A journalist turned detective to uncover crime scene photographs which led to the jailing of a rapist 25 years after he committed the offence.
Kevin Moloney, 44, of Brough, near Hull, admitted raping a woman in her house in Cottingham after Hull Daily Mail reporter Nicky Harley discovered copies of police photographs of the crime scene that had gone missing.
The original police photos had been lost unbeknown to former detective superintendent Barry Lilley who led the original police investigation.
The journalist made her discovery while interviewing Lilley as part of her research into the crime.
?The pictures destroyed Moloney?s tissue of lies,? reports the Hull Daily Mail.
?They showed a smashed back door where he had forced entry to the property.?
Moloney had claimed that Beatrice De Kanter, 69 ? who died in 2001 – had consented to sex on her sofa in 1985.
But the newly discovered pictures showed that there were ?piles of newspapers and other rubbish? on the couch, added the newspaper.
The photos were admitted as fresh evidence, along with DNA which police matched to Moloney using new techniques.
Moloney pleaded guilty and was sentenced to four years in prison at Hull Crown Court earlier this week.
The journalist was given the High Sheriff Award for helping to bring the rapist to justice.
For more visit The Hull Daily Mail.
