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In September 1952, at the age of 28, Mahmood Mattan, a British Somali father of three, was hanged after being found guilty of murdering Lily Volpert at her clothing business in Cardiff. Until the end of his life, he maintained his innocence.

However, his conviction was the first by the Criminal Case Review Board to be overturned by an appeals court in 1998 thanks to the steadfast defense of his family.

Police Chief Constable Jeremy Vaughan South Walessaid: “This is a very common case, racism, bias and prejudice will be prevalent throughout society, including the criminal justice system.”

“There is no doubt that Mahmood Mattan is the victim of a miscarriage of justice following a flawed prosecution, of which the police are clearly a part,” he added.

Detective of Police Cardiff City, now a division of South Wales Police, investigated the March 1952 murder of Volpert, 41, whose throat had been slit in a shop near the pier, according to the Guardian.

“Investigation prior to the formation of South Wales Police,” Vaughan said.

“It is right and appropriate that an apology be made on behalf of the police for what went wrong in this case 70 years ago and for the terrible suffering of Mr Mattan’s family and all those affected by this tragedy over the years,” he added. .

“Even today we are working hard to ensure that racism and prejudice are eradicated from society and from the police,” he said.

Laura, Mattan’s wife, and their three children David, Omar and Mervyn, also known as Eddie, fought for his release for 46 years, but they are all dead.

“The apologies are too late for those directly affected as they are no longer with us and yet we have not heard my word / we are sorry,” Tanya Mattan, Mattan’s granddaughter, told the BBC .

Hours after Volpert’s murder, Mattan, a former sailor from Hargeisa in what became known as British Somaliland, was arrested.

A white jury found him guilty after a three-day trial in Swansea on the charges.

This is true even though Mattan has an alibi supported by a witness and no forensic evidence.

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Mattan has limited English skills, and during the trial his own defense attorney described him as a “semi-civilized primitive”.

Mattan’s family received compensation from the Home Office in 2001, but the police have yet to issue an apology.

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