A GREENOCK double killer offered to plead guilty SEVEN YEARS before he was extradited to face justice, an award-winning true crime podcast has revealed.

A Murder Without End has obtained a letter sent from the UK lawyers for Phillip Harkins in 2010 to Florida prosecutors suggesting talks on resolving his first degree murder charge.

Harkins was accused of the 1999 murder of Joshua Hayes in Jacksonville, then fled to Scotland where he killed a gran in Greenock in 2003. 

He was jailed for causing death by dangerous driving and then fought being sent back to the US, resulting in one of Britain’s longest running extradition battles.

The case twice went to the European Court of Human Rights before Harkins was eventually sent to Florida in July 2017.

He pleaded guilty in 2018, seven years after his lawyers suggested a deal.

A Murder Without End has now been recognised with a silver gong by judges as Best Indie Podcast and Listener’s Choice in a public vote in the 2023 Signal Awards.

Reporter, host and editor Tristan Stewart-Robertson used Florida’s extreme freedom of information laws to delve inside the behind-the-scenes discussions between prosecutors in Jacksonville, the Home Office and even Harkins’ lawyer.

In September 2010, his solicitors wrote that the case was 'weak' and the main witness, who had been at the scene and agreed to testify against Harkins, had been 'compromised'.

They concluded: “Our client submits that his extradition and conviction are remote possibilities, at the best. 

“However, he has now been in custody for eight years and wants to put matters behind him and continue with the rest of his life. 

“In these circumstances we are instructed to approach you with a view to entering into discussions with a view to a possible plea bargain, and to that end would propose that we discuss the matter in a conference call in the near future."

There is no paperwork on whether discussions of a deal ever took place prior to Harkins’ return to Florida.

He was sentenced to 25 years for second degree murder - with credit for time served dating back to killing Jean O’Neill in Greenock in 2003.

Greenock Telegraph:

Podcaster Tristan said: “I am immensely proud that my first podcast has been recognised by some of the industry’s best, as well as listeners. 

“True crime isn’t just about how someone died. It’s also about the efforts towards justice that follow, and ultimately this story is about two families destroyed in two different continents by Phillip Harkins.

"Throughout my career, I have sat in courtrooms, from Greenock and Dumbarton to Philadelphia and Toronto.

"But A Murder Without End is very much about what doesn't usually get covered by reporters, about access to information, and about how those left behind experience the justice system when a loved one is killed."

Tristan added: "I hope people will listen to the full story to appreciate what a crime looks like beyond headlines or court reports.

“There is so much more that is never reported, never shared. This is just one crime story of many in the world, and maybe appreciating loss and grief will give someone else a sense of appreciating their own life and loved ones, or find commonality in what others have gone through.”