Exclusive:Jailed Rotherham gunman in bid to attend funeral of mum after contaminated blood scandal
His mum was one of thousands of people to be given infected blood in hospital
A man serving time behind bars over a shooting is pleading to be allowed out to attend his beloved mum’s funeral.
Martin Neville, who is serving a six year prison sentence for shooting a man in the leg, has asked for permission to say his final goodbye to his mum Susan Mousley.
In the 1990s, she contracted Hepatitis C after receiving contaminated blood in a transfusion at Rotherham District General Hospital after a procedure.
She was one of thousands of patients across the country infected in the contaminated blood scandal.
Over the past year while preparing for Susan to pass, her family has been working to try to get compassionate leave for Martin to say goodbye, however failed to do so before she died in June at the age of 63.
The family is now hoping to get permission for Martin to attend the funeral service and has offered to pay for additional security to facilitate his attendance.
They say the prison chaplaincy has been supportive, but they feel they are getting nowhere with prison bosses - and time is running out.
Martin’s sister, Tara Haley, said not letting him attend the funeral would be “detrimental to his mental health,” adding that their mum was the relative he was closest too.
“They let murderers out, how can they not allow a young man to say goodbye to the woman that bore him?” she asked.
“It’s beyond comprehension and it’s just another example of how mental health is not being looked after throughout the justice system.”
The funeral is set to take place on August 8.
Tara said: “It’s just another example of being let down by the system.”
Tara explained that their mother battled with ill-health for decades after receiving blood infected with Hepatitis C.
“It’s been absolutely atrocious to tell you the truth,” she said.
“It’s been negligence on top of negligence - initially they were trying to pass the baton regarding the situation.
“During the years that followed the initial contamination, as my mum’s health deteriorated, she was just repeatedly told by the health care system that it was in her head and there’s nothing really a matter.”
Tara says that her mum was offered treatment which she ultimately never received and in 2024 was diagnosed with terminal liver cancer. It was the same year a national inquiry into the scandal revealed that 26,800 patients contracted Hepatitis C from infested blood transfusions, while more than 1,000 contracted HIV.
“It was only then that she got an apology,” Tara added.
The family believe the contaminated blood is linked to her later cancer diagnosis.
“My mum had a really positive perspective regarding the situation though,” Tara said.
“She was very unique as an individual. Very quirky, very funny - she would do anything when it comes to her children.
“She said to us after the initial [cancer] diagnosis in 2024 ‘if I hadn't had the blood transfusion I wouldn’t have had the last 30 odd years’.
“She said ‘I would never have met my grandchildren. I would never have seen my kids grow up. So essentially I would have died without that blood, it might have been bad blood and my quality of life has been terrible since having been given it, but I got that time’.”
While they have continually been working with the prison service to get compassionate leave, they say that they have repeatedly hit dead ends.
Time is now running out as Susan is expected to be laid to rest at Rotherham Crematorium on Saturday, August 8.
Martin, 37, is currently in HMP Peterborough, two years into his prison sentence.
He was convicted in January 2024 after shooting a man in the leg outside Thrybergh Working Men's Club.
“If there’s one thing you want to do in your life it’s honour your mum,” his partner, Shannon Buckley, added.
She said Martin was was “really close” to his mum and would regularly call her while in prison.
“When you lose somebody so close you you, it’s a big eye-opener,” she said.
“It makes you think ‘I’ve dealt with this whilst away from family, I’ve done it on my own, I would never want to feel like that again’.
“I genuinely don’t think he’d do this again and potentially put himself in that situation again.”
The Ministry of Justice said it could not comment as Martin is serving time in a private prison.
Sodexo, which runs the prison, said they could not comment on individuals.
Speaking of the family’s experience with the contaminated blood scandal, a government spokesperson said: “The victims of the infected blood scandal have suffered unspeakable wrongs, and we remain committed to ensuring they receive the justice and compensation they rightly deserve.
"While this government understands no amount of money will make up for the suffering endured by the community, the changes we made earlier this year to the compensation scheme, in response to a community consultation, mean some people will now receive more compensation than they were previously entitled to."