Judges overturn conviction of man found guilty of sex offences after his death

A bid to overturn the child sex abuse conviction of a former boarding school worker found guilty by a jury following his suicide during his trial has succeeded.

Darren Turk, 54, hanged himself last June while he was on trial accused of offences against boys aged between 11 and 15 at Frewen College in Northiam, East Sussex, between 1996 and 2002.

After his death, a jury at Lewes Crown Court found him guilty of 10 child sex-related offences and not guilty on six counts in what is believed to be the first time a dead man has been convicted of a crime in England.

Mr Turk's family criticised the decision of the trial judge to allow jurors to return verdicts after he had died.

On Thursday, three judges in the Court of Appeal said the verdicts were wrongfully returned and must be set aside as a nullity with the convictions annulled.