In a year's time, market trader Barry Fitt will be free after spending his seven-year prison term battling to clear his name - a fight he aims to keep up.

KELLY CLARK talks to his wife Val on life without her husband and the failed final bid to overturn his conviction in the appeal courts last week.

The wife of jailed Barry Fitt lost half of her family when her husband was jailed.

The mother-of-four has spent the past six years bringing up her and Barry's four children. And not only has Val Flitt been without her partner, she has also lost her sister and nieces and nephews.

The trial which saw Mr Fitt sent to prison for conspiring to robbery has broken up the entire family.

Mr Fitt was arrested along with his wife's brother-in-law and his two pals. Just Mr Fitt was imprisoned for the crime he insists he had nothing to do with.

Mrs Fitt said: "One man was found not guilty, another we believe was the paid police informant and the third was my brother-in-law. He originally pleaded guilty before changing it to not guilty.

"He was let off while Barry was sent away for 11 years. I have not seen my sister and her family since that day.

"They have all been given new identities and have been moved away.

"I do not ever want to see my sister again because of this. She does not even speak to our dad now and the father of my sister's four children can only see them with a police guard.

"He cannot even ask his own children where they are living."

Wrongly jailed? - Barry Fitt, left, wife Val and his immediate family hope to clear his name after he is released

We'll fight on when he's free

Father-of-four Barry Fitt was the only one of four men arrested to be imprisoned for conspiracy to rob.

He was sentenced to 11 years for that and possession of a gun and CS gas, but has always maintained he was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

His family have devoted their lives to freeing the Pitsea market trader, of Goldings Crescent, Vange. Wife Val has even appeared on national television to tell how the Fitt's believe vital evidence was witheld during the trial in 1993.

Two failed appeals and a European court hearing later, they remain adamant Barry's name will be cleared.

The other three men arrested along with him escaped prison. The Fitts believe those men's crimes were "pinned" on Barry when he was found burying stolen car parts - next to a patch where a gun and CS gas had also been planted.

Mrs Fitt said: "Barry was sentenced for possession but the items were never on him. There was no forensic evidence. He was no angel and would do wrong but was not guilty of those charges."

The Metropolitan Police came under fire after admitting documents issued just to the judge as Public Interest Immunity material in the original case had been lost.

A second statement was released to say the papers had then been found - on the day of the European court case and too late to help Barry.

The 17 judges decided Fitt had a fair trial and refused to overturn his conviction.

The document is said to contain details of rewards paid out to police informants which was never released to the defence counsel or the jury.

Mrs Fitt, eagerly awaiting her husband's release next February, said: "Had those papers been available for the hearing I would have been confident of Barry being cleared."

Barry, who has refused parole three times as it would mean admitting guilt, has launched several lengthy prison hunger strikes. During his last 40-day fast his weight plummeted by two stone.

Mrs Fitt knows her husband will continue the fight when he is released.

She has put her life on hold to fight her husband's case, while being a mother to their four children, Julie, 26, Barry, 24, Angela, 16, and Tommy, 13.

She said: "Barry is stuck in that tiny room and cannot go out and do what he wants. I am going to support him to the end, which means I will not go out either. I feel I have served the time with Barry, but I have been kept busy taking care of the children.

"It will be excellent when Barry finally comes home. I know we have both changed a bit but I am sure things will be the same as they always were.

"Our daughter, who has two children, keeps telling me I am not acting like a grandmother.

"I find it difficult to make time for everybody - there is always so much on my mind. When Barry comes home we can be a real family again."

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