A  man convicted of a brutal murder, in which the victim was struck with bottles, burned with a hot iron, thrown from a window and clubbed with concrete slabs, may have suffered a miscarriage of justice on the basis that  there may have been no evidence capable of linking him with the fatal portion of the assault.

Dominic Ferrie was found guilty by majority verdict of acting in concert with two others in the assault and murder, under deletion of the reference to the alleged forcible ejection of the victim from the window.  His accomplice  was later convicted of the murder in separate proceedings. 

The main Crown witness said that he had seen Mr Ferrie taking part in an assault , and alleged that Nisbet had shouted: "Out the window with him." The SCCRC found that  the case against Ferrie was sufficient, but only if it was accepted that the deceased was forcibly ejected from the window. If this was not accepted, the said "there was no evidence capable of linking Mr Ferrie with the fatal portion of the assault."

"The Commission takes the view that no reasonable jury, properly directed, could have returned a verdict of guilty under deletion of the reference in the indictment to forcible ejection. Accordingly, the Commission believes that a miscarriage of justice may have occurred," teh Commission said in a statement.