With the collapse of the Old Bailey hearing, those who murdered Morgan will never be brought to book. Nevertheless the Home Secretary Theresa May, disquieted by what she called this “horrific murder”, opened a Hillsborough-style independent inquiry in May 2013. Police promised to co-operate but for two years they hesitated to hand over case papers. Why? On 10 March 2105, the twenty eighth anniversary of the murder, Alastair Morgan wrote and hand delivered a letter to Rupert Murdoch. “We need to know the truth about what happened to Daniel and why. You are in a unique position to help us finally lay Daniel to rest.” (The letter went unanswered.)
Southern Investigations is now defunct. Sid Fillery helps to run a public house in Norfolk. Jonathon Rees lives with Margaret Harrison in Weybridge, Surrey. The Golden Lion, a former Victorian music-hall, has been refurbished over the years with chintz fittings, brass candlesticks and framed sepia photographs. The tasteful pale peach ceiling is also new but otherwise the Golden Lion remains every inch a south-east London community pub. The only shadow cast across the interior is the killing, on the night of 10 March 1987, of the private detective who knew too much. So far the Morgan enquiry has cost the British taxpayer over £50 million in police and other expenditures. There is more than enough darkness in his murder for us all.
This is a longer version of an article that was due to be published in the Independent on 10 March 2016. It was pulled off the page at the last minute owing to “complications”.
The ‘Daniel Morgan Murder’ podcast, sponsored by Squarespace and distributed by Acast, goes out in late April/early May.