Murder victim 'seen after death'

Charlotte Pinkney disappeared in February 2004

Teenager Charlotte Pinkney was seen alive more than 12 hours after she was alleged to have been murdered, the Court of Appeal has heard.

The new evidence was presented by lawyers for Nicholas Rose, 24, who was found guilty in 2005 of murdering the 16-year-old in Ilfracombe, Devon.

Appeal judges are considering whether his conviction is unsafe.

Two witnesses said they saw Charlotte in a pub after she is alleged to have been killed, the court was told.

Postman Nick Perrin and 18-year-old Poppy Humphries said they saw Charlotte in the Victoria Hotel, Ilfracombe, on the afternoon of 28 February 2004.

Body missing

She was alleged to have been murdered in the early hours of that day by Rose, a scaffolder who was said to have targeted her for sex and driven her away from a house party.

She disappeared and her body has never been found.

Mr Perrin told the court that he saw Charlotte in the pub at about 1420 BST on 28 February 2004.

He said she was sitting on the knee of Gus O'Brien - described at the trial as her boyfriend - and "crying a lot".

Mr Perrin said he remembered the occasion because of the pattern of his work that day and he recalled seeing a friend unusually drinking orange juice.

Upset and crying

Crown counsel Paul Dunkels QC told the court Rose's grandmother, Doris Brown, had called at Mr Perrin's house after the trial and asked him if he had seen Charlotte in the pub on 28 February.

Miss Humphries, 18, told judges she also saw Charlotte upset and crying in the pub on the same day with Gus O'Brien.

She remembered the date because it was the anniversary of her grandfather's death.

She agreed that she and her sister had corresponded with Rose in prison after his conviction.

Rose, of Foreland View, Cairn Road, Ilfracombe, was found guilty at Exeter Crown Court in February last year.

'Seen alive'

Judge Graham Cottle told Rose he would serve a minimum of 20 years.

He was granted permission to challenge the verdict on grounds that include complaints relating to whether certain evidence should have gone before the jury and in relation to the judge's summing up.

Thursday's Appeal Court hearing follows an adjournment allowing Rose's lawyers more time to investigate claims she was seen alive when he was in custody.

Philip Mott QC, for Rose, said the additional evidence would have been called at the trial, if they had been aware of it, and it would have strengthened his case "considerably".

The hearing continues.