A bag strap found close to where Stephen Lawrence was fatally attacked is similar to a strap found attached to a hammer-head at the home of one of the men convicted of the black teenager’s racist murder, it has been revealed.
One line of inquiry is whether the strap could have been used to adapt a weapon to attack Lawrence – who would have turned 42 on Tuesday had he not been murdered – as a similar strap was found in the home of David Norris, who along with Gary Dobson was ultimately convicted of the 1993 murder.
It also emerged that the significance of the strap went unnoticed for 21 years. It was incorrectly recorded that the strap was found 80 metres from where Lawrence was attacked. But in 2014, 21 years after Lawrence’s murder in Eltham, south-east London, investigators discovered it had in fact been found just yards away, next to a pool of blood and Lawrence’s bag.
Chris Le Pere, the senior investigator in the case, said he did not believe the error was a result of misconduct but rather just an “honest mistake”. The original scene examiner had handwritten the notes, which had been misinterpreted by a person who typed them up.
Scotland Yard has established through DNA tests that the main user of the leather strap was a woman and wants to identify the owner, who is considered to be a witness rather than a suspect.
But 58 out of 111 women approached by the Metropolitan police have refused to co-operate. The majority of those who have declined to offer DNA samples are family, friends and associates of the original five suspects in the murder. Three other suspects remain free. Neil and Jamie Acourt and Luke Knight deny involvement in the murder.
Le Pere said: “Since January 2016, officers have been carrying out screenings to eliminate witnesses from previous lines of inquiry. So far we have been unable to identify the owner of the bag strap.
“While there is no evidence that a woman was at the scene of the attack, I need to establish who this bag belonged to, and why it was at the spot where Stephen was attacked.”
The Lawrence investigation has been dogged by allegations of corruption. In October last year the National Crime Agency (NCA) said it was investigating alleged police corruption during the original investigation. The inquiry is being managed by the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC).
“We’ve established since I took over the investigation in February 2014 it is not where the original investigation thought it was,” Le Pere said. “In my judgment, there’s no misconduct in this, in my judgment it was an honest mistake.”
Le Pere did not know to what type of bag the strap belonged, but a handbag or sports bag were two possibilities. He said it did not belong to Lawrence and he believed it was left by one of the suspects at the junction of Dickson Road. It has been swabbed for DNA 70 times since 2002.
Partial male profiles were found on the strap but were not “meaningful” enough to pursue. The testing led police to conclude the principle user of the bag strap was a woman.
The investigating officer said “people are very frightened and anxious” when Stephen Lawrence is mentioned, so he was not surprised by the number of people who refused to provide DNA.
Fifty DNA samples were provided but none of them matched. A further 46 refused to provide DNA and 12 refused to reply to the request. Three were discounted for medical reasons.
Le Pere also wants a man who rang Crimewatch and Crimestoppers in 2013, who appeared to have significant information and asked about a reward, to call back.
The new appeal featured on BBC Crimewatch on Monday. Lawrence’s father, Neville, sat for a fresh interview for the programme. “One small bit of information can bring it all together,” he said. “I’m begging and asking please come forward and give the information and some closure to this long-running tragedy.”
Success in catching the killers would help Scotland Yard ease damage to its reputation caused by police racism which helped the black teenager’s killers escape justice for so long.
The 1998 Macpherson inquiry into the police handling of the original murder investigation found evidence of “institutional racism” within the Met.
As well as allegations of corruption, there was incompetence and prejudice among some investigators which blighted the hunt for his murderers, who were named within hours by locals.
It took more than 18 years for Dobson and Norris to be brought to justice. The pair were jailed for life in January 2012 for their role in the attack. The Metropolitan police said they would continue to pursue others involved.
Police will also use Monday night’s Crimewatch to appeal for a man seen wearing a jacket with a distinctive V emblem in an off-licence two hours before the murder, and 100 yards from where Stephen was attacked, to come forward. A man was seen wearing a similar jacket around the time of the attack.
An independent review, led by Mark Ellison QC, who led the prosecution that resulted in the conviction of Dobson and Norris, was published in March 2014 and prompted the then home secretary, Theresa May, to appoint a senior judge to lead another public inquiry, this time to examine a wide range of allegations surrounding the conduct of undercover police officers since 1968.
The latest inquiry, led by Lord Justice Pitchford, is to hold public hearings into the police’s covert infiltration of hundreds of political groups.
