A farmer who was jailed for shooting a teenage burglar dead has said he still wants to clear his name but fears he’s “run out of steam”. Tony Martin says he may have to abandon his plan to appeal to the Criminal Cases Review Commission due to his age and lack of fresh evidence.
The 78-year-old was jailed for killing Fred Barras, 16, and seriously injuring his pal Brendon Fearon after they broke into his isolated farm in 1999. He was found guilty of murder the following year but the conviction was quashed on appeal and he spent three years in prison for manslaughter, the Mirror reports.
Now - just ahead of the 20th anniversary of walking free in July 2003 - Mr Martin maintains that the manslaughter conviction should also be overturned. In an interview at Bleak House Farm where he shot the burglars, he added he has not stepped foot in the dilapidated farmhouse since the killing.
