Mr FN

Mr FN was convicted in August 2004 of rape of a female under 16 and received a sentence of 12 years’ imprisonment.

The CCRC received an application for review of the conviction in November 2012.

During review, the CCRC obtained fresh expert medical evidence consisting of two reports which were highly critical of the examination method, documentation, and conclusions of the expert paediatrician who gave evidence for the prosecution at trial.

As the the trial expert’s evidence was key to the prosecutions case and because the judge placed considerable weight on it in his summing up, the CCRC concluded that this new medical evidence undermined a crucial aspect of the prosecution case and gave rise to a real possibility the Court of Appeal would find Mr FN’s conviction unsafe.

The CCRC referred the conviction in February 2017.

The Court of Appeal upheld the conviction in April 2019.