An independent toxicology report has been ordered into the case of a man who has spent 35 years in jail for a murder which may not even have happened.
In the wake of a series of Daily Mail revelations, the beleaguered body which investigates alleged miscarriages of justice has commissioned new scientific analysis of the death of vagrant Alexander Hardie.
The move, seen as significant, could pave the way for the case to be referred to the Court of Appeal.
In 1989, Clive Freeman, an ex-polo-playing landowner, was convicted of murdering Mr Hardie, 49, with a suffocation technique dubbed ‘burking’, which was used by 19th-century ‘body-snatchers’ Burke and Hare, who sold corpses to doctors for dissection.
But, as revealed by this newspaper, eight leading pathologists and forensic experts reject the theory.
Cancer-stricken Clive Freeman (pictured) was convicted of murdering Mr Hardie and has spent 35 years in jail for a murder which may not even have happened
According to a prosecution pathologist, Freeman (pictured) used a suffocation technique adopted by body snatchers Burke and Hare in Edinburgh in 1828
Many say the most likely cause of death was the mixture of alcohol and prescription drugs in his body and suggest the most appropriate cause of death is ‘unascertained’.
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EXCLUSIVE Key evidence in the ‘burking’ murder trial was ‘hidden’ from defence lawyers
The new toxicology report has looked into the original analysis of Mr Hardie’s death by the Crown’s pathologist, Dr Richard Shepherd, which initially concluded that the Scot was not murdered.
The Mail has previously revealed that in a 2017 report Professor Nicholas Birch, a respected consulting pharmacologist, was very critical of Dr Shepherd’s work.
He said: ‘I understand that the contemporaneous notes of Dr Shepherd made at the post-mortem were not disclosed to the defence at the time of the trial.
‘Subsequent consideration of them has disclosed that at the post-mortem of April 16, 1988, Dr Shepherd concluded: “COD [cause of death] prob alc [alcohol] + acute pancreatitis”.’
Also, in the first two examinations, there were no reports of bruising on Mr Hardie’s back despite an examination in that area. Professor Birch wrote that these notes were not disclosed.
‘He found a more melodramatic cause of death but one which is not based on the facts of the Burke case. However, this may have influenced the jury,’ he added.
An artist’s impression of the victim, Alexander Hardie
Ex polo-playing landowner Freeman was convicted in 1989 of murdering Mr Hardie in what prosecutors said was part of a planned £300,000 insurance swindle
Amid claims that key police evidence was withheld from Freeman’s lawyers ahead of his Old Bailey trial, the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) has now acted to retrieve the original prosecution case files. This is also seen as potentially crucial.
Freeman, 81, has advanced prostate cancer and is far from his family in South Africa, said Tony Thompson, a former police chief leading his quest for justice.
Dr Shepherd has not replied to repeated requests for comment.
A CCRC spokesman said a review was being ‘prioritised’ due to Freeman’s age and ill-health.
