A ROBBER whose accomplice was fatally stabbed by a Wolverley postmaster in self-defence failed to get permission to challenge his conviction.

Neal Julian Frost, 36, of Brook Street, Wall Heath, Stourbridge, was jailed for 15 years at Worcester Crown Court in July 2001, after being found guilty of conspiracy to rob.

London's Criminal Appeal Court last week refused to grant him permission to challenge his conviction, dismissing claims it was "unsafe".

Lord Justice Rose, sitting with Mr Justice Hughes and Mrs Justice Gloster, rejected numerous grounds of appeal, including one relating to the behaviour of his co-accused Wayne Davies.

"It was Davies who shouted abuse at the prosecution and witnesses and the jury," the judge said.

"No doubt he did behave extremely badly, but there is no reason to believe that it would reflect on Frost."

The prosecution claimed Frost and Davies were behind a string of robberies, including a botched raid on Wolverley Post Office in June 2000.

In self-defence, the postmaster, Richard Watkins, stabbed to death their accomplice, Scott Griffiths, who was armed with a sawn-off shotgun.

"Frost denied he was involved in the robbery but said he merely came upon Griffiths's body afterwards," Lord Justice Rose told the court.

Evidence against Frost included that he had persuaded a woman to provide him with a false alibi and evidence relating to phone calls and text messages.

Lord Justice Rose rejected claims that Frost had no opportunity to study new telephone evidence and that his own leading counsel knew nothing about mobile phones.

"There is no reason whatsoever to believe the evidence was not properly dealt with," the judge said.

Frost also contended that, even after he was arrested, other robberies were committed in the area, using similar methods.

Lord Justice Rose said that may be true but it did not make Frost's conviction even arguably "unsafe".

After dealing with the nine original grounds, the judge referred to a recent proposed challenge relating to the detective chief inspector who was in charge of the prosecution case.

"He had been suspended pending an investigation by another police force into allegations made in relation to other matters, not concerning Frost or the case against him," he said.

But the investigation had largely been completed and no charges were to be made against the officer, who now appeared to have been promoted to detective superintendent, Lord Justice Rose added.

He concluded this, too, was not an arguable ground on which to challenge the conviction.

Background to the case...

RAIDERS struck at Wolverley post office on the morning of June 20, 2000.

A stolen Ford Sierra car pulled up to the front of the shop at about 10.15am, carrying three men.

Two ran into the shop wearing masks while the other waited outside.

One of the men, Scott Griffiths, struck postmaster, Richard Watkins, 50, in the head with the butt of a sawn-off shotgun.

But Mr Watkins grabbed the gun with one hand and, with the other, aimed up to four blows at the upper half of his attacker's body with a lock knife, used to open bundles of newspapers.

The men drove off with Griffiths, 28, and police later found the car, containing his body, in Wall Heath, eight miles from Wolverley.

Mr Watkins - who needed three stitches for a head wound - immediately went into police protection and released a statement saying he was "shocked" by the death. The 6ft 4ins 19-stone postmaster returned to work on July 3.

The following month, police announced Mr Watkins would not face any charges over the death of Griffiths, of Blaze Park, Wall Heath.

Griffiths' accomplices, Wayne Davies and Neal Frost, were sentenced to 17 and 15 years in July, 2001 for their part in the attempted robbery and eight other raids.