Rob Rinder, the television judge and former criminal defence barrister, is revisiting one of the most haunting cases of his career in a new documentary airing tonight. The programme, titled Rob Rinder: The Crime I Can't Forget, examines the unsolved murder of Lucy Hargreaves, a 22-year-old mother of three who was killed in her Liverpool home over 20 years ago.
The Case That Shocked a Nation
In August 2005, Lucy Hargreaves was asleep on her sofa in her home on Lambourne Road in Walton when three masked men broke in. They shot her three times with a sawn-off shotgun, poured petrol around the bottom of the stairs and doorway, and set the house on fire before fleeing. The brutal murder has remained one of Merseyside's most infamous unsolved cases. Despite 21 arrests over the years, no one has ever been convicted.
Rob Rinder was part of the original defence team. At the close of the prosecution's case, the trial judge ruled there was insufficient evidence for a jury to convict, leading to the acquittal of the defendants. The case has haunted Rinder ever since.
Rob Rinder: The Crime I Can't Forget
In this two-part documentary, Rinder returns to Liverpool to meet those who knew Lucy and, for the first time, speaks with her family, who have never publicly discussed her murder. Still seeking answers, they continue to call for Kevin Parle, who is on the National Crime Agency's most wanted list, to face justice.
The programme follows Rinder as he revisits key moments from the case, including a reunion with his former lead defence counsel, Rod Johnson KC, to explore the legal arguments that led to the case being stopped. He also meets former Metropolitan Police detective Peter Bleksley, who has spent years trying to trace Parle across Europe and the Middle East, providing context on one of the UK's most elusive fugitives.
As Rinder confronts the enduring emotional weight of the case, the documentary asks whether developments in the law, including the possibility of a trial in absence, could offer a route to further scrutiny of the evidence.
How to Watch
Rob Rinder: The Crime I Can't Forget airs tonight (Monday, June 8) at 9pm on Crime+Investigation. The one-hour episode runs until 10pm and is available on Sky channel 139, Virgin Media 133, and the Crime+Investigation streaming platform. The second episode airs next Monday (June 15) at 9pm.
Speaking about the programme, Rob Rinder said: "This is a case that has remained with me for two decades. Returning to it, to the people, the evidence, and the questions that endure, has been both challenging and deeply moving. I remain profoundly grateful to Lucy's family for the trust they have placed in me and the team in telling her story. While the legal process reached its conclusion at the time, the human impact of what happened continues to resonate. I hope this film contributes, in some way, to a fuller understanding of that impact."
