Brothers cleared of Wadebridge double murder after nearly 20 years in prison
Robert and Lee Firkins were jailed for the November 2003 murders of Carol and Graham Fisher
Two brothers who spent nearly two decades in prison for a double murder have been cleared after their convictions were overturned and a planned retrial was dropped.
Robert and Lee Firkins were jailed for the November 2003 murders of Carol and Graham Fisher at their home in Perch, near Wadebridge in Cornwall.
The brothers denied murder but were convicted and handed life sentences with a minimum term of 26 years in February 2006.
Both men have maintained their innocence and unsuccessfully attempted to bring an appeal against their convictions in 2008.
But in 2020 the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) referred both convictions to the Court of Appeal, finding there was a “real possibility” that appeal judges could quash their convictions.
And in a ruling in December 2023, three judges at the Court of Appeal quashed the brothers’ convictions, finding them to be “unsafe”.
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) applied for a retrial for both brothers, meaning that the media could not report their successful appeals.
However, at a hearing at Winchester Crown Court on Monday, the CPS offered no evidence against either man.
Anne Whyte KC, for the prosecution, said there was a “recent difficulty” that may affect the attendance of a witness at the retrial.
She added: “In these circumstances and after consultation with police and CPS, it is no longer appropriate to continue these proceedings and therefore we are instructed to offer no evidence.”
The Court of Appeal in London previously heard that the prosecution case had heavily featured the evidence of the witness, who can only be referred to as “Z”, claiming he heard an alleged “confession” from Robert Firkins while detained.
Sarah Elliott KC, for Robert Firkins, told the court in June 2023 that there was new expert evidence showing Z to be a “compulsive liar”, adding: “It is a pathological lying, it is a medical condition.”
Lord Justice Holroyde, sitting with Lady Justice Thirlwall and Mr Justice Morris allowed the brothers’ appeals.
Speaking after the decision to discontinue the retrial, lawyer Jane Hickman said that the brothers “are restored to the innocent status in relation to the murders that they had at the beginning”.
She added: “The suffering for them has been immense.”
Robert Firkins was due to be released following the ruling, while his brother is expected to remain in prison due to other offences.
Ms Hickman continued: “I’ve been dealing with appeals for some 40 years and I don’t think most people realise or recognise the degree of trauma that gets inflicted on people who didn’t commit a crime but who are punished in mind and body day after day after day, year on year.”
In a joint statement Ms Elliott and James Wood KC, who represented Lee Firkins, said: “From the moment of these convictions, we knew the case was a gross miscarriage of justice.
“Based on alleged an cell confession, it illustrated the inherent dangers of this kind of evidence.
“The time is now ripe for legal reform. Without independent reliable evidence supportive of the fact of the confession, cell confession evidence is so dangerous, it should always be excluded.”
A CPS spokesman said: “We have a duty to keep all cases under continuous review.
“Following a further review of the evidence in this case, we took the decision that our legal test was no longer met and that there was no longer a realistic prospect of conviction. That is why we offered no evidence in court.
“We have informed all parties involved.”