Mrs Dawson was killed as she lay in her bed, and the killer lay waiting for the others to return home. Circumstantial evidence also implicated Alison Lewis, including her jealousy and capacity for violence and her awareness that her lover was still seeing men. A bid to again take his case to the Court of Appeal was rejected in 2018 by the Criminal Cases Review Commission. It took the jury less than a day to find 27-year-old Desmon Paul Rhea guilty o f shooting and killing . How has this happened, and 22 years later Im still sat here, defending myself, telling people that Im not a murderer, when all I wanted to do was love her? An inquest into the death of the man convicted of the Clydach murders has been opened and adjourned. Is climate change killing Australian wine? There was no sign of forced entry to the house, which led detectives to believe it was someone the family knew. They had intercourse against the wall, on the other side of which Powers 80-year-old invalid mother was sleeping. Just as alarming was the lack of probity of Morriss first lawyer, who imposed a condition on the barrister representing the client in court that he was not to adduce evidence that could implicate or cast suspicion on any of the Lewises. Read more:The most gripping true crime documentaries to watch in the UK after Murder By The Coast on Netflix. Accounts made by two witnesses in a BBC documentary Beyond Reasonable Doubt? Will you be tuning into Murder in the Valleys on Sky Crime and Now? Labourer David Morris, also known as Dai, was twice convicted of the multiple killings but his family have maintained his innocence and continue to fight to clear his name after he died in prison aged 59 last August. The Kidnap and Murder of Lynda Spence: What happened and was her body ever found? But his family, and a growing number of supporters, believe someone else is to blame for the deaths. It is an irony that he has now achieved a dignity that he never had while he was at liberty. Morris, though he admitted to taking amphetamines in the past, denied that he had bought or used them this time; and no other witnesses were available to testify to his supposedly psychotic state. Read about our approach to external linking. But . The man convicted of the Clydach murders has died in prison, it has been confirmed. An accused MS-13 gang member has been arrested in Holiday, Florida, and charged in what the sheriff described as a "demonic" murder of an Uber Eats delivery driver whose remains were found . During that trial, the prosecution produced evidence via phone records proving he was at home at the time he claimed to be sleeping with Mandy. Is climate change killing Australian wine? This was therefore to be their model. David Morris . The actions of the protagonists (of which I have given only a brief outline) were utterly without dignity, self-respect, or self-restraint. Devon and Cornwall Police, which oversaw the review, was also looking at forensic issues also challenged in the documentary, after Morris's legal representatives asked for various items of evidence to be released for further investigation. His lawyer, leading QC Narita Bahra, said: There are no winners in this tragic case, there are insufficient sticking plasters to make this investigation complete and speculation still continues 22 years after an innocent family were murdered in their home. In the early hours of Sunday, June 27, 1999, the bodies of Dorris Dawson, 80, her daughter Amanda Power, 34, and her granddaughters Katie, 10, and Emily, 8, were found in their burned out home in Kelvin Road, Clydach, Wales. A blood-stained sock found at a crime scene links the man convicted of the Clydach murders from 22 years ago, South Wales Police have said. South Wales Police had also been coming under scrutiny for the number of criminal convictions that had been overturned in their jurisdiction, and their conduct throughout high-profile investigations. Dorris was killed in her bed, while Amanda (better known as Mandy) and her daughters were killed on the landing. He was convicted for the murders a second time in 2006 after an earlier conviction was quashed by the Court of Appeal. It is also an account of what seems a miscarriage of justice. Alison and Stephen had been arrested for the murders a year after the crime, but eventually released for lack of evidence. "Morris was convicted unanimously by a jury on the strength of the prosecution case and independent reviews by the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) have not identified any new evidence. 6 Feb 2022. Now for the first time in 22 years, Stuart Lewis has spoken about the ordeal that has ruined his life. Morris knew Mandy Power: in fact, he was having a sexual relationship with her. Fresh doubts have been cast on the conviction of the man jailed for the horrific Clydach murders in 1999. Mostly, there is no determined motive as to why he would murder an entire family, with all evidence proving, at best, circumstantial. Martyn Lloyd-Evans, senior investigating officer of the investigation, tells Murder In The Valleys he has "no doubt in his mind" about Morris being the killer. His family dismissed the findings and vowed to clear his name. "I really thought I was going to be killed.". Most populous nation: Should India rejoice or panic? The true story behind Netflix's The Nurse, What Sins of Our Mother leaves out of true story, What Netflixs Boston Marathon doesn't address, Who was David Koresh? Dietrich Weismann Fellow at the Manhattan Institute. David Morris was found guilty of murdering an entire family of four including two young . Clydach murders 'worst in Wales'. Stephen proceeded to sue his employer, the South Wales Police, for wrongful detention, using the services of Morriss lawyer to do so at the same time the lawyer was representing Morris in the first trial. Now, as the police review the evidence, this series examines a case that didnt just end with a man going to jail. pic.twitter.com/P6G7hzHBLo. Whoever was responsible sought to destroy the evidence by trying to burn the house down, but firemen extinguished the blaze before total destruction ensued. You can read here how the shadow of the horrific crime has refused to life from the village. A review of issues relating to the conviction of David Morris for the murders of Mandy Power, her two daughters Katie and Emily and her mother Doris Dawson in Clydach in 1999 has led to significant findings as a result of analysing key forensic evidence. He said: The evidence identified at the outset to exonerate myself was lost, unobtainable, or destroyed. That is never going to happen. Following Morris's death this summer, his family gave permission for a blood sample to be taken from him so the tests could be carried out. The only DNA evidence found was hers, in Mandy Powers vagina. It was later determined the house was set on fire twice in an attempt to conceal the attack the first around 12.30/1am and a second one a few hours later. Many people lined the streets for his funeral you can see the pictures here. Stuart studied for a law degree while suspended and returned to his duties with South Wales Police when all disciplinary matters against him were dropped. "Everyone wants to be an armchair detective but they don't know the facts.". The alibi could hardly be weaker: two suspects backing each other up. First, Morris was never seen in or near the vicinity of Mandy's home by any witnesses that evening. But perhaps the most significant feature of the story, at least to me, is what appears to be the total moral collapse of at least part of Welsh society. He claimed he spent that day getting drunk watching the rugby at a local pub, where he also had a row with his girlfriend who then stormed off home. I completely understand it but what I didnt understand is why it was always put onto us.. He was taken in by police 18 months after the murders, when it was reported the gold chain found at the scene was his. Mandys mother Doris Dawson was also a victim. "One of the difficult things is separating the fact and fiction, the gossip from the truth.". They were preparing to have a life together. After four days of intense questioning on suspicion of the quadruple murder in Clydach, South Wales, Alison was released on bail and hid in the back of a car as she left the station. The blunt instruments that her martial-arts training enabled her expertly to wield can produce injury or death, and it is noteworthy that, in all the multiple blows that the killer inflicted on the victims, not a single one struck the walls, ceilings, floors, or furniture, as one might expect if the killer was an enraged but amateur bludgeoner. Murder On 13 Reasons Why. They found a perfect substitute suspect in Morris, a man many believed capable of extreme violence. The tight-knit community of Clydach is still divided over who beat the family to death with a metal pole before setting their home on fire in the early hours, despite the conviction of Morris. He told the TV documentary: I have no doubt at all that David Morris is the killer. "Notwithstanding the fact that Morris has been convicted based on the overwhelming evidence against him, South Wales Police has shown a commitment to providing evidence-based answers to the issues which have been raised about this case over many years. A judge has ruled that an appeal on behalf of a man found guilty of murdering four members of the same family, should go ahead. Firefighters found the bodies of Ms Power and the girls laid out on the landing when they came to tackle the blaze. They might have been telling the truth, of course, but if so, given the definite recollections of the other witnesses, it is hard to resist concluding that, whoever was guilty, at least one criminal conspiracy was taking place in this so-called close-knit community. Y chromosome STR profiling can detect the male component even in extreme mixtures of male and female DNA and is often used in forensics, paternity, and genealogical DNA testing. The Powers family maintain to this day, given the evidence they've seen in court, that Morris is the man responsible for the death of Dorris, Mandy, Katie and Emily. This detail sounds true. Following requests from his defence team, some items are to be examined by an independent forensic team. However, she now believes this could have been the killer returning back to set fire to the house after murdering the family. South Wales Police said in a statement: "The decision to carry out a forensic review does not constitute a reopening or reinvestigation of the murders, nor does it demonstrate any lack of confidence in the conviction of Morris and the subsequent case reviews. At the time of her affair with Mandy, Alison was married to Stephen Lewis, an officer with South Wales Police, who was also arrested on suspicion of the murders. However, there have been doubts cast over his conviction by those who have studied the case. As for Alison Lewis, she testified that she had first arrived at Kelvin Road at 9 AM, about five hours after the fire started. However, these timings fit in perfectly with the murders taking place, and witnesses at the pub claim they overheard him bad-mouthing Mandy, calling her an "old cow" and an "unfit mother". Police arrested David Dai Morris for the murder of Mandy Power and her two daughters, Katie and Emily. University lecturer and journalist Brian Thornton, one of the founders of the Crime and Justice Research Centre at the University of Winchester, has studied the Clydach murders for a decade. But he was in his late thirties, had not been in trouble for some years, and appeared to earn his living as a laborer. His twin brother Stuart, who was a police officer too, was arrested on suspicion of perverting the course of justice. He said the announcement was "hugely significant". Indeed, the jealous are often jealous because they themselves are unfaithful and suppose that everyone is like them. I was remanded in custody for four days, interviewed on 26 occasions and suspended for four years., In a statement given exclusively to the Mirror, Stuart says he believes police officers made a catalogue of errors fuelling speculation his family was responsible for the tragedy. That it was present suggests, more likely than not, that Lewiss contact with the victim was more recent than she admitted. A forensic review of evidence linked to the brutal murders of a family of four more than 20 years ago has been agreed. They might have sought to protect their own, or those whom they thought were their own; and it was obvious from the outset that, with such a clear conflict of interest, the South Wales Police should have handed over the investigation to another force. "In my view, as the independent senior investigating officer, the new findings from the samples taken from the sock support the existing evidence that originally convicted him.". In July 2021 the Crown Prosecution Service said no information had been provided by the potential new witnesses to undermine the conviction. He then killed 80-year-old grandmother Doris Dawson. The alternative suspects came from within their own ranks officers (and twin brothers) Stuart and Stephen Lewis, and Stephen's wife Alison. Speaking on the biggest murder inquiry in South Wales' history, he said: "I was a serving police officer 22 years ago, who was wrongfully arrested for conspiracy to pervert the course of justice. He said: "The advancement of forensic technology has provided the opportunity for evidence-based answers to some of the questions which have been raised about forensic issues in this case, along with other matters raised by the BBC Wales documentary. A scientific link between Morris and a sock, widely accepted as being used by the offender . During his initial interview, he said the gold chain wasn't his, but was similar to one he had broken about two weeks later while working on a building site. VideoThe secret mine that hid the Nazis' stolen treasure, LGBT troops take love for Eurovision to front line. What happened was absolutely horrendous - you can't begin to understand the [Power] family's pain and suffering. Read about our approach to external linking. Hania Aguilar loved purple and science. No one thought that an outsider had committed the murderers. 2023 BBC. Morris states he left at 11.30pm and decided to stay at his parents, starting a potential five-mile walk through country roads to get to them. This in turn threw out the reason why his chain would be at the home. Morris died after serving 22 years in HMP Long Lartin, Worcestershire on August 20, 2021. As an angry mob gathered outside a police station, Alison Lewis thought she was going to be killed. Neighbour Rosemary Jones says she was woken up when she heard a car approach the house around 1am, but assumed it was Mandy returning home. "I believe that what has been announced today could be the start of that process.". He battered Mandy, along with her children, with a fibreglass pole which the children used to play with. It's added the incomplete mixed Y-STR result is "as expected as if Morris had contributed to it". News reporter He described the sex in some detail. I loved being with her and everything about her made me happy.. The secret mine that hid the Nazis' stolen treasure. Many of his neighbors did not like him, true, though it is not clear whether this was because of past or present behavior. They have also refused to state exactly how conclusive the DNA evidence actually is on the sock (ie. Clydach murderer of three generations of the same family in the Swansea Valley village in 1999, Dai Morris' cause of death is still questionable after he died on Friday (August 20, 2021) in prison at the age of 59. It will be available on Sky Crime and streaming service NOW. "It's not what we have asked for. Recently, on a short trip to Tenby, the ancient walled town in southwest Wales, I bought a book about four gruesome murders that took place in the village of Clydach, not far away geographically, but very far socially, from Tenby. It took more than two years for South Wales Police to arrest Morris, with an 11-week court case securing him four life sentences. The David Morris' death news has been confirmed by a Prison Service spokesman, saying, "HMP Long Lartin prisoner . However, in the knowledge of the conclusions drawn from this review, South Wales Police would like to show respect to the family and those affected by these terrible crimes by finalising this case. Ex-police officer Alison said: These people arent interested in the truth, all they want to do is slam South Wales Police and say its a conspiracy. After being convicted once, Morris successfully fought for a retrial, and was convicted again. After leaving the force he has been unable to find work because employers Google his name and discover he was linked to the Clydach murder probe. . Even the bloodied sock has been noted as a 'scientific link', with Steve Carey of Devon and Cornwall police stating in a video posted on Twitter that "the outcome of the forensic assessment has not established any information that undermines the conviction of David Morris". Explore in 3D: The dazzling crown that makes a king. Morriss way of removing the threat, on this view, would be to kill Power, and then the witnesses to the initial murder. Mandy Power, 34, her daughters Katie, 10, and Emily, eight, and her mother Doris Dawson, 80, were found bludgeoned to death and their house set on fire in 1999. Now for the first time in 22 years, Stuart Lewis has spoken about the ordeal that has ruined his life, as The Mirror reports. However, Morris's sister Debra Morris said the announcement did not go far enough: "It's not independent for me. Mandy Power, her daughters Katie and Emily and her mother Doris Dawson, were bludgeoned to death at their home in Clydach, near Swansea in June 1999. Viewers can watch Murder in the Valleys when it premieres on Sunday February 06 2022. The force is also requesting material which has previously been forensically examined by the CCRC as part of the new process. A judge convicted him again at Newport Crown Court during a retrial in 2006 and David was sentenced to life imprisonment. An ex-police officer has claimed his own force botched a murder inquiry leading to unfounded rumours his family was involved in the killings of a mother, her two little girls and their grandmother. I still know a number of people in the Clydach area and it is very much believed that the convicted man is innocent. The main chapel in the little city of Brecon is now a pharmacy, caring for the bodies instead of the souls of the local people. The team at Five Mile Films have meticulously re-examined the case and bring fresh scrutiny to the historic inquiry, in a richly thought-provoking and gripping series.. 4.32. What happened on the night of the murders in Clydach? They were eventually ruled out as suspects in 2001. Alison Lewis, who along with her husband Steve was arrested on suspicion of the murders, said she understands his family fighting for justice for him. It is also an account of what seems a miscarriage of justice. Due to the brutality of the murders, South Wales Police were under enormous pressure to find and convict Mandy's murderer. Poppy Dixon, Director of Documentaries and Factual Commissioning at Sky, said: The Clydach murders remain one of the largest and most divisive investigations in Welsh history. But on April 12, local police said they found Katie and her adoptive father shot to death in his pickup truck in New Milford, Conn . She said she loved Mandy. David Morris killed three generations of the same family in the village of . Morris was not a savory character. Surely this was a condition that the barrister should not have accepted? But the sole question should have been whether Morris had been proved guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, and I do not see how anybody could have reached that emphatic conclusioneven if Morris was guilty. However, again all members of the Lewis family similarly maintain their innocence in all aspects of the case, with Stephen claiming he had no idea about his wife's affair or homosexuality until after the murders went public. Monday, 14 February, 2005. Theodore Dalrymple is a contributing editor of City Journal, the Dietrich Weismann Fellow at the Manhattan Institute, and the author of many books, including Grief and Other Stories. Following a forensic review of the case material, the force revealed in October that a blood-stained sock found at a crime scene linked Morris to the murders. In January 2021, it was decided the police should re-examine the case. Sky Crime's new true-crime series, Murder In The Valleys, takes a deep dive into a 22-year-old case which many believe resulted in a wrongful conviction. The Clydach murders investigation was the largest and most complex homicide probe ever undertaken by a Welsh police force. Morris always protested his innocence and his family have vowed to clear his name. The killer lit fires around the house in an attempt to hide the crimes. These failures have resulted in constant speculation of the safety of the conviction.. A year before her arrest, Alison's lover Mandy Power had been found dead along with Mandy's mother Doris and daughters, Katie, 10, and Emily, aged eight. Morris had also previously attacked someone, hitting him with a blunt instrument around the head, but it was later dismissed as the jury was persuaded he acted in self-defence. 2023 BBC. A forensic review of the Clydach murders has made "significant findings" linking convicted killer David Morris to the crime scene, police have said. I Am Madeleine McCann girl timeline update: McCanns break silence, financial gain claims and reaction to DNA results, Strictlys Giovanni Pernice admits hes so proud over huge achievement: Moments like this I will always treasure, New pictures of George and Charlotte with Grandpa King released, Michelle Keegan unveils very drastic makeover in Bank Holiday snap, Pregnant Strictly star Janette Manrara shares stunning pics from babymoon with Aljaz as she plans to return as family of three. In particular, those who lost three generations of the same family and have had to revisit those painful memories time and time again over the last two decades. Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right. A judge convicted David of murder at Swansea Crown Court in 2002. Did this woman die because her genitals were cut? I have a habitwhether good or bad, I cannot say, though my wife does not fully approveof buying books almost everywhere I go. Now, a new four-part series takes a forensic look at the biggest murder investigation in Welsh history - with Alison agreeing to a TV interview about the case for the first time in more than a decade. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site. The Lewis family claims to have received more than 400 threats from supporters of the Free David Morris campaign. Clydach murderer died after collapsing in prison, 'Nothing to undermine' Clydach murders conviction, Fresh doubts over Clydach murders conviction, Russia launches missile attacks on Ukraine, MasterChef Australia host Jock Zonfrillo dies, Air strikes pound Sudan capital as truce extended. The case deeply divided the community for more than 20 years despite the conviction of a local builder. "For 12 months, there were no arrests. Clydach murders appeal goes ahead. In October 2021, after a new independent investigation into the murders was launched, the police ruled the bloodied sock contained 'a scientific link' with Morris. . Just weeks after he died police released fresh forensic DNA evidence linking Morris to a bloodstained sock found at the murder scene. He was convicted again at Newport Crown Court during a retrial in 2006 and was sentenced to life imprisonment. But the police were clearly reluctant to pin the blame on their ownnamely, one or both Lewis twins, or Alison, a former police officer. The evidence against the Lewises was more compelling, though not probative. so when it happened it was like an atom bomb for the whole community . He spent 22 . South Wales Police commissioned a review in the hope that we could in some way provide closure for those most affected by the murders. Cellmark Forensic Services, an independent forensic science laboratory, was commissioned to carry out the forensic work. David 'Dai' Morris was . "No family should ever go through what we have and still do.". The killer lit fires around the house in an attempt to hide the crimes. It was a sigh that had been building up for more than a year - and last Tuesday many months of tension came flooding out. Video, The secret mine that hid the Nazis' stolen treasure, 'Nothing to undermine' Clydach murders conviction, South Wales Police announced a review of elements of the case, the Crown Prosecution Service said no information had been provided, Explosion derails train in Russian border region, Banana artwork in Seoul museum eaten by visitor, Trump says 'great to be home' on visit to Scotland, NFL player's daughter, aged two, drowns in pool, JP Morgan snaps up troubled US bank First Republic, Father tells how gunman opened fire on Texas home, Indian 'killer' elephant relocated to tiger reserve. Police found the man and woman following a 9 a.m. welfare check Sunday at an apartment in the . This included the Newsagent Three of 1987, where three men were wrongfully convicted and spent 11 years in prison for the murder of a newsagent, and five Black men wrongfully convicted for the murder of a woman in 1988. 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. Copyright 2023 Manhattan Institute for Policy Research, Inc. All rights reserved. Our thoughts as ever remain with the family of Mandy Power, her children Katie, aged 10, and Emily, eight, and her 80-year-old mother Doris, who still experience such painful memories even to this day.. We tried the Indian curry house Wrexham owner Ryan Reynolds said was the best in Europe, 'They are superb - a perfectly crisp outside gives way to a soft, golden inside, which is both fragrant and flavourful. Nothing should have been easier in a small community, where everyone knew everyone else (and not infrequently in the biblical sense). A BBC documentary in 2020 questioned the safety of the conviction after it featured interviews with two potential witnesses. His legal representatives made a request to South Wales Police in November, following the airing of a BBC Wales Investigates programme on the conviction of Mr Morris, asking for various items of evidence to be released for further investigation by their forensic scientists. Morris said that it was a different gold chain that he wore to the pub (he owned two) that evening and that, with the clothes he was then wearing, it would not have been visible, anyway. However, this ruling was later overturned on appeal due to a conflict of interest by a defence solicitor.
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