DISGRACED former Inverness councillor John Holden has lost his first battle to clear his name,
His initital appeal against his conviction and sentence for fraud has been thrown out by judges in Edinburgh.
The ex-Inverness South councillor now plans to take his fight further, to the Criminal Case Review Commission, in an effort to have the case re-opened.
In August, Mr Holden was sentenced to a year in prison following a 13-day trial after being found guilty of a £43,000 benefits fraud, dating back to 1999, from the Department of Work and Pensions and Highland Council.
Mr Holden, of Teal Avenue, Inverness, has, all along, maintained his innocence and lodged a further appeal attempt with the High Court of Justiciary against his conviction and sentence.
Sitting in Edinburgh on Friday, however, Scotland’s most senior judge Lord Justice General Lord Gill, sitting with Lord Carloway and Lord Bonomy, ruled against his appeal.
