Michael Barrymore: Man arrested over murder at entertainer’s home released without charge

Police say they had ‘no realistic chance’ of prosecuting man accused of murdering Stuart Lubbock

Stuart Lubbock died after suffering severe internal injuries in 2001 (PA)

A man arrested in March on suspicion of the indecent assault and murder of Stuart Lubbock has been released without charge.

Mr Lubbock was found dead at the home of television presenter Michael Barrymore in 2001 following a party with eight other people.

Essex Police said in a statement there was “insufficient evidence to reach the … realistic chance of a successful prosecution”, so the man in custody “has been released without further action”.

DCI Stephen Jennings, the force’s senior investigating officer, said detectives had “worked tirelessly” to secure justice for Mr Lubbock’s family and described the news as a “huge personal disappointment” to those involved in the case.

“We have explored all possible lines of enquiry and sometimes, regrettably, the evidence is not yet there to issue charges. I know that this may be of little comfort to Stuart’s father and his family,” he said.

“At every stage, it is the Lubbock family and our search for justice for them that dominates our thoughts and our actions. We have tried our best. We will continue to try our best.”

DCI Jennings added the force has “never given up on this case” and all they want is to “deliver justice for Mr Lubbock and his family”.

Mr Lubbock, a butcher, was attending a party at Barrymore’s luxury home in Roydon, Essex, with eight other people on 31 March 2001 when he died.

A post-mortem examination showed the 31-year-old had suffered severe internal injuries which suggested he had been sexually assaulted. Alcohol, ecstasy and cocaine were also found in his bloodstream.

The coroner subsequently recorded an open verdict.

Mr Lubbock’s father Terry, who is seriously ill, told Press Association via a friend that he wanted officers to reconsider their decision to let the only suspect in the case walk free.

“I’ve spoken to Terry, and he wants the police to review the decision,” Harry Cichy told the news agency.

Terry appeared in the 2020 Channel 4 documentary Barrymore: The Body in the Pool, which analysed the events of the night that culminated in his son’s body being found floating in Barrymore’s pool.

DCI Jennings spoke about Essex Police’s decision to cooperate with the documentary in his statement.

“When we were approached to be part of the Channel 4 documentary exploring this case, we saw a further opportunity to bring the case to the fore once more … when the programme aired, for the first time in the case’s 20-year history we also took the opportunity to launch a £20,000 reward with Crimestoppers – this was later doubled to £40,000,” he said.

“The appeal generated fresh information, all of which our detectives reviewed and acted upon. I will repeat: we believe someone, or some people, at that party know what happened.”

The detective finished by saying: “This case, like all of our unsolved crimes, will remain open and we will continue to pursue any reasonable lines of inquiry.”

Anyone with information can contact Essex Police on 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.