Team to look at unsolved murders

A SPECIALIST police team is reviewing the files of 27 unsolved murder cases in South Yorkshire in the hope of catching killers who have evaded justice for years.

South Yorkshire Police has set up a major incident review team, which is examining all the force’s unsolved murder files and serious sexual assaults to establish whether there are any cases with a realistic prospect of being solved.

With advances in technology and science since many of the murders and sex attacks were committed, officers are looking at whether new ‘investigative opportunities’ now exist.

The force stresses no cases have yet been reopened and the team faces a task first of examining files dating from 1962.

A South Yorkshire Police spokeswoman said: “Since the major incident review team was set up in late 2016, the officers have been carefully sifting through and reviewing large quantities of evidence to identify if there are any further investigative opportunities which may now arise, taking into account developments in how investigations are now conducted and advances in forensic science.”

The oldest unsolved murder dates from 1962, when pensioner Lily Stephenson was bludgeoned to death in Springfield Place, Barnsley. The most recent case is the murder of 80-year-old Tommy Ward in his home on Salisbury Road, Maltby, Rotherham, in October 2015. Relatives will be informed if cases are reopened.