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DNA match led to breakthrough
JEREMIAH Sheridan was a difficult man to track down.
For more than 12 months he gave South Yorkshire Police's cold case review team the runaround.
DNA found at the crime scene was matched to Sheridan's DNA on the national database under a false name.
A member of the travelling community, Sheridan used a host of aliases and dates of birth.
DS Ian Harding, who led the team, said: "He was known under several names, travelled extensively and did not leave much of a footprint. He was an exceptionally difficult man to catch and it was a manhunt lasting well over 12 months."
Sheridan is a part of a large clan of travellers made up of the Sheridans, O'Briens and Flynns, which buys and sells goods all over the world.
DS Harding added: "They are not on the electoral roll, they don't pay tax, they don't claim benefits and if they register with a GP it's as a visitor, so it's difficult for us to make checks in the usual way. Also, Sheridan hadn't come to the attention of the police very much in his life."
The officers looked at his family tree and other records including a 1987 burglary conviction in which he gave the name Jeremiah Sheridan.
The case was highlighted on the BBC's Crimewatch Programme in September 2008 and the team received several leads including one that Sheridan was in Australia.
Two weeks later Sheridan contacted police through a solicitor.
He claimed he was returning to the UK to clear his name but DS Harding suspects he may have been forced to leave after his visa was cancelled for working illegally.
Sheridan was arrested on the plane at Heathrow Airport.
DS Harding was a new detective on the original case and conducted two reviews of the file in his spare time after uncovering new leads.
He said: "This is one case that has stuck with me. I used to work on it in quieter periods after digging it out of the store."
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Saturday 26 May 2012
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