Mother demands murder inquiry

18 October 1997
The Herald


Lesley Molseed

The mother of murdered schoolgirl Lesley Molseed yesterday called on Home Secretary Jack Straw to open a new inquiry into her daughter's death.  Ms April Garrett spoke out for the first time in 22 years following the publication of a book which names a 52-year-old convicted paedophile as the killer. (Blogger note: refers to Raymond Hewlett)

Lesley Molseed's body was found in a lay-by in Ripponden, West Yorkshire, in October 1975. In one of Britain's most infamous miscarriages of justice Stefan Kiszko was convicted of her murder and spent 16 years in jail before the Court of Appeal quashed the conviction in February 1992. He died within a year of his release.

The new book, Innocents, names a man in Ireland as the murderer. He was questioned during the original investigation.

At her home in Littleborough, Lancashire, Mrs Garrett said yesterday: "We want the Home Secretary to reopen the investigation. We want the results of the internal investigation into the original police inquiry and we want action to be taken against the man named in the book."

Mrs Garrett added: "For 16 years Stefan Kiszko was in jail and the man who really killed Lesley was free. "We want to know why the forensic evidence which freed Stefan Kiszko was not produced at the original trial and why the man named as Lesley's killer was not properly investigated. There have been so many mistakes and there are so many questions which need answering."