Independent investigation begins following wrongful conviction of Andrew Malkinson after he spent 17 years in prison for rape he didn't commit

An independent investigation has started into the way the complaints from lawyers representing Andrew Malikson - who spent 17 years in prison for a rape he didn't commit - were handled.

The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) has begun a probe 'as a result of its review into the way Greater Manchester Police handled complaints' from Mr Malkinson's legal team. The 57-year-old was wrongly convicted and jailed for a violent rape on a woman by the M61 motorway in Little Hulton in July 2003.

His conviction was overturned by senior judges at the Court of Appeal last month after DNA evidence linked another man to the crime. The Justice Secretary has ordered an independent inquiry into the circumstances and handling of Mr Malkinson's case after his conviction was quashed.

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The IOPC said it looked at GMP's handling of a complaint 'containing an allegation regarding the failure to keep items of evidence, as well as the alleged failure to reveal information relating to two witnesses who gave evidence at Mr Malkinson's trial'. The IOPC said caseworkers 'highlighted significant issues with GMP's investigation into the complaints' and 'identified several outstanding lines of inquiry'.

"As a result, we have begun an independent investigation into the allegations," the watchdog said.

IOPC director of operations Amanda Rowe said: "My thoughts are with Mr Malkinson, who has suffered greatly as a result of one of the worst miscarriages of justice in British legal history. Given our concerns over GMP’s handling of the complaints - and the significant public interest in a case that led to a man spending 17 years in jail for a crime he didn’t