extensive research of court papers and other official documents in the public domain.

“A few people have been in contact about the book and we have addressed their concerns and invited further responses from them.

“The events described in the book are difficult to contemplate and we thought very hard about them; on balance we felt that the arguments for the plight of David Morris justify publication.”

https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/local-news/man-named-police-informant-new-13950360
Who wants to take on this great massive lie?” Writer Martin Preib on the tsunami of innocence fraud sweeping our nation

Offline Nicholas

Re: The Clydach Murders - Miscarriage of Justice or right person convicted?
« Reply #14 on: October 21, 2020, 11:15:27 AM »
Murder police 'hampered by lies' - Aug 2006

’Key witnesses lied to protect the man convicted of murdering four members of the same family in Clydach, south Wales, a leading detective has said.
Det Supt Martin Lloyd Evans said David Morris, 44, would have been caught sooner had they come forward.

Mandy Power, 34, her children Katie, 10 and Emily, eight, and their grandmother Doris Dawson, 80, were bludgeoned to death in their home in June 1999.

It was 19 months after the murders before police arrested Morris.

At a press conference following the verdict, police said they would be investigating the testaments of Mandy Jewell and other witnesses who gave Morris false alibis.

Mr Evans said the crime scene on Kelvin Road, where Mandy Power and her family were found murdered and their home set alight, was so devastating, detectives believed the answer would be there "very quickly".

He also thought more witnesses would have come forward with vital clues because Clydach was such a close community.

David Morris was among 50 people police initially wanted to speak to
"Had they (some witnesses) come forward this case would never have taken almost two years before the arrest, " he said.

"But these individuals kept that information to themselves and did not tell anybody."

Before Morris was charged, police had arrested and put on bail Mandy Power's lesbian lover Alison Lewis, her then husband Stephen and his brother Stuart.

This led to criticism of the way the case was handled. But Mr Evans denied police had ignored initial suggestions from people in the community that Morris was the guilty party.

"We spoke to him within the first three or four days of the murders. Yes, he was linked with Mandy Power in the past but there were lots of people in this investigation that we needed to speak to," he said.

"There were 50 (police wanted to talked to) at one stage and David Morris was one of them. The initial investigation was never centred on one individual.

"But can I just say that a lot of people have lied for David Morris and protected him in those early days."

A key piece of evidence in the case to convict Morris was a gold chain, covered in Mandy Power's blood and found at the murder scene. Initially, Morris had denied the chain was his.

Then Morris changed his story and said he had left the chain at the house the morning before the murder when he said he had sex with Ms Power.

However, the prosecution told the jury that phone records from Morris' flat proved he could not have been there at that time.

Mr Evans said these records played a vital role in the re-investigation detectives undertook before Morris' retrial.

They helped detectives prove Morris could not have left his chain at Mandy Power's home under innocent circumstances.

When asked to describe David Morris, Mr Evans said he was "extremely devious and very cunning".

"I am convinced he thought he had got away with it," he said.

“From the very day he committed this crime he was working on his defence and was expecting, at some stage, a knock on the door.

"He changed his evidence no end of times. I believe 19 times in one interview he said 'I am telling the truth this time' and clearly he wasn't.

"At this trial he has lied yet again but he has been caught out with these lies."


http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/4780513.stm


Who wants to take on this great massive lie?” Writer Martin Preib on the tsunami of innocence fraud sweeping our nation