One of the so-called Cardiff Three, Tony Paris, who was wrongly convicted of the murder of Lynette White in Cardiff more than three decades ago, has died aged 65.
His death comes 10 years after the then Chief Constable of South Wales Police, Sir Anthony Burden, issued a formal apology to the dad-of-four along with Stephen Miller and Yusef Abdullahi, who had become known as the Cardiff Three. Cousins John and Ronald Actie, who were also wrongly accused of the murder of Ms White, were acquitted following a trial in 1990. You can read more about the campaign for the Cardiff Three to be released from prison after one of the biggest miscarriages of justice in UK history here.
Mr Paris' family confirmed he had died on Sunday, as they vowed to continue to raise awareness and fight for those who face injustice. Tony's daughter Cassie wrote on social media: "I can’t believe I’m writing this… my dad Anthony (Tony) Paris has sadly passed.
"Anyone who knows me knows my dad is EVERYTHING to me. It was me and him against the world. I will continue to raise awareness and fight for those who face injustice in his name. I want to thank the family who were with me today, you know who you are. Please all send all the positive energy you have to send my dad to the light. I love you dada." His son Anthony wrote: "Rest Easy Dad."
Mr Paris was jailed in November 1990, along with Mr Miller and Mr Abdullahi after being wrongly convicted of the murder of 20-year-old Ms White and two years later they were released by the Appeal Court. Mr Paris' father died just weeks before he was freed in 1992.
Speaking during a special BBC documentary last year about the case, Mr Paris said: "It's important, 30 years down the line, because although we've had apologies before, now the whole world can see we are innocent and we are victims." Read more about the documentary here.
A subsequent inquiry into the original investigation led to the UK's biggest-ever police corruption trial. Eight former South Wales Police detectives were found not guilty when the trial collapsed midway through due to disclosure failings.
Police relaunched the original murder investigation in September 2000, taking advantage of advances in forensic science. A DNA profile was compiled from a small trace of blood found at the murder scene and computer records revealed that 600 people across Britain had similar but not exact profiles. You can read about the blood sealed behind a skirting board that solved the notorious murder here.
One profile that stood out above the rest was Jeffrey Gafoor, who provided a sample and it proved the perfect match. In the years after Lynette's murder Gafoor became a lone figure and moved from Cardiff to a house in Llanharan.
When police went to his home to arrest him they discovered he had taken an overdose and he dramatically confessed, "Just for the record, I did kill Lynette White". The killing occurred after an argument over £30.
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