Seven years jail for sex offender who faked death
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A CIVIL servant was finally brought to justice today more than three years after staging a Reggie Perrin-style fake suicide.
Thomas Osmond was jailed for seven years after being tracked by a detective who refused to believe he was dead.
Osmond, 46, left a suicide note in March 1995 on the day he was due to stand trial for sex offences.
He wrote that he had killed himself by jumping off a river bridge.
Osmond was seen standing on the bridge over an 80ft drop above the River Usk in Newport, Gwent.
He planned to copy the BBC TV character Reggie Perrin by faking his suicide but setting up life under a new identity.
But Detective Constable Ken Price never accepted Osmond had killed himself.
He spent three years on his trail and finally traced him to Bristol.
Father-of-three Osmond was living as a bachelor using the name Stephen Williams and working as a telesales clerk. DC Price arrested him as he was arriving for work.
He was at Newport Crown Court today to see Osmond jailed for what the judge described as "vile and wicked" offences.
The court heard that Osmond watched as a boy of 12 had sex with his wife Lesley, from whom he has since been divorced. Osmond also committed a sex offence against a boy of 14.
Peter Murphy, prosecuting, described Osmond as a "clever man", taking a master's degree in theology at Cardiff University at the time of the offences.
Osmond was jailed for six years for the sex offences and 12 months for breaking a condition of his previous bail.
After the case, DC Price, 51, said: "I was never fooled for a moment by the suicide note."
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments