My brother tried to tell police 'Creswell was a killer'

There are moments in life when David Lusby will take a moment and ask himself: "What would my brother Paul do?"

Paul was a "good guy… a charismatic gentleman" who David "looked up to a lot" and whose sense of judgement he trusted.

David is frustrated too, and admits there are times he gets angry at his brother, who took his own life in July 2022.

That tragedy came 700 days after Paul first tried to alert police about Jonathan Creswell who died while on trial for the murder of Paul's friend Katie Simpson - an almost two-year period in which David said Paul felt threatened and lived in fear.

"I have many questions - why did you do it? Why aren't you here? If anything, this is when we need you."

Paul's family, David said, have lost "such a good man".

"And they just tried to silence him by ignoring him," he said.

Creswell, her sister's partner, had called 999 and pretended he had found her.

Paul "knew that Creswell was a killer," David said.

And he knew "nothing was being done".

"Paul spent 700 days living with the terror knowing that Creswell was free. Paul knew a killer was on the streets," his brother told BBC Radio Foyle's North West Today programme.

Paul had first contacted police on the day following Katie's hospital admission.

"He notified police she was in domestic servitude and he had some sort of conviction against him," David said.

It would not be his last attempt to alert police.

A report into Katie's death revealed vital information was provided to police by members of the public - including Paul Lusby - in the initial stages of the investigation, but were not acted upon.

These include a call made by Lusby to Crimestoppers on August 2020 - the day after she was admitted to hospital.

It also found that the report from Lusby should have been investigated, given the circumstances of the case.

He had also taken concerns to the police ombudsman's office.

The report further found that information given by Lusby during a police interview was not properly recorded and that a statement should have been taken.

When he later rang the police to ask about the interview on 13 April 2021, he was informed that the notes had been destroyed.

The review's author Dr Jan Melia, concluded that the notes should not have been discarded and that all material from the investigation should have been retained.

As a child from 10 years of age, Katie was groomed by Creswell who was described in the Melia review, as "a predator who used sexual abuse and rape as a tactic targeting young women including Katie".

In 2009 he was sentenced to six months in jail for a catalogue of abuse against a former girlfriend.

David said his brother Paul was a "good man, a noble man" who was "trying to do the right thing".

"And they ignored him and I want to know why. I want to say the system failed him but to fail at something means you tried. They didn't try."

David said the Lusby family believe Paul had been living in fear in the time leading up to his death.

"He felt afraid, he had received threats. Paul was all over the country trying to get Creswell, going places where he was going. Paul was a complete menace to Creswell," he said.

David said the family believes there should be a public inquiry.

"There needs to be a proper investigation, there needs to be a public inquiry, an investigation into all the police officers involved," he added.

It remains a difficult and traumatic time for all Paul's family.

"It's been terrible, it's been very difficult," David said.

"It's affected my parents, obviously, really bad. The loss of a son and a brother, they didn't deserve this."

In a statement, the PSNI said it acknowledged the suffering and pain of the Lusby family.

It also highlighted apologies in recent weeks from both Assistant Chief Constable Davy Beck and the Chief Constable Jon Boutcher for the failings of the PSNI into the initial investigation into the death of Katie Simpson.

The statement said the PSNI acknowledged failings which includes not listening to those who raised early concerns.

Hugh Hume, the Chief Executive of the Police Ombudsman's Office, said he will be contacting the Lusby family "to offer a meeting to discuss the matters raised, and I hope this will allow me to address their concerns".

"When Paul first contacted us, we assessed whether his complaint was one that was within our remit to investigate. Among the criteria which had to be considered was whether he was personally involved in the incident, or was acting on behalf of someone who was," he said.

"While our initial assessment was that the complaint was not within our remit to investigate, we offered advice on how the matter might be progressed. Paul subsequently provided additional information, which allowed us to investigate a new complaint.

"We are grateful that he brought these issues to our attention, and his complaint was one of a number which prompted a detailed investigation of the police handling of Katie's death."

If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this story, information and support can be found at the BBC's Action Line.