Bamber Loses Appeal Court Bid

Jeremy Bamber's convictions for murdering five of his relatives in Essex more than 25 years ago will not be referred to the Court of Appeal, the Criminal Cases Review Commission has said.

The 50-year-old inmate, serving a whole life term for the killings at a remote farmhouse in Tolleshunt D'Arcy, has always protested his innocence and claims his schizophrenic sister Sheila Caffell shot her family before turning the gun on herself.

But after reviewing material provided by Bamber's legal team, the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) said it had reached "a provisional decision not to refer his murder convictions to the Court of Appeal''.

The CCRC said it had sent Bamber's legal team an 89-page document "setting out in detail the Commission's analysis of the case and the reasons for the provisional decision''.

Last year, it emerged that photographs used as prosecution evidence were to be reviewed after an expert claimed there were discrepancies on crime scene pictures.

Bamber's defence team said police photos of the murder scene cast doubt on part of the prosecution's case and showed the gun seemingly resting in different positions on Ms Caffell's body and around the bedroom.

They also claimed that because the trial jury heard he had re-staged the crime scene, the photos show that he was not given a fair trial or at least raise questions about inconsistencies in the evidence.

Bamber, who is in Full Sutton prison in York, has been behind bars for 24 years for shooting his wealthy adopted parents, June and Neville, his sister Ms Caffell and her six-year-old twin sons Daniel and Nicholas on August 7, 1985.