'I was the last person to see Ann alive'

A WITNESS who believes he was the last person to see Ann Heron before she was murdered has broken his silence after nearly 20 years.

He has described what he saw following a series of articles in The Northern Echo about County Durham's only undetected murder in more than half a century.

In another development following the articles, Debbie Simpson, the stepdaughter of Mrs Heron, is to meet Mrs Heron's eldest son for the first time since the murder in the hope that they can pool resources to help catch the killer.

The witness, who does not wish to be named, was driving from Middleton St George to Darlington at about 4.15pm on August 3, 1990 - less than 45 minutes before Mrs Heron's estimated time of death.

As he neared Aeolian House, the scene of the murder, he noticed a car coming towards him.

He believes Mrs Heron was driving the vehicle, which was indicating to turn in to the house.

"I knew her because I was friendly with her daughter and I worked in haulage like her husband,"

said the witness.

"I flashed my lights at her and she waved back at me.

"I am adamant, 100 per cent certain, that it was her."

"As we passed, I said to my mate Ann must have friends or relatives down from Scotland for the weekend' because there were people in the car - one in the passenger seat with his hands on the dashboard, and the other in the back seat," said the witness, who was driving an HGV.

"We were 12ft up in the air in the cab, looking down, and on the parcel shelf was a distinctive object."

The witness, who gave a statement to the police in 1990, believes the object was a "trademark"

carried by a man well known in Darlington's nightclub scene.

"It's been niggling with me ever since, which is why I have come forward now," said the witness.

His apparent sighting of Mrs Heron, who was found in a pool of blood in Aeolian House by her husband, Peter, less than two hours later, was not released by police in 1990.

They concentrated on the driver of a blue car, who was seen speeding away from the house at 5pm, shortly after the murder.

That driver has never been traced - although the witness says he also saw the blue car parked in a lay-by outside the house.

A spokesman for Durham Police said: "We have received a small number of calls in the wake of the articles in The Northern Echo and they refer to lines of inquiry that have already been explored."

The police cannot comment publicly on individual statements that may one day form part of a court case.

The Northern Echo articles have been about Mrs Simpson's campaign to clear the name of her father, Peter Heron.

In 2005, he was charged with murdering his second wife, Ann, but the case never made it to trial.

In the eyes of the law, he is an innocent man, but Mrs Simpson, who is critical of the way the police have handled the inquiry, accepts some suspicion still lingers.

She said: "According to the police, the last sighting of Ann was of her sunbathing at about 3.30pm when a friend spotted her from a passing bus, and we presumed she carried on sunbathing until she was killed.

"Now it appears that, at the very least, some people in this car called at the house at about 4.15pm.

"And, of course, the blue car is again present in the witness statement. I still feel sure that its driver, whoever he may be, holds the key to the events of that day."

As another direct development of the articles, Mrs Simpson, who lives near Billingham, on Teesside, is to meet Ralph Cockburn, Ann's eldest son.

"I am delighted and heartened by this," said Mrs Simpson.

"As Ralph said in his article in Monday's paper, we have not spoken since 1990.

"I have been privy to certain witness statements and forensic reports, and I am thrilled at the opportunity to meet him in the near future and share my knowledge with him.

"I feel this is the first major step towards bringing this case to its conclusion."

If you have information about the Ann Heron murder, call Durham Police on 0845-60-60-365, or Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800-555-111. Alternatively, contact Debbie Simpson on 01325-505062, or write to her c/o The Northern Echo, Priestgate, Darlington, DL1 1NF.