He spent 38 years in prison by wrong and acquitted only yesterday (13.05.2025). Peter Salivan was convicted of killing a 21 -year -old woman in 1986 at Britain. DNA showed almost 4 decades after that was not the killer and revealed The biggest judicial mistake in the History of the United Kingdom.
THE Peter Sally spent almost all his life in prison – 38 years – For the rape and murder of a florist working part time and as a barmaid, Diane Sindal in Bebington, Merseyside, Britain in August 1986.
Yesterday, he saw his conviction canceled by the British Court of Appeal, as new DNA analysis revealed the presence of an unknown perpetrator on the scene of the crime.
What happened on the night of 1986
OR 21 -year -old Diane Sindalhad beaten, raped and left dead in a alley. It was August 1986, and the woman had just schooled from her shift as part -time bark, in a pub in babington, when the little blue van was left out of gas.
The 21 -year -old Sidal was walking towards a gas station when she was attacked.
In the trial it was heard how Sullivan had passed the day by drinking too much after a defeat in arrows and then went out holding a crowbar before meeting Sindal. Then hit her with the crowbar and dragged her into the alley and raped her. Sullivan was arrested next month and sentenced to November 1987. Only the perpetrator was not!
It was then reported that some of her clothes were partially found burnt the day after her death.
The detectives told reporters that it was one of the worst assassination cases they had ever seen because of the extent of Sindal’s wounds.
Peter Sullivan was arrested on the basis of unclear data: He had drunk a lot that day and, according to police, was holding a crowbar. During an interrogation without legal representation, he confessed the crime, but later recalled his confession. In 1987, he was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum penalty of 16 years, based mainly on this confession and to controversial bites.
Himself argued from the beginning that he is innocent And his lawyers have twice tried to overturn his conviction. During Sullivan’s trial in 1987, DNA technology was not available and the subsequent requests for new exams were rejected.
In its statement, police said: “In November 2024, the Criminal Affairs Examination Committee announced that Peter Salivan’s conviction of murder is referred to the Court of Appeal due to the discovery of new DNA data, which were not available at the time of the trial.”
“There have been significant developments in the use and understanding of DNA data in criminal investigations, which were still in its infancy at the time of the murder of Diane Sindal.”
“These developments have led to the discovery of new elements,” the announcement said.
The longest -running known judicial nightmare in Britain
Today 68 years old is considered to be the longest -known victim of judicial error As for a living in the modern history of the British legal system.
In a statement read by his lawyer, Sullivan stresses: “I’m not angry, I don’t keep bad. What happened to me was very unfair, But it does not diminish the fact that a human life was lost in the most horrible way. The truth liberates you. “
Peter Sullivan watched the process through a video call from the prison where he was held and heard the decision with his head bent and his arms crossed. He cried, putting the palm in his mouth when his conviction was canceled.
His sister, Kim Smith, said: ‘No one won here. Diane’s family lost her daughter and will not see her again. We took Peter back, and now we have to rebuild a life around him. It’s a shame that all happened. “
DNA eventually belonged to an unknown and the police re -export the case
The technology that allowed the sample to analyze the sample by Sindal’s belly was only recently developed.
Merseyside Police have reopened the case by 2023. As revealed by Chief Detective Caren Jodrill, Over 260 men have been examined and excluded from the research.
“With the help of the National Crime Service, we use every specialized means to identify the person to whom DNA belongs,” Jodril says.
‘We confirm that This is not a relative of Diane, nor about her fiancéeand we believe that DNA can prove to be a crucial element of the identity of the perpetrator. “
‘I’m innocent’
Sullivan has been struggling for years to prove his innocence, but in vain. He requested a re -examination of his case for the first time in 2008, but the committee then considered that it was unlikely to be recovered useful DNA. In 2019 he requested a direct appeal by the court. But rejected again.
In 2021 he submitted a new application to the committee responsible, which this time, using technological leaps, decided to proceed with the sample.
His lawyer, Sarah Mayat, who has been representing him for over 20 years, said she was clearly excited: “Justice has been attributed, at last.”