 Gordon was again arrested on 13 January 2004 . Police said at the time that the murder file had never been closed , and that the arrest followed new leads . These new leads were later reported to be a confession by Michael Wainwright , who claimed to have been a <unk> of Gordon 's during his short prison stay in 1997 . The police then revisited the site where the body was discovered , and found a piece of <unk> green slate , a stone that matched the rocks that made up the wall of the family 's <unk> . The case was brought to trial at Manchester Crown Court , and lasted ten weeks . There was no single piece of evidence that pointed to Gordon indisputably , but the prosecution argued that when the evidence was placed together , it could only point at Park , and not a " mysterious stranger or secret lover " . Primarily , the case for the prosecution rested on circumstantial evidence , with the jury being asked to consider knots , rocks used to weight down the body and the ice axe , all linking Gordon Park to the crime . However , the statements of Michael Wainwright , and another of Gordon 's <unk> , who had learning difficulties , were also used as evidence by the prosecution . He was sentenced to be jailed for life , and told that he must serve at least 15 years . The judge said that he had taken into account the " terrible concealment " of the body . 
