Clive Porter: Killer on the run convicted of canal murder

Sylwester Krajewski gave police a fake name on his arrest and still denies any involvement

A convicted killer who was on the run for 16 years has been found guilty of the murder of a former police officer on a canal towpath.

Sylwester Krajewski, 50, had denied killing Clive Porter, 63, near the Grand Union Canal, near Broughton, Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, last April.

He was prosecuted under a false name he gave to police at the time of his arrest - Daniel Wisniewski.

Reading Crown Court sentenced Krajewski to a minimum of 35 years.

Former police officer Clive Porter died on a canal towpath near Aylesbury after being assaulted

Mr Porter, who had previously served for 30 years as an officer with Hertfordshire Police, died after he was found seriously injured in a ditch by the Grand Union Canal on 26 April.

He had been working for the Canal and River Trust and was putting an enforcement notice on a canal boat when he was attacked.

Witnesses said they saw the defendant starting a row but did not see the physical assault.

Defence barrister Tana Marie Adkin QC said witness accounts did not give the whole picture of what happened during the incident and there was "insufficient evidence" to convict him.

She said the defendant said he had tried to protect Mr Porter after he was attacked by two other men.

But following his conviction, it was revealed that Mr Wisniewski was Krajewski, who had spent 12 years behind bars after being convicted of torturing and murdering a couple in Poland in 1993, before absconding from prison in 2005.

Sylwester Krajewski, pictured in 1993, when he was convicted of a double murder in Poland

Krajewski as he looked in 2003, two years before he absconded prison

On his arrest, Krajewski, of no fixed abode, gave a fake name - that of Mr Wisniewski, 46, of Wharf Road, Birmingham - but Thames Valley Police said fingerprints proved he was a wanted double killer.

The force believe he had been living in the UK using false papers, which they found in the name of Mr Wisniewski.

In a victim impact statement, Mr Porter's wife, Sharon, described him as her "rock and soul mate", whom she had met at school at 11 years old and married when they were 17.

"Clive has been central to my life for a long time. I miss him so much.

"We certainly do not understand why anyone would want to kill such a quiet, kind, gentle man who was just doing his job," she said.

Assistant Chief Constable Matt Nicholls, from Hertfordshire Constabulary, said: "Our thoughts remain very much with Clive's family, who have had to bear the tragic and senseless loss of a much-loved husband, father, and grandfather.

"Clive was the epitome of a steadfast and reliable police constable, who was held in very high regard by both his colleagues and the community he was so passionate about.

"It's clear he quickly gained the same admiration from his Canal and River Trust co-workers - and indeed all who met him - for his calm, dedicated and conscientious nature.

"Clive's immeasurable loss will be forever felt by his family, friends, and colleagues. He will remain an inspiration to us all and will always be remembered for his unwavering dedication to policing."