Trio to stand trial charged with murdering man over 20 years ago

6 days ago

Three suspects are to stand trial charged with the murder of a man more than 20 years ago.
Malcolm Kelt, 52, Alan Colvan, 42, and Marc Harris, 39, are accused of killing Darren Birt in Glasgow's Barlanark on August 28, 2002.
It is initially claimed they did shout and threaten the 22-year-old as well as chase after him and hit him with a bottle.
Prosecutors claim he was then repeatedly attacked on the head and body with a knife or knives.
The murder charge also states Mr Birt was struck with a hammer or similar weapon.
The trio are finally said to have punched and kicked the man.
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It is further claimed they did previously display "malice and ill-will" towards him.
Kelt, Colvan and Harris face a separate allegation of attempting to pervert the course of justice.
This includes an accusation that they got rid of weapons used in the murder.
It is also claimed the trio changed their clothes and told a named man to wash the items.
The indictment claims this was all done in a bid to avoid "detection, arrest and prosecution" for the alleged killing.
This charge lists a number of different addresses in Barlanark.
The case called for a hearing at the High Court in Glasgow today.
Defence KCs Murray Macara, Donald Findlay and Tony Graham pled not guilty on behalf of each of the suspects.
The lawyers along with prosecutor Alex Prentice KC agreed a trial could set.
A continued preliminary hearing will take place in October this year at the High Court in Edinburgh after several legal issues were raised.
Mr Findlay said: "In cold cases, there will be particular issues that arise which are particular to this type of case.
"I have been in constant discussions as there are various matters.
"The advocate depute knows what I need to resolve and knows what I need from him."
A possible special defence may also be lodged by Mr Findlay in due course.
He said: "This is causing a little difficulty due to a trial from all these years."
Mr Prentice stated that the Crown will mostly rely on CCTV and witness accounts.
Lord Mulholland went on to fix a trial and it is scheduled to begin in October next year at the High Court in Glasgow. The case could last 16 days.
Police Scotland had renewed their appeal for information into Mr Birt's death in October 2022.
A senior detective also appeared on BBC's Crimewatch morning show.
Crimestoppers further offered a £20,000 reward to anyone who contacted them with information.

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Met Police urged to scrap facial recognition at Notting Hill Carnival over 'racial bias' fears

Yahoo

2 hours ago

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Met Police urged to scrap facial recognition at Notting Hill Carnival over 'racial bias' fears

Civil liberties and anti-racism groups have called on Met Police to abandon plans to deploy Live Facial Recognition (LFR) at this year's Notting Hill Carnival, warning of 'racial bias.' In a letter to Met Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley, 11 organisations, including Liberty, Big Brother Watch, and the Runnymede Trust, described LFR as 'mass surveillance' that 'treats all Carnival-goers as potential suspects.' It comes after Met Police announced plans to use facial recognition technology on the approaches to and from the event this year, though cameras will not be placed within the carnival boundaries themselves. Officers will use the cameras to identify individuals wanted by police, missing persons who might be at risk of exploitation and those subject to sexual harm prevention orders. The technology captures live footage and compares faces against a database of known offenders. But the groups have expressed their disappointment at the decision to reintroduce the technology at Carnival, warning that it may be 'less accurate for women and people of colour.' The letter states: "There is no clear legal basis for your force's use of LFR. No law mentions facial recognition technology and Parliament has never considered or scrutinised its use,' according to the BBC. "Notting Hill Carnival is an event that specifically celebrates the British African Caribbean community, yet the [Metropolitan Police] is choosing to use a technology with a well-documented history of inaccurate outcomes and racial bias." The letter also highlighted concerns over a 2023 National Physical Laboratory study, which found that the Met's NeoFace system showed reduced accuracy for women and people of colour, depending on the algorithm used. The Met says LFR is accurate and balanced across ethnicity and gender and has insisted it will help keep people safe. The force emphasised strict safeguards were in place and anyone passing a camera who is not on the watchlist will have their biometrics immediately and permanently deleted. Police will deploy around 7,000 officers each day during the August Bank Holiday weekend event, focusing heavily on public safety, particularly preventing knife crime and violence against women and girls. So far in 2025, LFR has been deployed 111 times across London, leading to 512 arrests. During Carnival weekend, alerts from LFR systems will prompt officers to investigate further, although an alert does not automatically mean an arrest. Met Police has been contacted by The Standard for comment.