Family let down after murder signs missed

The daughter of a Willenhall man, whose body had to be exhumed after a Home Office pathologist failed to spot he had been murdered, has said she feels let down by the doctor failing in his duties.

Dr Peter Acland missed signs of the attack on Mervyn Fletcher who was discovered with a fractured skull by his home in New Invention in October 2004. His work as a forensic pathologist has been brought to a halt pending a possible appeal.

Mr Fletcher's daughter Sonia Bullock has spoken for the first time about the action taken.

She said the family felt "let down" by the pathologist as the 69-year-olds body had to be exhumed from Willenhall Lawn Cemetery before someone could be brought to justice. Mustafa Abdullah, aged 40, of Murdoch Way, Beechdale, was found guilty of murder at Wolverhampton Crown Court in 2007 and was sentenced to life in prison after a trial.

Mother-of-three Mrs Bullock, who also a sister Theresa, said: "We just think if he had done his job properly my father would not have had to be exhumed and we would have got the conviction sooner, it has caused a lot of distress to this family." The original post mortem found that he died as a result of his head injuries caused by a diabetes-induced fall.

After a National Policing Improvement Agency (NPIA) disciplinary tribunal at the end of March Dr Acland was removed from the list of Home Office forensic pathologists pending an appeal. If he does appeal he will remain suspended until the outcome.