DNA Evidence Frees UK Man After Decades in Prison for Crime He Didn't Commit
- Peter Sullivan was exonerated after 38 years in prison for a 1986 murder following new DNA evidence that proved his innocence.
- He alleges police beat him, denied him legal counsel, and forced a confession by exploiting his learning difficulties.
- he real killer of Diane Sindall remains unknown as police reopen the investigation while Sullivan seeks compensation and an apology.
A man who spent 38 years in prison for a murder he did not commit has broken his silence to describe the torture he endured at the hands of police. Peter Sullivan claims officers beat him brutally and forced him to confess to the 1986 killing of Diane Sindall. This is his first interview since being exonerated. He believes he was framed because he was a vulnerable target with learning difficulties.
The murder of 21-year-old Diane Sindall was a horrific crime that shook the town of Birkenhead in Wirral. She was severely beaten and sexually assaulted in an alleyway before succumbing to her injuries. The brutality of the attack led the media to dub the unknown killer with terrifying names like "The Beast of Birkenhead" and "The Wolfman." These labels stuck to Sullivan for decades and haunted him and his family long after the trial ended.
Sullivan's conviction was finally overturned by the Court of Appeal last May thanks to new DNA evidence that proved his innocence. Now 68 years old, he is demanding a full apology from Merseyside Police. The force has expressed regret that a "serious miscarriage of justice" occurred but maintains that officers acted within the laws of that era. Sullivan spoke from an undisclosed location with his face covered to protect his privacy. He wants to know why investigators specifically chose him to take the fall.
The interrogation process described by Sullivan paints a disturbing picture of police conduct in the 1980s. He was arrested on September 23, 1986, and interrogated 22 times over four weeks. For the first seven sessions, he was denied legal counsel. He claims officers covered him with a blanket in his cell and beat him with batons to force cooperation. "They beat me hard," he recalled. He also alleged that police deprived him of food and sleep and threatened to charge him with 35 other rapes if he didn't confess.
His vulnerability played a major role in the false confession. Despite having documented learning difficulties, he was not provided with an appropriate adult to help him understand the proceedings. He eventually broke down under the pressure. "It was bullying that made me give in because I couldn't take it anymore," Sullivan said. Court documents confirm that his initial confession was unrecorded and made without a lawyer present.
The prosecution's case relied heavily on bite mark evidence which is a forensic field that has since been widely discredited. They also used a map where Sullivan had marked the location of the victim's clothes. Sullivan claims an investigator guided his hand to the "correct" spot after he initially pointed to the wrong place. He wrote "this is all a lie" on that map, a detail his lawyer Sarah Myatt calls heartbreaking.
Life inside prison was a nightmare for a man branded a monster. Sullivan says he was tortured by other inmates because of the nature of his alleged crimes. He couldn't report the abuse for fear of being labeled a snitch which would only make things worse. He missed his mother's funeral in 2013 because she was buried in the same cemetery as the murder victim. Her dying wish was for him to keep fighting to clear his name.
Freedom finally came in 2025 after the Criminal Cases Review Commission ordered new tests on sperm samples found on the victim's body. The Crown Prosecution Service decided not to contest the appeal. When the verdict was read, Sullivan's parole officer wept before telling him, "Peter, you can go home." Sullivan says he felt tears stream down his face as he realized justice had finally been served.
Adjusting to the modern world has been terrifying. He went to prison when Margaret Thatcher was Prime Minister and the internet didn't exist. The volume of traffic on the roads today overwhelms him. He still sometimes stands in his bedroom waiting for a prison roll call that will never come. While he seeks compensation, which is capped at £1.3 million, his lawyer notes that no amount of money can replace 38 lost years.