A BBC documentary has explained how a tuft of blue fibres found in the mouth of a murder victim helped lead police to her killer, according to a report in The Daily Mail.
The documentary Expert Witness has re-examined the investigation of Vina Patel murder, which focused on the work of Professor Roger Robson, a leading expert in the forensic examination of textile fibres and hairs.
The BBC series reveals how some of the UK’s most serious and complex cases were solved by the expertise of a band of unsung heroes – the expert witnesses.
The body of Patel, 51, was found at the bottom of the stairs at Cort and Co solicitors in Blackbird Road, Leicester, on 15 January 2009.
John Cort, 54, of Rutland Street, Leicester, was convicted of killing Vina Patel so he could claim life insurance. His hitman Brian Farrell, 37, of Queensborough Terrace was jailed for a minimum term of 27 years.
They had tried to make the death, at Cort's office, look like an accident. Her body was discovered by her husband and daughter at the bottom of the staircase, making it look like a fall.
Professor Jobson was able to analyse distinctive blue fibres found on Patel's body, eventually helping to tie her murder to her business partner Cort, The Mail report, based on the documentary, said
According to reports, forensic investigators found tufts of blue fibre hanging out the side of her mouth and sticking out between the fingers of one hand.
Professor Jobson analysed the morphology, cross-sectional shape, colour and chemical composition of the two fibre samples and established they were of the same material. He then eliminated the possibility the fibres had simply been transferred from something she came into contact with in her home or office.
Later, investigators traced a company based in Bradford, and eventually, they found out that it was made in India.
"They weren't exporting them to the UK or Europe but were exporting to one outlet in Jamaica. At the same time, police had looked into the dealings of her business partner, John Cort, also a close friend of 30 years," Professor Robson was quoted as saying in the documentary.
DNA found on Patel's body was a close match to Brian Farrell, described by the BBC as a friend and sometimes lover of Cort.
Farrell had recently returned from Jamaica. Police believed he bought the rug on his visit, brought it back to the UK, then wrapped Patel's body in the rug, The Mail report added.
Weeks before Patel's death, Cort had persuaded her they should up their life assurance cover from £500,000 to £1.5 million, claiming he had a serious illness.
More than £650,000 had gone missing from the company's client account, which should have been paid to customers or mortgage lenders. He also took £1.1million out of the business, the BBC claimed in the series.
During the trial at Nottingham Crown Court, the court heard that debt-ridden Cort hired Farrell to commit the murder in a 'contract killing' that would lead to a huge life assurance payout.
"Just a couple of tufts of fibres, leads you across the world to India, then back to the other side of the world to Jamaica, then all the way back to Leicester again. It just shows the powerful inferences fibre can bring to an investigation," Professor Robson was quoted as saying in the documentary.
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