PC Andrew Harper’s widow ‘appalled’ as three teenagers cleared of his murder

Driver Henry Long previously threatened that ‘if police try to stop me I will ram them’ but evidence was ruled inadmissible

The widow of PC Andrew Harper said she was “utterly shocked and appalled” after a jury cleared three teenagers of murdering him by dragging him to his death.

Henry Long, 19, and Jessie Cole and Albert Bowers, both 18, all denied knowing the 28-year-old officer was attached to their car during a high-speed getaway in Berkshire.

Long admitted the lesser offence of manslaughter while his friends were convicted of the same charge after a retrial. Mr Justice Edis adjourned sentence until next Friday.

Speaking outside the Old Bailey after the verdict, widow Lissie Harper said she would never come to terms with how “such a beautiful, loving, decent human being could be dealt this fate”.

“I now have my own life sentence to bear, and believe me when I say it will be a lot more painful, soul destroying and painful journey than anyone facing a meagre number of years in prison will experience,” she said.

Thames Valley Police said it “respected the jury’s decision” to acquit the trio of murder. Detective Superintendent Stuart Blaik, the senior investigating officer in the case, said: “We appreciate that the jurors must be sure that the prosecution has proved guilt beyond reasonable doubt.

“No matter what the verdicts, there would have been no sense of victory.”

It can now be reported that Long had previously threatened to “ram” a police officer as he chatted with a police community support officer (PCSO).

In the conversation in July 2018, ruled inadmissible during the trial, Long said: “You can’t touch me now ‘cos I’ve passed my driving test and if police try to stop me I will ram them.”

Nearly a year later, on 15 August last year, police were called after Long and two accomplices began towing a stolen quad bike.

PC Harper was four hours past the end of his shift when he and a crewmate responded.

PC Andrew Harper, a member of the roads policing proactive unit, got married weeks before he was killed (EPA)

They encountered Long and his accomplices driving towards them on a narrow country road.

The police car blocked their getaway and PC Harper jumped out to chase one of the thieves.

But as he approached the back of the Seat, his foot was caught in strapping used to tow the quad bike and he was dragged away after Long mounted the verge to escape.

The Old Bailey heard that Long drove at an average of 42.5mph for more than a mile on winding country lanes before PC Harper was dislodged.

He was found by his colleagues with catastrophic injuries and died at the scene.

Driver Henry Long, 19, and passengers Jessie Cole and Albert Bowers, both 18 (Thames Valley Police)

When he was arrested at a nearby travellers’ site, Long initially lied to the police and claimed he had been watching the film Fast and Furious at the time of the theft.

On being charged, he allegedly said: ”I don’t give a f*** about any of this”.

Their defence claimed the incident was a “freak event” that none of them could have planned or foreseen.

But the prosecution said at more than 6ft and weighing 14 stone, the defendants must have been aware PC Harper was being dragged to his death.

A reconstruction suggested that rather than stopping, Long swerved in the road to try to throw him off.

Jurors also saw dashcam footage that appeared to catch the moment Cole turned towards the officer before diving through the window of the getaway car and making his escape.

Prosecutor Jonathan Laidlaw QC said the trio sought to escape “literally at all costs”.

“They had two clear choices moments after Andrew Harper was caught up in the strapping, and it is a binary choice,” he added.

“They were dragging a heavy object – what else could it have been but the police officer they had seen at the back of the Seat having almost caught Jessie Cole?

“The only right thing to do would have been to swiftly bring that car to a halt.”

Mr Laidlaw said that while they could not have set out to ensnare a police officer, there were “clear efforts” to throw him free once he became tangled in the tow rope, jurors heard.

Afterwards, there were “deliberate and cynical attempts” to frustrate the investigation, it was alleged.

The Seat Toledo with tow rope and the police car in a similar position at the site of the meeting of the vehicles during the Old Bailey jury site visit to scene in Sulhamstead, Berkshire (PA)

Long, Bowers and Cole all admitted conspiracy to steal the quad bike but denied murder.

Giving evidence at the Old Bailey, Long said he felt “disgraceful” about what happened to PC Harper.

“If I was aware I would have stopped the vehicle, tried to save him,” he told the jury. “I accept that I killed him from what I was doing, the way I was driving.”

He said he had “experience with police chases” and that his passengers were shouting at him as they tried to get away, adding: “I told them to shut the f*** up, let me drive, put the music on.”

Asked whether he could hear anything from behind the car at the time, Long denied it.

The trio’s first trial collapsed in March after three jurors went into self-isolation because of coronavirus symptoms and could no longer attend court.

Additional reporting by PA