Suspect 'told by police what to say': Three men jailed for the murder of a prostitute were cleared yesterday by the Court of Appeal. Rachel Borrill examines events leading up to their conviction

LYNETTE WHITE began work early on St Valentine's Day 1988. Charging pounds 20 a time, she took her clients to her 'punters' room' in Butetown, Cardiff.

Six hours later Ms White, 20, had been murdered. Her fully clothed body lay on the bed. She had been stabbed more than 50 times, her left breast was almost severed and her throat was slit to the spine.

Ms White had struggled with her attacker. In the room there were more than 149 fingerprints, blood from a rare group, hair, saliva and semen. On one wall a man's handprint was preserved by a spray of blood.

Within days South Wales Police had their first suspect. Several witnesses had seen a white man wearing blood-stained clothing in a distressed state outside her flat shortly after the murder. A photofit was issued and Detective Chief Superintendent John Williams told the BBC's Crimewatch in May 1988: 'This man almost certainly had the blood of the deceased on him.'

Ten months later the investigation changed tack. Although the white man had not been eliminated, eight people, seven of them black, were arrested. All were tested negatively for blood in the room; three were released and five charged with murder.

Stephen Miller, Tony Paris, Yusef Abdullahi, Ronnie Actie and his cousin John were all known to the police. The main evidence against them came from Leanne Vilday and Angela Psaila, two prostitute friends of Ms White. After 42 hours in police custody they claimed they had seen the five men murder Ms White and were forced to slash her wrists in a 'pact of silence'.

Ms Vilday named several different killers in 18 police statements. On 26 December 1988 she wrote to a friend: 'The police said I must either say I was there and I saw the five boys and get out the police station that day, and then be a main witnesses to this fucking murder case. Or I had to say the same as I've said from the day I found the girl. If I had I would have been in the dock with them for murder.'

Mr Miller was Ms White's boyfriend. He said that on the night of the murder he was drinking in a club. Although several witnesses supported his alibi, none gave evidence at the trial. Three new witnesses were only disclosed to the defence several months ago.

Mr Miller, who has a mental age of 11, was the only one to confess, in his 19th interview. 'No matter what I said the police were not going to believe me. The pressure was unbelievable. They did the nice and nasty treatment first, then they became aggressive. Basically I confirmed the two girls' statements. They told me what to say and I agreed with it,' he said.

Thirteen witnesses said they saw Yusef Abdullahi working throughout the night of the murder on a ship in Barry harbour, eight miles away.

Three weeks after the men's conviction, Geraldine Palk, a shipping clerk, was murdered in the Fairweather district of Cardiff. She had been stabbed 83 times and, as with Ms White, there were deep wounds to her chest, wrists and throat. South Wales Police, who are still searching for her killer, maintain there is no connection between the cases.

(Photograph omitted)