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'There are others. They need justice.'

Henry Keogh was still mourning the death of his fiancé when he was found guilty of her murder and sentenced to life in prison.

A Sunday Night investigation detailed how a simple, tragic accident became a full-blown murder trial driven by questionable evidence from a now-discredited forensic pathologist.

It’s been described as one of Australia’s worst miscarriages of justice and Henry Keogh fears that he’s not the only victim.

Henry Keogh told Sunday Night that there are other innocent victims of injustice.
Henry Keogh told Sunday Night that there are other innocent victims of injustice.

“I know there are others in exactly the same situation or very, very similar to the one I went through, who are either still in prison now, have since been released and are fighting to have their names cleared,” he told Sunday Night.

“It should be fixed now before this sort of travesty is repeated again and again and again.”

Henry’s conviction was quashed in 2014, two decades after the 1994 murder of Anna-Jane Cheney, a popular young lawyer from the Adelaide suburb of Magill.

Henry and Anna-Jane had planned to get married five weeks before she was discovered dead in a bathtub.

He described how he found Anna Jane’s body on March 18, 1994, after returning home from visiting his mother.

Henry found the body of his fiancee, Anna-Jane Cheney, slumped in the the bathtub of their home in Adelaide.
Henry found the body of his fiancee, Anna-Jane Cheney, slumped in the the bathtub of their home in Adelaide.

"I came back, was walking through the house and called out to her, and I didn't get an answer,” he said.

“I thought she might have just been having a nap and I found her slumped in the bath," he said, tears welling in his eyes.

Henry blames his murder conviction and life sentence on the autopsy findings of South Australia’s former chief forensic pathologist Dr Colin Manock.

Dr Manock generated a theory suggesting bruising on Anna-Jane’s legs was from Henry holding her legs above her head in order to drown her in the bathtub.

But during the twenty years Henry spent behind bars Dr Manock’s qualifications were questioned in court, his testimony was discredited and his findings of murder in the case were rejected by an independent review.

Henry blames his murder conviction and life sentence on the autopsy findings of Dr Colin Manock.
Henry blames his murder conviction and life sentence on the autopsy findings of Dr Colin Manock.

“I believe the role that Dr Manock played was a major one. It was instrumental in turning what was just a senseless and tragic accident - as it turned out and proven - into something it wasn’t… a murder inquiry and a witch hunt,” Henry told Sunday Night.

“I’m staggered. I still struggle with understanding how the government or any of the regulatory bodies would’ve allowed Dr Manock to continue to operate in the role he had knowing what they knew.”

Now, two more cases are back before the courts, each strikingly similar to Henry’s case.

Frits Van Beelen and Derek Bromley were also convicted of murder in South Australia and in each case, damning evidence was presented by Dr Manock.

Frits served 17 years behind bars and Bromley has been in prison for more than 30 years.

Both men have maintained their innocence throughout their sentences and have found discrepancies in Dr Manock’s autopsy reports.

Dr Manock suggested the bruising on Anna-Jane's legs were a result of Henry lifting her legs over her head to drown her in the bathtub.
Dr Manock suggested the bruising on Anna-Jane's legs were a result of Henry lifting her legs over her head to drown her in the bathtub.

As well as seeking justice for others, Henry wants the government to pay for the mistakes that were made.

“My lawyers and I are looking into compensation right now,” Henry said.

“Governments, politicians and the criminal justice system in particular… They’re all strong on accountability and I think if accountability’s good for one, it’s good for all. And that means them too.”

During his time in jail, Henry, now 60, missed his daughter’s wedding and the birth of his four grandchildren.

He said that he was yet to even receive an apology from authorities.

“If anything it’s just stony silence,” Henry said. “I may as well be invisible.”

Henry pictured with his daughter, Elise, and Anna-Jane Cheney.
Henry pictured with his daughter, Elise, and Anna-Jane Cheney.

But he’s no longer invisible to the public. Those that have recognised Henry in the street have surprised him with their kindness.

“I haven’t had one single adverse reaction from anybody in the public,” he said.

“And even a couple who had actually apologised for thinking that I was guilty back in the day and I said: ‘There’s no need to be, you only had the information that you had to work on and that was wrong, so there is nothing to forgive’.”