Raphael Rowe

Raphael Rowe (born 11 March 1968) is a British broadcast journalist and presenter, who was convicted in 1990 for a 1988 murder and series of aggravated robberies as part of the M25 Three. After nearly twelve years incarcerated, his convictions, along with those of his two co-defendants Michael J. George Davis and Randolph Egbert Johnson, were ruled unsafe in July 2000 and they were released.

Early life Raphael George Rowe was born in South-East London and named after his father, who had emigrated from Jamaica at the age of 26. His British mother, Rosemary Prior, was 17 when she married Raphael Sr. They had three daughters before Raphael Jr was born in 1968.

Convictions In the early hours of 16 December 1988, three masked men, one carrying a knife, another a gun, beat and tied up Peter Hurburgh and Alan Eley, who were having sex in a car parked in a field. During the attack, Hurburgh died of a heart attack. Later that morning the three men committed two home robberies and stabbed one of the occupants, 40-year-old Timothy Napier. Rowe and Davis were arrested on the morning of 19 December and Johnson on 6 January 1989.

Appeal and release In 1994, Davis and Rowe made an application to the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR). Along with errors and other evidence withheld before the trial, it had not been disclosed to Rowe's lawyers that the key prosecution witness, Norman Duncan, was a known criminal with previous convictions, and prior to the trial had become a police informant. Rowe has always maintained his innocence and has said he believes the police conspired with witnesses.

Career During his incarceration, Rowe studied journalism through a correspondence course and, after his release, joined the BBC in early 2001 as a reporter for BBC Radio 4.

Rowe is currently a reporter on the BBC One series The One Show and Sunday Morning Live. In August 2020 he released his podcast Second Chance. He has attributed his success as a journalist to his conviction and incarceration for a crime he did not commit.

Personal life Rowe had been dating a woman prior to being incarcerated. He has said that they got back in contact two months after his release. They had their first child in the summer of 2004.

He stated in 2000 he has a son from a previous relationship. Rowe has said his son was reluctant to see him due to the accusations against him.