By Lars Niven

TWO FIFE men who spent 10 years behind bars after they were found guilty of murdering a friend, have had their murder convictions thrown out by appeal court judges, who also accused Fife police officers of suppressing evidence at the original trial.

Steven Johnston and Billy Allison, both from Dunfermline, were sentenced to life in 1996 for battering and strangling 34-year-old friend Drew Forsyth.

The men claimed Mr Forsyth had only been left with a bloody nose after a fight.

The trial judge Lord Macfadyen said the pair should spend at least 12 years in jail before being considered for parole.

Johnston (42) and Allison (41) took their case to the Appeal Court after it was revealed the police had withheld vital information from their defence team and prosecutors.

Statements were obtained from a number of witnesses who said they saw Mr Forsyth alive days after he was supposed to have been murdered but Fife Police did not hand over these statements to lawyers before the trial.

The Appeal Court judges ruled that Fife Police “suppressed” the evidence, which led the jury to wrongly convict Johnston and Allison and cause a miscarriage of justice.

A spokeswoman for the Crown Office confirmed yesterday that a full investigation would be carried out into the way the police handled the case.

Senior officers from Lothian and Borders Police will lead the inquiry.

As he left court, a free man at last, Johnston said he was “bitter and angry” and would be discussing the question of compensation for his decade-long ordeal with his lawyers.

“What has gone on in this case are not mistakes. These are deliberate actions by the police and especially the guy in charge of the investigation.”

He also praised solicitor Stephen Morrison for standing by him since the original trial in 1995.

“If it was not for him I would not be where I am today.”

Allison declined to comment.

Allison and Johnston were freed in December after the judges heard for themselves the evidence that was kept from the jury at their original trial.

Lord Gill, sitting with Lords Osborne and Johnston, said yesterday that trial was unfair and the verdicts returned by the jury a miscarriage of justice.

He insisted the ruling was not a judgment on the guilt or innocence of the pair and added that because of “the conduct of the police inquiry” they could not be said to have had a fair trial.

“The court has found that, with one exception, the new witnesses are credible and reliable,” he said.

“In the light of the new evidence the court has reached the conclusion that the significance of the evidence is such that the jury’s verdict returned in ignorance of it, is to be considered as a miscarriage of justice.

“For that reason alone the court would have quashed the convictions. However, the court has also heard extensive evidence relating to the conduct of the murder inquiry by officers from Fife Police.

“It has reached the conclusion that the police in this case suppressed evidence pointing to the deceased’s having been alive after November 3 and altered certain statements, in one case on the crucial question of date of death.

“The court’s final conclusion is that the police deliberately misled the Crown in a serious way and thereby induced the Crown to adopt the police theory of the date of the murder and to challenge the credibility and reliability of any defence witness who cast doubt on it.”

In their written judgment the three judges pointed out that three detectives who played a key role have all since left the force.

Richard Munro—then a detective inspector leading his first murder inquiry—resigned 18 months ago “in advance of disciplinary proceedings unconnected with this case.”

Former Detective Sergeant John Nessel has disappeared. Former Detective Inspector Derek McEwan, who was in charge of the incident room, now lives in Spain.

Mr Munro (47) faced three days of hard questioning in the appeal court. He said he quit his job with Fife police 18 months ago after a series of clashes with his deputy chief constable.

As the detective, who now runs a hotel, gave his evidence Lord Gill warned him to “face up to the facts and give some straight answers.”

Lord Gill said, “We did not find Mr Munro to be a credible witness. He was taken point by point through the inadequacies and irregularities in the inquiry procedures. He was unable to give us a satisfactory explanation of any of them. Much of his evidence was untruthful in our view.”

The judge continued, “With the exception of WPC Amanda Givan, the other officers from the inquiry team who gave evidence did not impress us.” She had helped retrieve missing information, the judges said.

Lord Gill continued, “The police misconduct did not end with the trial.”

In February 1997 it was stated that the local procurator fiscal was satisfied police had not intended deliberately to mislead him. Lord Gill said, “That is not our conclusion. On the fuller information available to us we conclude that the police deliberately misled the Crown in a serious way.”

During earlier hearings the police investigation of Mr Forsyth’s murder faced a barrage of criticism and calls for detectives to face criminal charges.

Mr Forsyth was supposed to have died during a drunken row with Johnston and Allison on November 3, 1995. His body was said to have lain in his flat in Milton Green, Dunfermline, for six days before it was found by his mother. However, at least a dozen witnesses claimed to have seen him alive and well in the days after November 3.

Johnston and Allison made an earlier unsuccessful attempt to overturn their conviction. Their case was one of the first examined by the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission, which investigates possible miscarriages of justice. It was at their recommendation the appeal court heard new evidence.

A spokeswoman for the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service said last night, “We note the judgment in this case, and in particular that the fresh evidence heard by the Appeal Court satisfied the court that the deceased was not murdered on November 3, 1995.”

The spokeswoman added, “The only evidence available to the Crown implicating the appellants related to November 3, 1995, and the appellants were convicted on that basis.

“Considering all the evidence now available, including the fresh evidence and the court’s findings on that evidence, the Crown cannot establish that the murder took place on any other date than November 3, 1995, and accordingly did not seek the leave of the court to bring a further prosecution of Johnston and Allison.

“We can confirm that, in light of concerns raised during the course of the appeal, Crown Counsel have instructed that a full investigation be carried out into the gathering and reporting of information to the Crown by Fife Constabulary.”

There is to be no new investigation into Mr Forsyth’s murder at this stage.

A Fife Police spokeswoman said, “We note the judgment in this case and will take time to consider its terms carefully. The Crown Office has already drawn to our attention concerns raised during the course of the appeal and we are aware of the instruction by Crown counsel that an inquiry be carried out into the gathering and reporting of information to the Crown.

“We have therefore consulted with the Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland and it has been determined that Lothian and Borders Police will conduct this inquiry. The findings will be reported to the area procurator fiscal for Lothian and Borders.”