Ray Gilbert with his eye detector test results
We know Ray Gilbert made numerous confessions. This is not an unusual occurrence in Miscarriage of Justice cases believe it or not.
Putting this aside for a moment, let's consider the events of 13th March 1981 onwards.
Ray Gilbert was at his girlfriend's flat in Mill Street, Liverpool. This is a 30 minutes walk from the crime scene. Raymond doesn't drive and using a bus after a gruesome murder would not be very plausible for anyone.
On the morning of the 13th, Ray went to the shop and bought his paper, a habit he has to this day. He also bought fire lighters and returned back to the flat where is girlfriend was waiting,
He did not leave again until later that day, this was approximately 6pm to attend an appointment at the Police Station.
At around 9.30 am, a murder took place on Lodge Lane, Liverpool by unknown people. The Police were quick to arrest suspects who had threatened the victim, leaving him fearing for his life and wanting to leave his job.
The Betting Shop remained closed and there was little time between the murder and the arrest of Ray Gilbert to interview all possible suspects and witnesses.
Ray was arrested on Monday 16th March and had no contact with his girlfriend from then onwards. On the same day, she too was arrested. Their statements were identical as they were both telling the truth. They had no reason to lie.
As time progressed, Ray was abused and forced into making a false confession with sketchy details of a crime, in reality he knew nothing about. Without legal representation, this process continued and more statements followed. The words changed, as the Police learned more about the crime.
We have to keep in mind that the alibi was arrested and remanded because the Police did not agree with her statement offering Ray an alibi. With a coerced confession from Ray, an 18 year old girl had to save herself. She did what anyone would have done to get released. She said she was not with Ray that morning.
She was free, but had to maintain the lies she had been made to say. At court, the lies were repeated. What else could she say? If she stuck to her original statement now, she would find herself in an impossible situation.
Unbeknown to everyone, 201 witness statements that were not disclosed by the prosecution told a very different story.
Witnesses saw many different people, cars and events that day. One statement in particular set fire to the story everyone had been told and believed for more than 20 years was a statement that created the photofits that we were all told to believe were the murderers of Mr Suffield. One of them being Ray Gilbert.
During the appeal of John Kamara, this statement was dismissed. The lady was wrong, she didn't see two men looking like the convicted or anyone else. There was not a scuffle at the front door with the victim being pushed around by two mixed race men. The victim simply opened his door, possibly holding his milk and paper as was the norm before he started work that day.
We don't actually know how many people were involved in the murder, but we do know that two knives were used. Were the perpetrators even mixed race young men? How did they enter the building and, more importantly, how did they escape?
The scene was horrific, blood splattered on the floor and would have been on those involved. Someone must have seen something.
Years after the conviction, it would become known that people did know what happened that day. Statements clearly confirm that the possible murderers were talking about the crime and what they did, who may speak up and be the weak link. This action caused fear, so much so that someone had to leave their own flat and stay with a family member. Why? They left Liverpool soon afterwards too.
They had previous convictions for robbing Betting Shops, were called the Hatchett Gang, but quickly were of no interest to the Police. In 24 hours, despite leaving a man fearing for his life, the Police turned their attention to two other men.
Approximately four months previously, during an arrest for other matters, information was passed to the Police about fake jobs. This included a Betting Shop. None of this was true but the Police put the locations under surveillance.
Through this alone, they arrested Ray Gilbert. They were insistent about who had committed the murder and repeated it over and over again while slamming the now defunct photofits on the desk. They had their men, or so they claimed, but they were wrong.
It's not unusual for evidence to be hidden that could undermine a case. Common practice in fact. The 201 statements would remain undisclosed for 20 years.
Clothes were taken for examination, bedding checked, flats searched, but nothing was ever found to incriminate either person. Footprints at the scene did not belong to Ray Gilbert and nothing else placed him there either.
There are slides possibly containing DNA that the CCRC could test, but they are refusing to do this. Every stone should be unturned to find out who really killed the victim.
Merseyside Police have never looked for anyone else in connection to this crime despite knowing at least two people were involved. They hold some paperwork and have confirmed they also have fingerprints too. These do not and can not belong to Ray Gilbert.
Undisclosed witness statements state that people were trying to unlock gates at the back of the shop. The route of the escape could easily have been via the back / side door and that explains why no one saw them escaping. The fact one of the original suspects lived behind the shop and enabled a very quick escape does seem to have been lost on those investigating.
The statements made by Ray Gilbert did not make sense. As the days went on, more information was added as the Police looked further into the crime. Multiple confessions are no more a marker of guilt than a single confession. In this case, it told the opposite story.
Ray Gilbert did not spend any money, he had none and he did not rob any. The Police know this to be true as the account he gave was not plausible or real. Nothing new had been purchased and Ray was skint.
The only 'evidence' were Ray's own damning words.
In a misguided attempt to save another, due to fear for his life, confusion and coercion, Ray changed his plea at court. He did actually believe that would save John Kamara, yet in fact it sealed the fate for them both. This action was reckless, badly thought through and cost Ray Gilbert 36 years of his life ion prison, but it still does not make him a murderer.
He feared for his life due to threats before the trial and once convicted this fear did not leave him. Once again, he made attempts to rectify a situation he had no control over. Ray was trying to do the right thing for at least one person, that person not being himself.
Ray had a very troubled start to life, violence and neglect being a major part of it. This leads to a life in care. He wasn't loved or nurtured, so he did not care what happened to him or his life. He thought he wasn't worth it as that is what he had been shown time after time
Those feelings, false confessions and trying to deal with this at a young age while vulnerable does not make him guilty of murder .
Numerous applications to the CCRC have failed, but that is not a signal of guilt either. They have to look at his case, openly and honestly. Without his confession, they have nothing, not one piece of evidence at all.
In cases such as these, it's easy to dismiss the person, which is very unfair, but what we should never forget is that murderers walk free while others serve their sentences.
Ray arranged and paid for a Lie Detector test, a relatively new test called the Eye Detect test. He could not practise for it, did not know how it worked, but took it to prove he is innocent.
He scored 100 percent no deceit on all questions connected to the murder. To prove the truth, lies had to be told, which is far more tricky than people may appreciate.
There is work to do on this case, slides must be tested, the fingerprints checked.
One witness has been troubled by this case for 42 years after they too were subjected to bullying and coercion by the Police. They were told what they had seen and made to accept things that were inaccurate, even during the ID Parade. This should never have happened in the name of Justice.
Many of the most talked about miscarriage of justice cases in the media have contained false confessions, but, yet, they managed to overturn their wrongful convictions.
Why does Ray Gilbert, therefore, have to jump through so many hoops in regards to his own false confessions?
By Leanne Gilbert
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