Murder conviction from 1987 to be re-examined by appeal judges

A man who has served more than 35 years in prison for the murder of a woman who was beaten to death when she ran out of petrol has had his conviction referred to the Court of Appeal.

Diane Sindall was killed in August 1986 after she left work in Bebington, Merseyside, and Peter Sullivan was convicted of her murder the following year.

According to the Liverpool Echo, he had spent the day drinking heavily after losing a darts match, and went out armed with a crowbar before a chance encounter with Ms Sindall as she walked to a petrol station.

On Wednesday, the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) said that Sullivan’s conviction had been referred to the Court of Appeal on the basis of DNA evidence.

Samples taken at the time of the murder were re-examined and a DNA profile that did not match Sullivan was found, the commission said.

Sullivan applied to the body to have his case re-examined in 2021, raising concerns about police interviews, bite mark evidence and the murder weapon.

He claimed he had not been provided with an appropriate adult during interviews and was initially denied legal representation.

Sullivan had previously applied to the CCRC in 2008 raising questions about DNA evidence, but forensic experts said that further testing was unlikely to reveal a DNA profile.

He applied to the High Court for permission to appeal against his conviction in 2019 over bite mark evidence, but this was rejected by the Court of Appeal in 2021.