Two framed by corrupt officer decades ago cleared

Two men wrongly convicted in separate trials in the 1970s following allegations made by a corrupt police officer have had their names cleared by the Court of Appeal.

Errol Campbell, who died in 2004, was jailed for 18 months for theft and conspiracy to steal while Ronald De Souza, who was part of the group known as the Stockwell Six, was detained for six months for attempted robbery.

Both were convicted based on evidence given by British Transport Police (BTP) officer Det Sgt Derek Ridgewell, who was responsible for racist miscarriages of justice. So far, all 13 referred cases have been overturned.

Lord Justice Holroyde said it was with "regret" the court could not undo their suffering.

The Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) carried out a range of investigations into the misconduct of Ridgewell, who fabricated evidence that led to convictions that lasted long after his death in prison in 1982.

Ridgewell confronted mostly young, black men and falsely accused them of theft and robbery offences, the CCRC said.

On Thursday, the Assistant Chief Constable of BTP, Charlie Doyle, said he was "disgusted" by Ridgewell's actions.

In April 1977, Mr Campbell was found guilty of theft and conspiracy to steal from the Bricklayers Arms Goods Depot, where he was a British Rail employee. He was sentenced to a total of 18 months' imprisonment.

Ridgewell led the case against Mr Campbell and several others, but along with colleagues Det Con Douglas Ellis and Det Con Alan Keeling, later pleaded guilty to stealing from the same goods depot. Ridgewell was jailed for seven years in 1980 after stealing more than £1m in goods.

In August 2023, the CCRC referred the convictions of Mr Campbell's co-defendants, Saliah Mehmet and Basil Peterkin, after it tracked down their family members.

Their convictions were both quashed in January 2024.

Henry Blaxland KC, representing Mr Campbell, told the court it was dealing with victims of miscarriage of justice brought about by "state crime".

He added the case "throws a shadow over the administration of justice and led to loss of confidence not only in the police, but in the legal system as a whole".

In a statement read out by his solicitor, Matt Foot, Errol Campbell Jr, the son of Errol Campbell, said: "The British Transport Police knew that Detective Sergeant Derek Ridgewell was corrupt, and they let him carry on regardless with what he was doing.

"My dad always said he was innocent, and today, that's finally been confirmed, almost 50 years later.

"He came to England in the Windrush generation and worked for years for British Rail. The conviction caused absolute misery to my dad and our family.

"I'm angry that Ridgewell is not alive for this day and that he never went to prison for all the people he fitted up. He never answered for his crimes."

Mr Foot added that the law should be changed so that cases overseen by police officers who were later jailed for crimes were automatically reviewed for potential miscarriages of justice.

"If that had happened, that would have saved more than 45 years of misery for the Campbell family," he said.

Mr Foot also called on BTP to name those who "harboured" Ridgewell, claiming it was "no secret" in the 1970s that the officer was "racist and corrupt".

He added that there were "bound to be others" who were victims of miscarriages of justice.

The CCRC reviewed Mr De Souza's conviction after the convictions of his co-defendants Paul Green, Courtney Harriot, Cleveland Davidson and Texo Johnson were quashed in 2021.

The sixth member of the so-called Stockwell Six, Everet Mullins, was acquitted because it was shown that his reading ability was not good enough for him to have read and fully understood his signed statement, which was written for him by Ridgewell.

In his ruling on Thursday, Lord Justice Holroyde said that Mr De Souza, who did not attend court, "bore the burden of his wrongful conviction throughout his adult life".

"We regret this court cannot put right all that he has suffered over half a century," he said.

Ass Ch Con Charlie Doyle said BTP was "sincerely sorry" to those affected by the criminal actions of Ridgewell.

"[His] appalling actions in the 1970s and 1980s led to the criminalisation of innocent people," he said.

"I am disgusted by the actions of Derek Ridgewell, and while we know we can't change the past, his actions do not represent the BTP of today.

"We're continuing to review records relating to his corrupt practices, which includes those relating to officers who were associated with DS Ridgewell or may have assisted him in his criminal activity.

"We continue to actively pursue a criminal investigation into the actions of those involved and will present a file to the CPS for consideration once we have completed our enquiries."

Listen to the best of BBC Radio London on Sounds and follow BBC London on Facebook, X and Instagram. Send your story ideas to [email protected]