A TOP forensic expert could be called to Australia to defend Outback killer Bradley Murdoch.
Prof Allan Jamieson has been contacted by the lawyers acting for Murdoch – jailed for life for killing Huddersfield backpacker Peter Falconio.
And Prof Jamieson has intimated that he would be willing to get involved in the controversial case.
Murdoch is hoping to launch another appeal against his conviction, with lawyers arguing the DNA evidence presented against him was flawed.
Doubt has been cast on the validity of so-called low copy number DNA – used by the prosecution in their case against Murdoch.
The 50-year-old drifter had denied killing 28-year-old Mr Falconio, of Hepworth, who was on a touring holiday with his girlfriend, Joanne Lees.
The pair were on the remote Stuart Highway in Northern Territory when they were stopped by a gunman.
The man, said to be Murdoch, is thought to have shot Mr Falconio and tied up Miss Lees, of Huddersfield. She managed to escape and hid for several hours in the bush before finding help.
Mr Falconio’s body was never found.
The trial heard that DNA evidence was found on Miss Lees’ T-shirt and on plastic ties that Murdoch had allegedly used to bind her.
Prof Jamieson, who is director of the independent Forensic Institute in Glasgow, was involved in challenging DNA evidence which led to the acquittal of Omagh bombing suspect Sean Hoey.
He said: “I have been approached by campaigners fighting to clear the name of Bradley Murdoch and I would be willing to help in this case.
“We would need to look very closely at how the samples were processed.
“DNA can travel from place to place very easily and there is always a possibility of evidence being contaminated.
“That is just one of the reasons why low copy number DNA is unreliable as evidence in some circumstances.
“From my understanding, there was very little additional evidence to convict Murdoch.”
Murdoch’s new lawyer is eminent Australian barrister Tom Percy who is putting together a case for a new appeal.
