A dossier of evidence that could clear two men of murder has been sent to justice watchdog chiefs after a TV show uncovered new evidence implicating a new suspect, the Mirror can reveal.
Michael McDonagh and his son Patrick were convicted of killing Michael’s brother Francis inside a house that had been split into bedsits in Manchester in 1973.
But investigators from the Criminal Case Review Commission have now received new evidence alleging that the killing was actually carried out by a pimp called Isaac Panton, who was also living inside the building.
Former police detective Mark Williams-Thomas, who submitted the fresh evidence after carrying out a cold-case review on behalf of the McDonagh family, told the Mirror: “Our investigation has uncovered what we believe is compelling evidence that shows that both Michael and Patrick McDonagh were not responsible for the murder of their relative Francis.
“We now hope that our submission to the Criminal Case Review Commission will cause them to look again at the case and right the wrong convictions of Michael and Patrick.”
He added: “What is most frustrating is that had the police properly investigated the case at the time, by interviewing every possible witness and listening to the testimony of those they spoke with, they would have been able to secure the evidence that clearly pointed to Isaac Panton’s guilt.”
Mr Williams-Thomas looked into the case as part of new Amazon Prime documentary ‘Wrongly Convicted: Innocent of Murder’. The TV sleuth’s investigation saw him obtain new evidence from a witness in the case naming Panton, who died aged 56 in September 2004, as the murderer.
Mr Williams-Thomas also found a case file from the wife of the property’s landlord saying that police had raided Panton’s room in relation to another incident and discovered a large knife.
He uncovered a previously ignored witness statement from a police officer saying Panton was known to hide in wardrobes and jump out on unruly prostitutes’ clients with a pen-knife.
And he found evidence that Panton had been arrested for stabbing someone in Glasgow in December 1973 - just months after Francis’ murder.
Michael and Patrick were charged with murder after they angrily turned up at Francis’ home to confront him after he insulted his sister-in-law Rose inside a pub the night before.
Patrick admitted breaking into the house by using a screwdriver to smash a window pane in the front door before fighting with Francis in the downstairs hallway.
Francis then burst into a prostitute’s room in a bid to flee, before picking up a TV set in front of a window and attempting to throw it out of the way while apparently trying to escape outside.
Panton, who had a conviction for living off immoral earnings, was then called into the room by the woman and her partner. It is believed he thought Francis was an unhappy customer of the woman and a fight ensued, which ended with Francis left collapsed on the floor.
Prosecutors claimed Francis died after Patrick stabbed him with the screwdriver he used to break in, before Michael and Rose joined in the attack and Francis was stabbed again through the heart.
They also alleged that after being pushed out of the address, Michael, who was from an Irish Traveller family, had asked “where’s my knife?”.
Under questioning, he claimed he had actually said “where’s my wife?” in reference to Rose, who had also gone to the house with them.
Both she and Michael said Patrick had been pushed out of the property before they both saw a black man, who matched Jamaica-born Panton’s description, inside holding a knife.
It is claimed the information was never followed up by the police, who are believed to have entered the property by the front door very shortly after Panton left via the back door.
Francis was later found dead on the flat roof of a neighbouring house after prosecutors said he crawled out of an upstairs bathroom window after suffering a stab wound to the heart, inflicted from a small bladed knife.
The murder weapon has never been found, but it is accepted it was not the screwdriver Patrick had been carrying. Michael and Patrick, who both maintained their innocence, were both jailed for life in October 1973 after being found guilty at trial.
Rose had also been charged with murder, but was cleared on the direction of the judge, who said there was inadequate evidence against her.
The case was previously probed in 1983 by BBC TV documentary series Rough Justice, who investigated the case after the then MP for Manchester, Moss Side, George Morton submitted a petition to the Home Secretary.
It included evidence from a tenant inside the house, who said they had heard Isaac Panton confess that he had the knife and had killed Francis.
The programme’s producer Peter Hill spoke to Mr Williams-Thomas as part of the new probe. Asked if he believes Panton - whose son Dean was shot dead in a gangland attack in Manchester in 2001 - killed Francis, Mr Hill said: “I don’t think there’s any real doubt about it. It would certainly muster a guilty plea in court.”
Asked if he thinks Patrick and Michael should now be pardoned, he said: "Well of course they should. It’s only the pride of the police that’s stopping that and the pride of the legal profession who would rather that they just went away.”
Michael died in March 2010. Rose died in January this year. Patrick was released from jail after nine and a half years on a life license, which he says still affects him.
He told Mr Williams-Thomas: “They destroyed me. Not only did I do ten years for nothing, for no murder or nothing, I’m also on life license and I cannot go and live where I want. They tell me where to live.”
A CCRC spokesperson said: “We can confirm we have received an application in relation to this case. It would be inappropriate to comment further at this stage.”
'Wrongly Convicted: Innocent of Murder’ is out now on Amazon Prime Video.