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BACK IN THE FRAME

Police go to home of suspected Jeremy Thorpe hitman believed dead for years… and discover he’s nowhere to be found

Andrew Newton, 72, has been accused of hiring a hitman to kill the Liberal leader’s gay ex-lover Norman Scott — before bungling an attempted assassination himself

A KEY suspect in the Jeremy Thorpe hitman scandal was back in the frame yesterday — as police who turned up at his home to quiz him left empty handed.

Andrew Newton, now 72, has been accused of hiring a hitman to kill the Liberal leader’s gay ex-lover Norman Scott — before bungling an attempted assassination himself in 1975.

Andrew Newton, under the alias Hann Redwin, posing in fetish gear
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Andrew Newton, under the alias Hann Redwin, posing in fetish gearCredit: Getty - Contributor

An investigation into the alleged plot was abandoned two years ago after police said Newton had died in May 2004.

But it has been revealed he is living in Dorking, Surrey, under the name Hann Redwin, forcing police to reopen the case.

Yesterday two officers were seen arriving at Newton’s home. They left after knocking on the door and getting no reply.

Questions are now being asked about why police believed Newton was dead even though he was living in plain sight for 14 years.

Andrew Newton pictured arriving at his partner's home in Dorking, Surrey
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Andrew Newton pictured arriving at his partner's home in Dorking, SurreyCredit: Steve Burton
Cops face questions over why they believed Newton had died in 2004
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Cops face questions over why they believed Newton had died in 2004Credit: PA:Press Association

He made no attempt to hide after changing his name in the early 1990s and openly wrote to magazines under the new identity.

Just five months after his supposed "death" he posed for a photos at a fetish event wearing a top hat, ringmaster’s jacket and leather thong.

The retired pilot’s links to the 1970s plot that shocked Britain were also widely discussed on aviation forums.
In 2014, one told how he had met Newton at a gig in London.
The poster wrote: “Hann Redwin was alive and well four years ago, because I spoke to him!

“I certainly found him a bit unusual to say the least and when someone told me who he really was, I stayed clear of him from then on.”

Jeremy Thorpe was embroiled in one of the greatest scandals of the century when it was claimed he had tried to have his ex-lover killed
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Jeremy Thorpe was embroiled in one of the greatest scandals of the century when it was claimed he had tried to have his ex-lover killedCredit: PA:Press Association/PA Images
And a simple Google search would have revealed to detectives the link between the two names.
In 1993 he was cleared of blame when his partner, Caroline Mayorcas, 45, plunged 1,000ft to her death as the couple tried to climb the Eiger in Switzerland.
She had never been on a mountain before and her parents described the tragedy as “very suspicious”.
Newton later told the inquest: “Life’s a bitch. But there we are.”
Details of Newton’s new life will spark huge embarrassment for cops and the Crown Prosecution Service who wrote him off as dead last year.
In 2016, Gwent Police launched a new probe into the 1975 scandal involving Thorpe - played by Hugh Grant in BBC drama A Very English Scandal.
Operation Velum aimed to looked into claims by Dennis Meighan he had been offered £13,500 - £140,000 today - by Newton and another man to kill Scott because he was threatening to expose his love affair with the married politician.
But the CPS wrote to Scott in February last year, telling him key witnesses “including Andrew Newton” were “now deceased”.
Police arriving to knock on Andrew Newton's door, a man they thought had died years ago
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Police arriving to knock on Andrew Newton's door, a man they thought had died years agoCredit: TIM ANDERSON

Last night Scott, now 78, blasted the force's failures as "utterly shameful".

He said: "I just don't think anyone's tried hard enough to look for him, I really don't.

"There must be people who knew him and there would surely be a record of him dying."

Gwent Police said: “‘We have now revisited these enquiries and have identified information which indicates that Mr Newton may still be alive.

“As a result, further enquiries will be conducted to trace Mr Newton to assess if he is able to assist the investigation.”

The plot features in BBC drama A Very English Scandal, with Hugh Grant as Thorpe
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The plot features in BBC drama A Very English Scandal, with Hugh Grant as Thorpe

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5 key questions

POLICE now face five key questions over Newton.

  1. What actions did they take to verify Newton was dead?
  2. Will he be quizzed over claims he tried to hire firearms expert Dennis Meighan as hitman?
  3. Newton got immunity from prosecution in 1979 to give evidence against Thorpe. Does it still apply?
  4. Will a decision not to prosecute Meighan because key witness Newton was dead be overturned?
  5. Could George Deakin, the only surviving defendant from the 1979 trial, face a re-trial?

In 1976 Newton was jailed for two years for shooting dead Scott’s Great Dane Rinka on Exmoor.

Scott claimed it was an assassination attempt and he only escaped because Newton’s gun jammed.

Thorpe, who died in 2014 aged 85, and three other men were all acquitted of conspiracy to murder in a sensational 1979 Old Bailey trial.

The plot features in BBC drama A Very English Scandal, with Hugh Grant as Thorpe.

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