Jason Moore is a millionaire gambler who was convicted of murder in 2013. He is now fighting to clear his name. After spending 13 years behind bars for a crime he claims he didn’t commit, Jason is ready to give hope another chance.
His case has drawn fresh scrutiny following shocking new developments, including a recanted eyewitness testimony and the revelation that the UK’s justice watchdog failed to track down a key witness. A bishop found the witness at his own home.
Moore is now 55. He was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 18 years. He was convicted for the 2005 murder of Robert Darby. The murder took place outside the Valentine pub in Gants Hill, East London. The prosecution’s case had only one key eyewitness, and they had placed the weight of the whole case upon him.
The eyewitness was named Abdul Ahmed. He identified Moore in a police photo line-up seven years after the murder. However, Ahmed had ironically failed to identify Moore in an earlier ID parade. He originally described a man much shorter than Moore as a potential suspect. According to Ahmed, the man had a different hairstyle than Moore.
Bishop of Stepney Dr Joanne Grenfell led @FreeJasonMoore campaigners up Downing Street yesterday to deliver a petition to Keir Starmer.
As documentary cameras rolled, a crowd of supporters watched and chanted from outside the gates.
My report & photos: https://t.co/b303ZpTzz3 pic.twitter.com/5sKgDnKVn1
— Charles Thomson (@CEThomson) September 3, 2024
In 2023, investigative journalist Charles Thomson sat down with Ahmed for an interview where he admitted that he had been drinking at the time of the incident. He also claimed that he is not confident about Moore being the attacker.
“I was drunk,” Ahmed said. “I don’t know” if I picked the right man. He also revealed that he had informed the police about his being drunk. However, this detail was never disclosed in court.
Once this revelation was made, the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) was tasked with investigating miscarriages of justice. However, the commission claimed that it was unable to locate Ahmed for 18 months. Then came the part that showcased how ill-prepared and lazy the department has become. In a stunning twist, the Bishop of Stepney, Dr. Joanne Grenfell, found Ahmed. She walked up to his door, knocked twice, and there he was, the key witness to the case.
Thinking of Jason and all the many thousands of other innocent, wrongly convicted prisoners all over the world who can’t spend Christmas with their loved ones. pic.twitter.com/297ow33INy
— Free Jason Moore (@FreeJasonMoore) December 25, 2023
The bishop has since publicly called the conviction unclear and unsafe. She has stated that the case raises “serious questions” about the competence of the CCRC. It also questions the institutional response to potential miscarriages of justice.
“A bishop with no powers found the key witness. The CCRC, with £8 million in funding and full authority, failed to do so. That should terrify people,” said Kirstie, Moore’s sister, as reported by Daily Mail. She has led the campaign for his release. If system could fail millionaires, how would it treat its vulnerable.
Moore has always maintained his innocence. He has again and again stated that he was in a parked car near the pub during the attack and never left the vehicle. He then fled the UK after the murder out of fear. When he returned, he was arrested based on Ahmed’s revised testimony. There was no other evidence connecting him to the crime.
Let’s make 2025 the year we finally see real change and demand justice for the wrongly convicted. #JusticeForJason #MiscarriagesOfJustice #InsideJustice #WrongfulConviction #CriminalJusticeReform #JusticeDelayed #FightForTruthhttps://t.co/dLcpZZBN71 pic.twitter.com/klDD2Sg1Jq
— Inside Justice (@insidejusticeUK) December 31, 2024
The CCRC is now under urgent review. This review was ordered after Andrew Malkinson’s wrongful conviction case. Ahmed has not yet been interviewed. Meanwhile, public pressure is mounting. People, including Bishop Grenfell and cricket legend Sir Ian Botham, backed the campaign to free Moore.
As Moore remains in HMP Oakwood, his frustration grows. “I have been rotting in this cell for 13 years. Every day is a day stolen from me,” he said. “Let them come and spend a day in my cell before making excuses.”
With fresh evidence and growing support, Moore’s legal team hopes the case will finally be referred back to the Court of Appeal for a potential exoneration.
