Jill Dando's co-host Nick Ross blasts courts after prime suspect allowed to walk free

Jill Dando's Crimewatch co-host has spoken out on the 25th anniversary of her death and said he believes the main suspect shouldn't have been let free.

Nick Ross, 73, has shared his thoughts on the case after the beloved journalist was shot dead outside her home in Fulham, London

on April 26, 1999. He says the "courts got it wrong" after they let the sole prime suspect connected to her murder walk free. The murder probe sparked one of the largest murder inquiries in Met Police history and caused devastation to her co-workers and her fiancé Alan Farthing.

The force arrested Barry George who was previously known for his history of stalking women and sexual offences. He was found guilty of her murder in 2001 after officers discovered gun powder residual on his clothing. However, his conviction was dropped in 2008 after he spent seven years in prison and was unanimously acquitted following a retrial.

Nick Ross told Metro: "I am pretty sure the courts got it wrong. How many gangland criminals have killed judges and other anti-crime mouthpieces? This theory was always absurd. A forensic psychologist said from the start the killer would be someone like Barry George."

The comments come after The Mirror revealed that a man wanted for questioning in relation to the murder case, carries a striking resemblance to a secrets service assassin. The unidentified person was captured on CCTV following the gunman’s likely get out route after the presenter was killed. According to facial comparison expert Emi Polito, there are several similarities between “Man X” in the footage and twice-convicted murderer Milorad Ulemek, who is serving 40 years in a Serbian prison.

Mr George, who was wrongly convicted of the murder, previously told The Mirror that Ulemek needed to be questioned over the shooting. Mr George said: "If he’s the person who committed that crime then he should face the full letter of the law and be brought from Serbia to the UK and be dealt with through the courts."

Michael Mansfield KC, who defended Mr George during the first trial, said: “I would call for there to be a review and for the investigation to be resuscitated. The Metropolitan Police has a duty to Jill Dando's family and loved ones, to Barry George and the public to fully investigate this new line of inquiry uncovered by the Daily Mirror." He added: "This should include a full forensic examination of the original CCTV of the unidentified man, all recovered finger and palm prints and to ascertain the movements of Ulemek at the time."