New inquiry for RAF fireman who killed himself after gay sex
Detectives have reopened an investigation into the death of a young Scottish RAF firefighter who committed suicide after having sex with a man and had struggled with his sexuality.
Senior Aircraftman Robert Fleeting, from East Kilbride, was found dead in September 2011 in his room at RAF Benson, Oxfordshire.
A coroner’s inquest into the 24-year-old’s death found he had committed suicide after having his first consensual sexual experience with a male medic at the base.
But his parents, Charles and Susan Fleeting, refused to accept the coroner’s findings and notified the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) over the handling of the case by Thames Valley Police.
Last night, they welcomed the development of a fresh investigation by Thames Valley Police and said they hoped it would get to the truth on what happened to their son.
Mr and Mrs Fleeting said they would have been relaxed if their son were gay, but believe he was heterosexual and happily engaged.
The IPCC report, published in May, pointed to a number of flaws in the original case, in particular that internal injuries Mr Fleeting had suffered had “been left entirely unexplained”.
It also criticised the inquiry for failing to give an adequate explanation as to how the firefighter apparently hanged himself from a door-closing mechanism which was almost one foot above him.
Concerns were also raised in the IPCC report that officers had accepted the word of a key witness despite him providing contradictory statements.
Mrs Fleeting previously told STV News she felt the authorities’ version of events were “unbelievable” as her son was engaged to be married. She also stated they believed her son may have consumed a date rape drug on the night before he was found dead, however his body was released for cremation before any tests for such substances could take place.
A spokesman for Thames Valley Police said: “Following the appeal that was upheld by the Independent Police Complaints Commission, Thames Valley Police is conducting a review into the investigation and will be exploring new lines of inquiry put forward by Mr Fleeting’s family.”
