Janet Alder has vowed to continue her fight for justice 20 years after her brother Christopher Alder died in police custody. The 37-year-old ex-paratrooper choked to death while handcuffed and face down on the floor of a Hull police station on 1 April 1998.
An inquest ruled his death as unlawful killing, but no one has been held accountable. Miss Alder, joined by supporters of the Justice for Christopher Alder campaign, led a silent procession to the police station where he died. She said: 'This is me saying to the system, you cannot shut me up.'
CCTV footage showed officers laughing and joking as Mr Alder lay dying, and it was more than 10 minutes before they went to his aid. In 2001, an inquest jury found he was unlawfully killed because his breathing was affected by lying face down. Misconduct and manslaughter charges against five officers were later acquitted.
A 2006 police watchdog report found four officers guilty of 'most serious neglect of duty' and 'unwitting racism'. The family suffered another blow in 2011 when they discovered a woman's body had been buried in place of Mr Alder in 2000. Last month, two officers were cleared of spying on Miss Alder during her campaign.
Humberside Police has apologised for failing to 'treat Christopher with sufficient compassion', but Miss Alder remains angry that no one has been held accountable. She said: 'I wake up every day reliving everything. It's had a massive effect on my life but I'm not going away. I will fight this to the end.'
