A retired officer has accused police of making 'blunders' in relation to a murder investigation and the subsequent search for a key suspect.
A gang of underworld thugs tortured cannabis dealer Brian Waters to death in front of his own family at a farmhouse in rural Cheshire on June 19 2003.
In 2004 John Wilson and James Raven were jailed for torturing both Mr Waters and Suleman Razak, who worked at the cannabis farm.
READ MORE: 'The Big Guy' held in Marbella 24 hours after being named on NCA most wanted list
In 2007, Otis Matthews was found guilty of the same offences. Christopher Guest More Jr, a prime suspect in the case, managed to evade justice for 16 years.
In June 2019 Guest More Jr was arrested in Malta and later brought back to the UK to face justice. He was jailed for life last month.
Cheshire Police, who led the murder investigation and manhunt for Guest More Jr, welcomed the long prison sentence handed down to the Cheshire man by Sir Peter Openshaw at Chester Crown Court.
However, a former police officer has now revealed how the murder investigation and search for Guest More Jr were undermined by 'blunders' and inexplicable delays.
A senior officer from the force has said that four men have been jailed for nearly 100 years for their roles in the murder of Brian Waters.
The officer said that the investigation spanned 18 years and that the decisions taken have been subject to 'review' and 'scrutiny' where appropriate.
A witness statement has revealed that Guest More Jr and James Raven were stopped by police weeks before they murdered Mr Waters at Burnt House farm.
Cheshire Police had been called out to a residential address on April 9 2003 following reports that men had demanded £1,500 and threatened 'trouble.'
Police later spotted a BMW in the area and attempted to stop the car. The driver refused to stop but was forced to pull over when a second police car arrived at the scene.
Raven was the driver and Guest More Jr a passenger in the car. Police searched the BMW and found information which linked the men to the demand for £1,500.
Guest Mr Jr was 'drunk and aggressive' to police but no arrests were made. A former police officer who contacted the ECHO about this story said: "If these men had been arrested at the scene their home addresses could have been searched. I think that guns and drugs would have been found during the searches and both men would have been charged with serious offences."
The ECHO can also reveal that Cheshire Police did not properly search the fields around Burnt House farm after the murder in June 2003.
In November 2004 a member of the public found a gold watch in a field near the farm which he handed into police. The watch had been stolen from the Waters' family home on June 19 2003 and presumably dropped by a member of the gang while fleeing the scene.
On November 26, 2004 police conducted a major search of the fields behind the farm and found black leather gloves and a balaclava.
On December 1, 2004 police found a knife and replica gun during a search of the same field.
A former police officer said: "Why did Cheshire Police wait for 17 months after the murder to search the fields behind Burnt House Farm, even though three of the attackers were seen to run across the fields by police when they arrived at the murder scene."
In October 2004 Chester Crown Court heard how Christopher More Jnr had flown to Malaga with his girlfriend two days after the murder. The court heard how when More's parents flew out to the family's apartment in Malaga days after the murder, police followed them.
More Jnr was observed to be in the apartment but no action was taken. Chester Crown Court heard how the force had decided not to apply for a European Arrest Warrant. The court heard that detectives had hoped that the killer might fly back to the UK with his relatives.
More Jnr's dad was later sentenced to nine months in prison for assisting an offender.
On August 18, 2003 a cloned passport was issued for Christopher Guest More Junior, in the name of Christopher Andrew Lamb. However, Cheshire Police did not conduct any enquiries with HM Passport Office in relation to this matter.
The last known location for Guest More Junior in July 2003 was Spain. Cheshire Police then waited four years to include Christopher Guest More Junior on Operation Captura, aimed specifically at UK criminals suspected of hiding from the law in Spain.
In 2019 Interpol listed Christopher Guest More Junior as one of their ‘twenty six most wanted’ in a worldwide ‘Infra-Red’ campaign.
At the time Detective Superintendent Sarah Pengelly from the Cheshire Police Major Crime Directorate said: "Today, Christopher Guest More Jr has been added to Europe’s ‘Most Wanted’ list. This is a significant step forward in our bid to locate him and I hope that this latest development will help to generate a renewed interest in this case and, most importantly, valuable information as to his whereabouts."
A SIRENE alert on Schengen Information System associated with his elevation to one of ‘Europe’s Most Wanted’ men appears to have led a data sharing process.
Within weeks UK authorities handed Maltese police a picture of Guest More Junior with the name Andrew Christpher Lamb. This led to his eventual arrest.
Of the international co-operation that led to More Jr's capture, Ms Pengelly said: "We recognised that we were looking for a needle in a haystack, but being able to essentially reach into almost every law enforcement agency in Europe and really push forward and try and ask for intelligence and information about who he was, who he was representing himself to be, what identity he had, that was a real game-changer for us."
A former police officer who helped the ECHO with this story said: "If Cheshire Police had arrested him on April 9, 2003 when they had reasonable suspicion he had demanded money with menaces, he might very well have been cleared him off the streets and out of the country lanes of Cheshire before the torture and murder of Brian Waters.
"The ‘manhunt’ for Christopher More conducted by Cheshire Police is best characterised as a series of missed opportunities and basic investigative blunders.
"Undercover officers located their suspect in Spain within three weeks of the murder, but didn’t have him arrested. They never searched the UK passport database for his picture, in the knowledge that he must have acquired a false passport to evade capture.
"They failed to secure vital forensic evidence. And then waited nearly sixteen years to elevate him to one of Europe’s most wanted men, a process that allows UK police officers to access data held in countries across the European Union and which ultimately led to his identification in Malta within just two weeks."
Detective Chief Superintendent Gareth Lee said: “Operation Musketry is a high-profile and long-standing investigation into the brutal murder of Brian Waters at Burnt House Farm in Tabley on 19 June 2003.
“Four men have now been convicted for their part in the murder and are collectively serving a minimum of almost 100 years in prison.
“This case spans more than 18 years and in that time dedicated teams of detectives and civilian colleagues have worked tirelessly to ensure that those responsible for the horrific torture and murder of a father – and the brutal beating of another man – have been traced and brought to justice.
“We never gave up hope of finding Christopher Guest More Jr. Despite the passage of time and challenging circumstances our determination to find him never faltered and we remained committed to locating and arresting him for his involvement in the incident.
“Over the years a lot of work has gone on behind the scenes out of the public eye in a bid to piece together as much information as possible – this was done in conjunction with a number of other law enforcement agencies.
“Many of those involved in the original investigation have since retired from the force or moved onto other roles. Following the arrest and extradition of Guest More Jr, a new joint team was set up with officers working alongside colleagues in the Crown Prosecution Service to review all of the evidence from the original trials to build the strongest possible case for court.
“Individual policy decisions were taken at the time of the incident and throughout the investigation by the original and subsequent Senior Investigating Officers based on the information and evidence available to them at the time. They progressed any active lines of enquiry as they saw fit prioritising and considering evidential opportunities. Appropriate scrutiny was given to these decisions at the time – and, where deemed relevant, has been subject to review over the years as is the case with any long-running investigation.
“If an SIO is satisfied of sufficient grounds to arrest a suspect who is believed to have fled the country they have the option to consider an Interpol Red Notice or European Arrest Warrant. This requires detailed legal analysis/requirements prior to any sanctioning and is considered carefully by a number of prosecuting agencies – not just the police.
“Cheshire Constabulary has pursued a number of lines of enquiry and worked closely with a number of different law enforcement agencies over the years in a bid to trace Guest More Jr. Decisions on any action in relation to the manhunt have been taken over time, when deemed appropriate, and in the best interests of progressing the investigation/seeking justice.”
A spokesman for the NCA said: "The NCA is not responsible for the decision to apply for a red notice circulation; that is made by the investigating and prosecuting authorities.
"In June 2019 More was arrested within three days of the Maltese authorities and NCA exchanging intelligence on a suspected fake identity."
During his trial, More jr told the jury he spent about six months in Spain and then travelled to South Africa, using a fake passport, before moving to Mozambique, Turkey and eventually settling in Malta, where police say he lived from 2007.
More Jr's alter ego was Andrew Lamb - who was actually an adult living in a care home.
After settling in Malta More Jr worked as a captain of luxury yachts and negotiated deals for import and export business.
He lived out the life of an affluent businessman and even drove a Porsche until his arrest in 2019.
More Jr's first trial, in March last year was halted after just three days when a juror was discharged and a second trial ended in May with the jury unable to agree on a verdict.
A third trial concluded last month when jurors delivered their verdicts after just over 12 hours of deliberations.
In his sentencing remarks Judge Sir Peter Openshaw revealed details of the attack. He said: "About an hour later, Brian Waters arrived. He also was attacked. He also was hoisted up by his ankles and lowered into the water butt. He also was beaten severely by canes and bars. The same caustic substance was poured over him. He also was shot with staples.
"An iron bar was forced so far into his rectum that it struck the base of his spine, an injury which the pathologist said must have caused immense pain. All the time, he was being asked for money."
More Jr was jailed for life with a minimum of 24 years.
Receive newsletters with the latest news, sport and what's on updates from the Liverpool ECHO by signing up here
