The court of appeal has quashed the convictions of two men who were framed by a corrupt and racist detective in the 1970s.
Errol Campbell, who died in 2004, and Ronald De Souza are the 12th and 13th people to have their convictions quashed because they were based on evidence from the disgraced British Transport Police (BTP) officer DS Derek Ridgewell.
Campbell was imprisoned for 18 months in 1977 based on evidence planted by Ridgewell for the same offence the corrupt detective was later jailed for.
Overturning his conviction, Lord Justice Holroyde, sitting with Mr Justice Butcher and Mr Justice Wall, said: “We regret that this court cannot undo what the late Mr Campbell suffered. We can however, and do, allow the appeal brought on his behalf and quash his conviction. We hope that will at least bring some comfort to Mr Campbell’s family who survive.”
De Souza, now 71 but not present in court, is the last member of the Stockwell Six, a group of young black men falsely accused of trying to rob Ridgewell on the London Underground, to have his conviction overturned. He was sentenced to six months in prison in 1972.
Overturning De Souza’s conviction, Holroyde said: “It is plainly appropriate that this injustice, that has continued for decades, should be ended as soon as possible.”
Campbell and De Souza’s appeals followed a referral by the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) and were uncontested on Thursday.
Ridgewell, who died in prison in 1982, also framed the Oval Four. He was jailed for seven years in 1980 for stealing mailbags worth £364,000 from the Bricklayers Arms goods depot in Southwark, south London.
Ridgewell and two other officers carried out the thefts while giving evidence against Campbell in his 1977 trial for the same offence. Campbell, who was a British Rail employee, was convicted of conspiracy to steal and theft from the depot, based on Ridgewell’s false evidence.
The court of appeal heard that Ridgewell had planted an allegedly stolen travel clock and a packaging label used to redirect parcels in Campbell’s home.
In a statement read to the court, Errol Campbell Jr said his father “was a ruined man” after his conviction. “He took to heavy drinking, and had a drinking problem for the rest of his life.”
All but one of the Stockwell Six were convicted and jailed, despite jurors hearing accusations that police officers had lied, used violence and made threats.
In 2021, after evidence of Ridgewell’s racism and corruption emerged, De Souza’s four co-accused – Paul Green, Courtney Harriot, Cleveland Davidson and Texo Johnson – had their convictions overturned by the court of appeal. Last year De Souza also made an application to the CCRC to refer his case for review.
Holroyde said it was “very regrettable” that these cases had not been reviewed earlier. He said fresh evidence showed De Souza’s conviction was unreliable and his conviction unsafe.
He also questioned why the BTP did not investigate or dismiss Ridgewell after 1973 when the anti-mugging squad he led was disbanded. At the time there were concerns he was planting evidence and fabricating confessions, Holroyde noted.
He said instead of being investigated, Ridgewell was moved to the Bricklayers Arms depot where he led a conspiracy to steal and accused Campbell and others of being responsible.
Henry Blaxland KC, representing Campbell’s family, told the court: “Ridgewell simply continued where he had left off in the anti-mugging squad and Erroll Campbell became another of his victims.”
He said: “In this, and similar cases, the court is dealing with victims of miscarriage of justice brought about by state crime. The malign dishonesty of those who have the responsibility of upholding the law and who, in abusing their power, throw a dark shadow over the administration of justice can lead to loss of confidence, not only in the police but in the legal system as a whole.
“The corrosive impact of police, racism and corruption is incalculable, not only on the immediate victim, but also on his wider family.”
Appearing for the crown, Fiona Robertson said it was accepted that what is now known about Ridgewell made his evidence inadmissible.
Campbell Jr’s statement, read to the court by Blaxland, said his father had come to England from Barbados as part of the Windrush generation. “He enjoyed his job. He worked there over decades until he was arrested.”
Campbell Jr said as a 14-year-old he had witnessed his father returning from the police station with bruises on his face, stomach and back. “He always said he was completely innocent of these offences. I remember his saying this before his trial and throughout the rest of his life. He called it ‘[N-word] hunting’ by the police.”
A statement read on his behalf outside the Royal Courts of Justice by Campbell Jr’s solicitor, Matt Foot, said: “The British Transport Police knew that DS Derek Ridgewell was corrupt, and they let him carry on regardless with what he was doing. The conviction caused absolute misery to my dad and our family.”
