New murder investigation into death of Sutton woman Claire Martin in Italy

Italian authorities are to re-investigate the case of Claire Martin who suffered multiple stab wounds while living with her son and fiance in southern Italy.

Pathologists initially called the death a murder, but in a ruling which baffled the family, magistrates decided the death was suicide and had refused to reopen the case.

Now her parents Pat and Ray Martin say hair fibre and skin found under their 31-year-old daughter’s nails has led to the case being reopened.

They have always believed she was murdered.

Dr Stuart Hamilton, a Home Office pathologist, and retired detective Tony Blockley reopened the case file to re-examine the circumstances in a bid to ask Italian authorities to reconsider.

Dr Hamilton said: “If I was briefing a senior investigating officer at this autopsy, I would be suggesting that you need to go and find the murderer.”

Mr and Mrs Martin met with a public prosecutor in Italy who promised he would look again at the case.

speaking on the BBC East Midland’s documentary Inside Out, Mr Martin said: “Apparently hair fibre and skin that were found under my daughter’s nails has now been tested to see if they can glean any DNA off it.

“I honestly believe there’s a 50 per cent chance they may get a match but let’s wait and see.

“Without Stuart and Tony we would have been nowhere. We feel they were the forcing powers behind us helping us.

“It just shows if you are a fighter you keep fighting and never give in.”

Claire was staying in Campania in Southern Italy with her fiance Diego before the couple were about to move to Germany, where they first met.

They had a son together, Alex, who is now six, and Diego was away on work when Claire was stabbed outside her apartment and died of blood loss within minutes. Initially, Italian pathologists said the death was a murder until eventually the court decided she had postnatal depression and committed suicide.