Calls for public hearing for Lynette White murderer

One of the men wrongly accused of the murder of Lynette White has called for the parole hearing of the real killer to take place in public.

John Actie, 62, was one of five men who wrongly spent time in prison for the killing, and said Jeffery Gafoor's hearing should "definitely" be public.

Gafoor was jailed in 2003 for murdering Ms White in Cardiff 1988 and his sixth parole hearing is due to take place in October.

The parole board said no application has yet been made for the hearing to take place in public, but "parole reviews are undertaken thoroughly and with extreme care”.

Mr Actie spent two years on remand alongside his cousin Ronnie, until they were both acquitted of the murder.

He said he is “not happy at all” about the prospect of Gafoor’s possible release, and would like to contribute to the parole hearing to share how he has been affected by his experiences.

“We’ve all been asking about Mr Gafoor, when is he coming out – is he out? We don’t know because no one tells us," Mr Actie said.

“Ms White’s family and ourselves, we should all have a say - but at the end of the day, we’re not going to."

Mr Actie said he feels left in the dark, adding: “As victims of the biggest miscarriage of justice in British history, it’s disgusting."

Satish Sekar, a journalist and author who has written about the Lynette White inquiry, said the case was of "immense public importance".

"I'm advocating that at the very least the hearing is broadcast to the media so the public can be properly kept informed of exactly what is going on, then they can make their own decisions on the process," he said.

"It was an absolutely horrific murder, a sexually-motivated murder, which involved one of the most notorious miscarriages of justice in British history.

"If that isn’t a reason for it to be public, I don't know what is."

Detectives investigating the brutal repeated stabbing and murder of Ms White had originally said they were hunting a white suspect, but five black and mixed-race men were arrested and charged with the killing.

The included Tony Paris, Yusef Abdullahi and Stephen Miller, who were all wrongfully convicted of murder in 1990.

Their convictions were later quashed by the Court of Appeal.

After advances in DNA technology, Gafoor was caught and jailed for life with a minimum term of 13 years.

A police corruption trial later collapsed.

In January 2023, Gafoor was granted day release from prison, but despite several applications he has never been released on parole.

Victims, a prisoner, members of the public and the media have all been able to apply for public parole hearings after changes in the law in 2022.

In deciding whether to grant a public hearing, the parole board takes into account the wishes of the victims, any risk of trauma to the victims or their families, any risks of safety to the prisoner and whether witnesses' evidence would be affected.

A spokesperson for the parole board confirmed Gafoor's parole hearing was scheduled for 3 October.

“Parole Board decisions are solely focused on what risk a prisoner could represent to the public if released and whether that risk is manageable in the community," they added.