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Body of man crushed by cement mixer to be exhumed by detectives (Guardian)
Police mount new inquiry into death of Lee Balkwell in
2002 after failings were found in original investigation
Police mount new inquiry into death of Lee Balkwell in
2002 after failings were found in original investigation
much more at the link; interesting case, with ties to other interesting casesThe body of a man who was crushed to death by a cement mixer is to be exhumed by detectives who have been forced to mount a new inquiry into his death after pressure from relatives who believe he was murdered.
Over the past 11 years the death of Lee Balkwell, 33, in July 2002 has been the subject of an investigation by the Independent Police Complaints Commission and a review by one of the country's leading homicide detectives. It is now subject to a new investigation led by officers from the Kent and Essex serious crime directorate after failings in the original investigation were identified.
In a major development in the inquiry, detectives are to exhume the body of Balkwell from Corbets Tay cemetery in Upminster later this month as they pursue evidence which was not developed in the hours after the death.
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"We welcome this decision but we wish it had been done some time ago," said Les Balkwell. "What I want the police to look for is marks on his bones that might indicate he was stabbed and marks on his arms that could indicate he was tortured."
Balkwell, a haulage driver, was found mangled between the drum and chassis of a concrete mixer lorry on 18 July 2002 by emergency crews who were called to a concrete firm on a farm in Essex in the early hours of the morning. The farm was owned by a family who are known to police for drugs and firearms offences.
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