Michael Ross still in 'no man's land' as Prime Video drops Orkney Assassin documentary
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Michael Ross' solicitor has claimed that his client, who maintains his innocence, is stuck in "no man's land" three decades after being convicted of murder.
Back in June 1994, a masked figure donning a balaclava entered the Mumataz Restaurant in Kirwall at about 7.10pm and fatally shot 26-year-old waiter Shamsuddin Mahmood before exiting the scene.
Despite 14 years going by, Ross, then aged 15, was apprehended and found guilty of the crime in 2008.
Following his conviction at the High Court in Glasgow, Ross notoriously attempted to flee but was thwarted and now remains incarcerated for life at HMP Shotts in Lanarkshire, as reported by the BBC.
Prime Video has recently unveiled a one-off special titled The Orkney Assassin: Murder In The Isles, which includes interviews with officers, eyewitnesses, journalists, and Ross' parents,.
In an exclusive chat with Screen Time prior to the documentary airing, Ross' lawyer Aamer Anwar provided an insight into his client's current plight.
(Image: PRIME VIDEO/ORKNEY PHOTOGRAPHIC)
"I suppose he's very much in no man's land," he commented.
"The difficulty with an appeal is...if you've ever watched Shawshank Redemption and Andy comes into prison and Morgan Freeman tells him 'Don't you know everyone's innocent inside'.
"But I've come to learn from over 25 years of being a lawyer that the reality is there are lots of innocent people inside prison.
"How to prove it is another matter, because the system is almost a raid against human rights throughout the United Kingdom, to be able to fight your appeal and to prove your innocence.
"And even if you say you have five pinnacles of evidence, five issues, and one is so critical.
"For instance, someone comes in and lies about you and says 'I saw him, that's definitely him.'
"But that person is ruled out, 'well we'll still rely on the other four afterwards.'
"The damage is already done. So therein lies the problem, as in people remain convicted."
Anwar then highlighted the crucial role of DNA in cases like Ross', stating: "The idea that someone could walk into a restaurant, shoot someone at point blank range and not leave anything of themselves, beggar's belief.
"I always say to my lecture students, to commit a murder is extremely difficult.
"To not leave anything of yourself: footprints, DNA, CCTV maybe, whatever it may be.
"Fair enough, this is a remote island but there were still people there.
"The idea that this person then disappears into the darkness? Then begs the question that people always said, 'well they never closed the ports of entry and exit.'
"Is it somebody from off the island that came on, well how do they know? They didn't."
Even though three decades have passed, Ross maintains his innocence, with the former Army sniper having attempted to break out of prison thrice, the latest being in 2018 when he tried to scale a fence.
"You still have someone who claims he is innocent, who has never given up that he is innocent, who is still fighting to prove his innocence," Anwar added.
"He could have made his life a lot easier by saying 'I did it.' A lot more chance of parole then, a lot more chance of getting out earlier."
The Orkney Assassin: Murder In The Isles is available to watch on Prime Video.
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