THE father of a man executed in a gangland-style killing has set up a support group for parents of murdered children whose killers have never been brought to justice.

Tony Corley has set up charity Standtogether, ten years after the remains of his son, Mark, were discovered on farmland near Bolam, five miles from Darlington.

He had been killed with a single shot to the head. No one has ever been convicted of his murder.

Mr Corley, 56, said the charity was specifically for parents who have endured the murder of a son or daughter and have never gained justice.

The retired builder, from Asfordby, Lincolnshire, said although other support groups for bereaved relatives of murder victims had been very helpful to him, he felt it was important for people to talk to others in the same situation.

“I am very grateful to the Birmingham-based Support After Murder and Manslaughter group,” he said. “They hauled me out of a very dark hole. But I think it is really important to speak to people who have gone through the same thing as you. They are the ones who really understand how you feel.”

The charity will hold at least one conference a year, where people seeking help from the group will be able to meet and talk.

Mr Corley is hoping to secure funding to enable more than one meeting a year.

The body of 23-year-old Mark, from Grantham, in Lincolnshire, was found in 2000 at Bolam Grange Farm, between Bolam and Summerhouse, in County Durham, five months after he went missing.

Five men charged in connection with the killing walked free from Nottingham Crown Court in 2002 after the case collapsed following allegations that Lincolnshire Police illegally bugged suspects’ conversations with lawyers.

An investigation into the allegations led to 11 officers being disciplined.

Mr Corley, who has written a book about his experience called More Questions Than Answers, said his anguish at losing his son had been compounded by the lack of a conviction.

This had motivated him to set up the charity.

He said it had taken him seven years to find help and he wanted to help other parents in the same situation as quickly as possible.

“People who are suffering the same can really help one another,” he said. “It is about realising there are other people who have seen and experienced the same, talking through it and supporting each other.”

The charity’s website is standtogether.co.uk