Scott Watson appeal: Why the controversial case is going back to the courtroom

The 1998 deaths of Ben Smart and Olivia Hope remain one of New Zealand’s most talked about cases.

Scott Watson has spent the last 25 years behind bars after being convicted of murdering them, despite no bodies ever being found.

Now, Watson is heading back to the courtroom four years after his case was referred back to the Court of Appeal, in what is his last shot at clearing his name.

Today on The Front Page, we’re going back to 1999 with NZ Herald senior journalist Carolyne Meng Yee and editorial leader Oskar Alley who covered Watson’s first trial, and then get a rundown on the appeal case with investigative reporter David Fisher. 

For more on the Scott Watson case, listen to Chasing Ghosts: Murder in the Sounds wherever you get your podcast. 

And for more on Scott Watson's trial, click here: https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/double-murderer-scott-watson-to-stay-behind-bars-as-parole-board-seek-clarity-over-differing-psychological-reports/QXMO2GJ32JFRRMHF36Y77B3PS4/ 

A previous version of this episode didn’t include the fact hairs were found on a blanket on the Blade and two of those hairs on the blanket were found to have DNA characteristics that matched Olivia. The split in a bag containing comparison hairs was also taken from a hairbrush in Olivia’s home. Neither Police nor ESR took the hairbrush from her home.

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You can read more about this and other stories in the New Zealand Herald, online at nzherald.co.nz, or tune in to news bulletins across the NZME network.

Host: Chelsea Daniels
Sound Engineer: Paddy Fox
Producer: Ethan Sills

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