Appeal by killer of stepdaughters dismissed

The Privy Council in London has dismissed the appeal of convicted double murderer Bruce Thomas Howse who killed his two stepdaughters in Masterton in 2001.

Howse's appeal was thrown out by a narrow margin, with only three of the five Law Lords willing to say he received a fair trial.

Howse had previously been convicted of murdering Olympia Jetson, 11, and her half-sister Saliel Aplin, 12, on December 4, 2001.

After initially admitting to their murders, with a single knife thrust to each, Howse changed his story and said the girls' mother Charlene Aplin had killed them and the asked him to "take the rap".

- NZPA