Following a recent Google search, a man previously convicted based on false evidence provided by a corrupt police officer is having his case reviewed by the courts. The corrupt officer, Det Sgt Derek Ridgewell, was responsible for framing at least 13 men, primarily from the Black community in London during the 1970s. Although Ridgewell passed away in prison in 1982, investigators from the British Transport Police are now looking into his former colleagues and examining testimonies from witnesses and victims.
Former detective Graham Satchwell, who collaborated with victim Winston Trew on the book “Rot at the Core,” has uncovered evidence suggesting that Ridgewell may have targeted over 100 individuals. Satchwell suspects that as many as 18 corrupt police officers were involved in the scandal.
The Criminal Cases Review Commission announced that Christopher Poulter’s case, a 50-year-old conviction, is the latest to be sent to the Court of Appeal for reconsideration. Poulter, convicted at the age of 21 for mailbag theft in Clapham, south London, alongside two others, served a year in prison. One of his co-defendants had his conviction overturned in 2018.
In a significant turn of events, it was revealed that Ridgewell, the arresting officer in Simmons’ case, had been imprisoned for similar crimes before the trial took place in April 1976. Despite facing corruption allegations, Ridgewell’s credibility was not questioned, and he played a pivotal role in securing convictions. BTP authorities chose to transfer Ridgewell to handle mail theft cases rather than investigate the accusations against him. Ridgewell was eventually convicted for theft in 1980.
Although Ridgewell’s criminal activities were exposed in 1980 and Simmons came forward in 2013, it wasn’t until 2024 that the British Transport Police initiated an investigation. Jenny Wiltshire, solicitor for Poulter, expressed relief at the case referral by the CCRC, acknowledging the impact of the wrongful conviction on Poulter’s life. Wiltshire commended the BTP for finally taking steps to address Ridgewell’s victims.
Ridgewell’s wrongful actions also affected Winston Trew and four others, who were falsely accused by him in 1972. They were unjustly imprisoned for eight months before having their convictions overturned nearly five decades later.
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