Family of murdered private eye gets £2m payout over 36-year unsolved axe killing

17 July 2023 , 21:12

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Daniel Morgan was murdered in a pub car park in South London in 1987, with his killers never traced (Image: PA)

The family of private investigator Daniel Morgan have agreed a £2million settlement from the Met Police over his 36-year unsolved murder.

It comes after an independent panel in 2021 accused the force of institutional corruption for hiding failings in a string of probes into the brutal axe killing.

The dad of two, 37, was attacked in the car park of the Golden Lion pub in Sydenham, South London, on March 10, 1987.

Five police inquiries, costing the taxpayer an estimated £30m, failed to get a conviction as Mr Morgan’s family battled for justice.

They will receive one of the biggest payouts in British policing history, in a settlement that also covers legal fees.

Double killer who slit girlfriend's throat within weeks of release jailed

The payout is thought to be one of the biggest in policing history (PA)

Sir Mark Rowley, Met Commissioner, is expected to apologise this week for “corruption, incompetence and defensiveness” in its response to the murder.

Five relatives, including Daniel’s brother Alastair, lodged a civil claim alleging misfeasance in public office and breaches of the Human Rights Act.

They said in 2021: “Three generations of our family have suffered as the collateral damage resulting from the inexcusable failure of the institutions of the state to do what was required of them in the face of institutionalised police corruption.”

Their claim came after panel chair Baroness Nuala O’Loan said the Met protected itself by refusing to acknowledge its many failings.

Ex-Met Commissioner Dame Cressida Dick apologised but denied that her force was institutionally corrupt. The Met declined to comment.

Tom Pettifor