THOMPSON MURDER: Police delight - and warning to other killers

Mark Weston, 35, was jailed for life today after a jury at Reading Crown Court found him guilty of killing Mrs Thompson in Ascott-under-Wychwood in 1995.

Weston, now 35, had beaten police once - in 1996 a jury at Oxford Crown Court acquitted him of the killing.

But the crime was re-investigated by Thames Valley Police's major crime review team and they found tiny traces of Mrs Thompson's blood on Weston's shoes that had been missed back in the 1990s.

That led to today's verdict - only the third conviction under the new 'double jeopardy' laws that allow people to be re-tried for a crime they have previously been acquitted of if there is new evidence.

Det Supt Barry Halliday, head of the MCRT, said: "Weston was originally tried in 1996 and the jury returned a verdict of not guilty.

"Thanks to an intensive investigation by my team, working closely with the Crown Prosecution Service, LGC Forensics, and the Forensic Science Service, new forensic evidence was uncovered which proved Weston’s guilt and he has now been convicted of Vikki’s murder.

"Weston pleaded not guilty and has still shown no remorse for his crime.

"Although the Thompson family now have the knowledge that the person who killed Vikki is behind bars and being punished for his crime, they have still lost a much loved wife, daughter and mother, and Weston has not given any reason or explanation of why he killed Vikki.

"This is only the third murder conviction in the UK under the new double jeopardy laws.

"Offenders should be aware that my team, and others like it across the country, will continue to relentlessly investigate unsolved homicides and serious sexual assaults to bring those responsible to justice."

The Crown Prosecution Service's reviewing lawyer Denis Burke said: "This prosecution would not have been possible without the thorough reinvestigation of the case by the Thames Valley Major Crime Review team and the experts involved."