Charlene justice stifled by politics

FROM UKIP’S DEPUTY LEADER

ON November 1, 2003, schoolgirl Charlene Downes kissed her mother goodbye and made her way down to the Blackpool Promenade. She’d never be seen again.

After being registered as a missing person for more than a year, Lancashire Police came to the conclusion Charlene had been murdered that night.

What also became apparent was Charlene’s chaotic lifestyle.

She had been expelled from school and was a regular figure seen hanging around the local fast food outlets most evenings.

During the investigation it also became clear that she had been the victim of sexual abuse during those lonely evenings.

Arrests followed and in 2007 two men, Iyad Albattikhi of the FunBoyz kebab house and businessman Mohammed Reveshi, were put on trial for the murder and the disposal of the body.

According to the prosecution both had had sex with Charlene, after which she was murdered and her body disposed of in kebabs.

The jury failed to reach a verdict and the prosecution withdrew its evidence before the retrial. The two men were aquitted of all charges. Lancashire Police rightly came in for some heavy criticism.

The trial of Albattikhi and Reveshi however exposed “endemic child sexual abuse” in Blackpool, and a former chief superintendent admitted that investigations into such abuse were being hampered by “political correctness”.

In desperation, Charlene’s mother, Karen, turned to the then BNP Chairman Nick Griffin for help. Whether this was a wise move I’m not so sure because it muddied the waters and gave others the excuse not to get involved through fear of being tarred with the BNP brush.

As a result of her affiliation with BNP, Karen Downes became the target of smears and innuendos by hard-Left Labour sponsored organisations like Hope Not Hate.

However, in my opinion the fact Karen Downes turned to the BNP for help shouldn’t stop others from campaigning for Charlene.

This was the life of a young girl and it should be above political differences. We need Charlene’s killers brought to justice.

I was genuinely heartened to hear last week that Lancashire Police put out another call for information, offering a £100,000 reward for any information that leads to an arrest and conviction.

I also think that Charlene has been let down by the national media. The fact that I spoke to four of my friends – one a national newspaper journalist for 25 years – and not one of them had even heard of Charlene Downes speaks volumes.

There has been almost a national media blackout, which is why I’m sure this is the first time many of you have even heard of this disgusting case of injustice.

Indeed, I wonder whether the killers of Charlene Downes would still be walking our streets today had the media given her case the column inches they gave to the murder of Stephen Lawrence. A life is a life after all.

We need justice for Charlene Downes, her family and her friends – and we need it now.