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Colin Stagg: I've been terribly wronged
18 Dec 2008Colin Stagg became the most hated man in Britain when he was named as the prime suspect in the Rachel Nickell case.
And few believed he was actually innocent when the judge threw out the case against him.
He was a loner who did not mix much outside his home on a council estate in Roehampton on the edge of Wimbledon Common.
He had seemed like the perfect fit for the killer, as set out by criminal profiler Dr Paul Britton.
There were pagan signs around the flat and Mr Stagg was awkward around women.
He also seemed to fit an artist's impression of the killer drawn up from accounts by witnesses.
For more than a decade, Mr Stagg lived under the shadow of the killing. He said he became unemployable.
Despite admitting to trying to please an undercover policewoman with his replies to her letters, Mr Stagg never confessed to the killing.
Earlier this year, he was awarded a record £706,000 compensation from the Home Office, which he described as "like winning the lottery".
Miss Nickell's son Alex, now 19 and living abroad with his father, was reportedly awarded just £90,000 in criminal injuries compensation.
The award to Mr Stagg was decided by Lord Brennan QC, a Government assessor, who described the police tactics as "reprehensible".
Afterwards, Mr Stagg, 45, said he also wanted an apology from the Metropolitan Police.
He said he wanted to build a new life with his girlfriend, whom he has known since school.
He said: "There will always be people who think I had something to do with the murder, and nothing I can do will convince them otherwise.
"I got so used to people coming up to me and shouting 'nonce' that I started to live with a fortress mentality."
He added: "The only difference is that now people are also coming up and saying sorry for thinking the worst of me."
"But there's still a lot of people that need to say sorry. I have been terribly wronged."
Reader views (1)
You have been terrible wronged mate,you were stereotyped like many in society. I'm pleased you got a good payout,i wish you well.
- Kev, London, 18/12/2008 14:57
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