A man who was accused of killing his relative three years ago by setting him ablaze in Mandeville, Manchester, was freed on Friday.
Nicholas Johnson, 31, was released when he appeared before the Manchester Parish Court.
The trial judge, Dale Staple, ruled that there was insufficient evidence for him to commit Mr. Johnson to stand trial for the death of Miguel Campbell.
Prosecutors reported that on January 8, 2015 both men were involved in a dispute in Clarkes’ Town, Manchester.
Mr. Johnson reportedly threw gasoline on Mr. Campbell and set him ablaze.
His cousin succumbed to his injuries five months later.
There were no eyewitnesses to the incident and the defence, led by attorney Shauna-Gay Mitchell, challenged the statement reportedly given by Mr. Campbell.
The attorney also challenged the signatures on the statement.
At the commital hearing, the prosecutors were unable to provide a handwriting expert to verify whether Mr. Campbell signed the document before he died.
Judge Staple reported that in the absence of the handwriting evidence, he had no other choice but to dismiss the case.
The trial judge then instructed that the case file be referred to the Counter-Terrorism and Organised Crime Investigation Branch (C-TOC) and the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) for an investigation into why there were different signatures on the statement purportedly given by Mr. Campbell.