Mr Malkinson finally had his 2003 conviction quashed last summer after years protesting his innocence.
The Criminal Cases Review Commission has offered an “unreserved apology” for failing Andrew Malkinson after he spent 17 years in prison for being wrongly convicted of rape.
The body’s chairman Helen Pitcher said an independent review of the case carried out by Chris Henley KC made it clear the “commission failed Andrew Malkinson”, adding: “For this, I am deeply sorry.”
Mr Malkinson finally had his 2003 conviction quashed last summer after years protesting his innocence.
He had applied for his case to be reviewed by the CCRC in 2009, but at the conclusion of its review in 2012 the commission refused to order further forensic testing or refer the case for appeal, amid concerns over costs.
A second application was rejected in 2020.
Crucial DNA evidence had been available since 2007, but no match was found on the police database at the time.
In a statement on Thursday, Ms Pitcher said: “Mr Henley’s report makes sobering reading, and it is clear from his findings that the commission failed Andrew Malkinson. For this, I am deeply sorry. I have written to Mr Malkinson to offer him my sincere regret and an unreserved apology on behalf of the commission.
“There may have been a belief that I have been unwilling ever to apologise to Mr Malkinson, and I want to clarify that this is not the case. For me, offering a genuine apology required a clear understanding of the circumstances in which the commission failed Mr Malkinson. We now have that.
“Nobody can ever begin to imagine the devastating impact that Mr Malkinson’s wrongful conviction has had on his life, and I can only apologise for the additional harm caused to him by our handling of his case.”
