Dawn Guested on What I Had Heard Was Podcast

Dawn was delighted to be invited to collab with Jennifer from the What I Had Heard Was Podcast to talk about Christmas, amongst other things. Dawn really enjoyed recording this episode, lots of fun and laughter, bringing to you the other side of wee Dawn. Why not give it a listen and let us know what you think.


Dawn Featured on Voluntary Input Podcast

Listen to Dawn on the Voluntary Input Podcast as she talks with host, Leo, about Scottish Murders, a wee bit about herself, and shares information about the George Murdoch case.  Why not let us know what you think.


The Roddy and Anne Marie Aitken Disappearance

The Roddy and Anne Marie Aitken Disappearance

Episode Summary

It was seven days before Christmas 1997 and Roddy and Anne Marie Aitken had gone shopping for last minute Christmas presents, but then disappeared.  What had happened to the couple and their Christmas presents?

Please Be Advised – This episode may contain content that some may find distressing. As always, we advise listener discretion. This episode it not suitable for anyone under the age of 13.

Listen on:

Refuge – 24-hour National Domestic Abuse Helpline 0808 2000 247 (UK) or nationaldahelpline.org.uk

Cole:

It was seven days before Christmas 1997 and Roddy and Anne Marie Aitken had gone shopping for their last minute Christmas presents, but then disappeared. What had happened to the couple and their Christmas presents?

Cole and Dawn:

Hi Wee Ones, I’m Cole and I’m Dawn, and this is Scottish Murders.

[THEME TUNE]

Film History The History of Film Podcast Promotion

Cole:

On the 18th of December 1997, seven days before Christmas, Roddy and Anne Marie were shopping for the last of their Christmas presents. It was getting late so the couple called their daughter to say that they would be home in about an hour, but they never made it. Roddy and Anne Marie grew up on the same council estate in Drumchapel, which is about seven and a half miles or 12 kilometres north west of Glasgow. Roddy and Anne Marie went to the same school and hung around in the same groups, so it wasn’t surprising when they started dating. The young couple got married when they were both 18, and a year later they became parents when their first child was born. They named her Anne Marie after her mother. The young family continued to live in the Drumchapel area, having been given their own council house. Six years later their family was complete when the second child, Jamie, was born. It was around this time that the couple made the decision to move away from the Drumchapel area looking for a better life, and when a council flat exchange came up in the Fulham area in London they saw this as a great opportunity. The couple lived in the London area, firstly in Fulham and eventually moving to Sutton. Roddy had started his own roofing business and the couple appeared to be doing quite well for themselves. However, after about three years of living in London the couple’s luck changed when Roddy, who would have been about 28 years old, was involved in a car accident. The accident unfortunately was so bad and injured Roddy’s legs so severely that he was unable to work again, and subsequently had to collect disability allowance. This was a major blow for the young couple who had been doing so well for themselves and had such a young family to look after. Roddy and Anne Marie, who were both now on benefits, continued as best they could for another three years, until an opportunity to swap the London flat for a council house on the quiet rural street of Manse Road in Aberfoyle came up, which they jumped at. Aberfoyle is approximately 27 miles or 43 kilometres north west of Glasgow. It has beautiful countryside and is known as the Gateway to the Trossachs, and also where the infamous Scottish outlaw and folk hero Rob Roy MacGregor once roamed. So the couple relocated to Aberfoyle and started a new life there. They continued to live there up until their disappearance seven years later. According to the neighbours the family kept themselves to themselves and never caused any bother. Roddy and Anne Marie never felt as if they fit into the quiet rural community of Aberfoyle and were constantly lured back into their old haunts in Drumchapel, with Roddy regularly spending time drinking with his friends from his childhood and Anne Marie visiting her friends from school. So it appeared that Roddy and Anne Marie were just a normal couple living a quiet life. They did their best for the kids and made sure they never went without. Despite Roddy and Anne Marie both being on benefit, they made the decision that for Christmas 1997 they weren’t going to spend another Christmas in the cold, wet, dark, snowy Scotland but instead had booked a two-week holiday to Cyprus, for the couple and their son Jamie, who was 13, and they would be flying out on Christmas Eve. The three of them were delighted to be going abroad to a hot country, where they could drink, eat, sunbathe and be merry. The couple had saved up £1,000, which is about £1,800 and $2,300 in today’s money, for the holiday so they were going to damn well enjoy it. The only thing that perhaps had put a bit of a dampener on the holiday abroad was that their 19 year old daughter, Anne Marie, wasn’t going to be coming. She was going to be staying at home along with her boyfriend. Roddy and Anne Marie probably weren’t overjoyed about this but what could they do, she was 19. So, on the 18th of December 1997, Anne Marie persuaded Roddy to go with her to see his parents to give them their Christmas cards, as well as going Christmas shopping for a few presents she still had to get for the children. Roddy and Anne Marie drove to Drumchapel in their blue Vauxhall Astra to see Roddy’s parents. After seeing Roddy’s parents the couple went shopping in the area to buy last minute Christmas presents. The couple then drove to a supermarket on Milngavie Road in Bearsden, which is about an eight minute drive from Drumchapel, and this is where they were last seen at about 6.45pm. Before leaving the supermarket car park, they called their daughter to say that they would be home in about an hour as they still had bits and bobs to do. It was getting late and it was cold, dark, wet and snowy, but the drive home to Aberfoyle would take approximately 37 minutes. Back at home Anne Marie and Jamie waited for their parents to arrive, but they never did. Christmas Day came and went, with Jamie spending the Christmas period not in sunny Cyprus as expected but at a neighbour’s house. Anne Marie continued to stay at the property in Manse Road along with her boyfriend, waiting for her parents to turn up or for them to call. It wasn’t until Boxing Day, after Anne Marie’s grandparents finally pressured her to call the police, that Roddy and Anne Marie were even reported missing, eight days after their last phone call with their daughter.

Dawn:

So nobody called the police to report them missing for eight days? Why?

Cole:

Well all I could come up with is that their daughter, Anne Marie, was young and maybe just naïve. But why the grandparents didn’t call the police straight away I’ve got no idea.

Dawn:

That’s a bit strange.

Cole:

Yeah, definitely. So, anyway, on Boxing Day, once the couple had eventually been reported missing, the police instantly treated this as suspicious and they set up an operation which was called operation Bermuda, for obvious reasons.

Dawn:

Because they went missing. That’s clever.

Cole:

Initially the police organised and carried out massive searches, which included frog men searching lochs and rivers near the couple’s home, helicopters sweeping the area, as well as searches being carried out 200 metres, or 656 feet, from every major road, secondary roads and forest tracks on the way from Drumchapel to Aberfoyle. This was a huge undertaken as the area goes through forests and the minor roads are winding and isolated. Definitely not the place you’d like to find yourself stranded. The police hoped that they would find the couple’s blue Vauxhall Astra, thinking that maybe there had been some kind of accident, but after six weeks there was absolutely nothing to be found. They just completely vanished. It was established early on in the investigation that the couple’s bank accounts hadn’t been touched, and there was very little money in their accounts anyway. It’s never a good sign when the bank accounts haven’t been touched.

Dawn:

No, that’s a worry.

Cole:

Yeah. Their passports were also with the police, but Interpol had been notified to be on the lookout just in case. A reconstruction of the couple attending the supermarket in Bearsden was carried out to try and jog anyone’s memory about seeing the couple on the 18th of December. There was no information forthcoming and it appeared that the couple had just disappeared into thin air. Now at the same time as the search is being carried out, Detective Superintendent John Ogg, who was leading the investigation, had also ordered a thorough investigation into the Aitkens’ life to try and gain a better picture of them, and what he found when delving in a little bit deeper would turn the investigation on its head. It turned out that Roddy was known to the police.

Dawnn:

Oh.

Cole:

Oh indeed. It appeared that Roddy liked a good drink and had received a handful of convictions for minor drink related offences  over the years. Also when drinking with his friends in Drumchapel, he would regularly drive home, avoiding main roads in case he got caught by the police for drink driving. It also appeared that Roddy drank profusely in all and any pubs in Aberfoyle that would have him, although he had been banned from all but one pub there due to drink related offences. The police also found out something even more worrying about the Aitkens. Apparently Roddy had beaten Anne Marie for years. he’d beaten her so badly once that she had to have a metal plate put in her jaw.

Dawn:

Oh my God, that’s pretty bad.

Cole:

That’s real bad. So at this point the police were starting to think of other theories.  Had Roddy finally beaten Anne Marie so badly that he’d killed her and went on the run? Or had Anne Marie finally snapped and killed Roddy? Could Roddy have been drinking heavily on the night of the 18th of December and had an accident on one of the back roads home? But surely their car would have been found if there had have been an accident. Just to be sure though, the police had circulated the couple’s information and their car details further afield for any accidents involving their car, but again nothing had been reported.  If either of them had killed the other one then, due to Aberfoyle and the surrounding areas being so rural, a body could be hidden out there and never be found. The final theory was that a third party was involved in their disappearance. But why? And who? The couple’s daughter, Anne Marie who was then 20, made an appeal on Friday the 18th of January 1998 asking for any information about her parents disappearance. As the police began to put together a picture of Roddy and Anne Marie’s life, they also acquired their itemised mobile phone records, and one name appeared to come up regularly. It was Iain Meikleham. Iain, who was a 30 year old farmer who lived in Little Blairlusk in Gartocharn, about 17 miles or 27 kilometres south west of Roddy’s house in Aberfoyle. Now it’s not known how the two men became friends, they could have been friends since school or they could have met in one of the many pubs Roddy frequented. The two men became quite close, and looking at the itemised telephone records, it appeared that they talked regularly. Until that is about three weeks before the couple’s disappearance. So what had happened? Had the two men had a falling out, and why?  So, the police requested Iain’s telephone records to try and see if any of his records corresponded with Roddy’s telephone records, so they could start compiling a database of acquaintances of both men. Through this process the police noticed a name that kept coming up regularly on Iain’s phone, a John Parker. John was 27 and worked on his dad’s farm at Crosbie Mains, West Kilbride, which is approximately 40 miles and 64 kilometres away from Iain’s farm. Before long, the police had quite a comprehensive database of contacts stemming from Roddy and Iain’s telephone records, now they just had to figure out what, if anything, it had to do with the disappearance of Roddy and Anne Marie. Eight weeks into the investigation a drunk driver was stopped by the police in the Balfron area, which is about 18 miles or 28 kilometres north of Glasgow, and he had a controlled drug on him. This man’s name was given to the Operation Bermuda team for them to check against their database, and his name came up as an associate of Roddy Aiken. Two detectives from Operation Bermuda interviewed this man and they finally had a breakthrough. He told detectives that he had been paid by Roddy to take a parcel of money to Malaga. He informed the detectives exactly how the money was wrapped and how it got through customs. The detectives took a punt and decided to run Iain’s name through the customs and excise database to see if there was any information on him, and lo and behold they found that Iain had been stopped at Glasgow Airport in March 1997 on his way to Malaga, and had been in possession of £15,000, or $21,000, which had been contaminated with drugs. Iain had been let go but the police had kept the money. The way the money was wrapped exactly matched how the witness said his money had been wrapped by Roddy. There was finally a connection. The police subsequently compared customs and excise database with their own growing database of contacts all stemming from Roddy and Iain, and there were a number of contacts that had been associated with drugs. Slowly a pattern was building of a drug importation ring, with Roddy and Iain being slap bang in the centre of it all. By the middle of March 1998, the police had discovered that Roddy and Iain had made frequent trips to Malaga over the years each time with large sums of cash, with reasons such as they were planning to buy a car when they got to their destination. They also had received information from informants confirming that both Roddy and Iain were involved in major cannabis smuggling. So they knew how the money was getting out of the country, but they as yet didn’t know or have any evidence of how exactly the drugs were coming into the UK. Until that is a man came forward to state that he had been a drug courier for Iain. Iain had asked him to travel to Malaga and bring back a parcel for him. He said that he had swallowed 70 wraps of cannabis before heading home.

Dawn:

Oh that’s quite a lot.

Cole:

However, there was one piece of the puzzle missing. What had happened to Roddy and Anne Marie? So, the police painstakingly went back over the phone records again, something had bothered them from the beginning that they wanted an answer to. At 7.05pm on the 18th of December an unknown number had called Roddy’s mobile and spoke to Roddy for six minutes. This was a burner phone, but the police eventually found out that this phone was in fact Iain’s. Discovering this fact, the police then believed that they knew exactly what had happened to Roddy and Anne Marie on the 18th of December 1997, they just didn’t know why. On the 23rd of March 1998 at 6am, 14 people involved in the drug smuggling ring, including Iain and John, were arrested, their homes were searched and they were questioned at different locations. Later that day John Parker finally admitted the truth of what had happened to Roddy and Anne Marie Aiken, even going as far as taking the police to where the remains of the couple were.

Dawn:

Oh my God. What happened to them?

Cole:

Well let me tell you.

Dawn:

Go on then.

Cole:

John went on to describe in great detail what had happened the night Roddy and Anne Marie went missing. Apparently the lead-up to Roddy and Anne Marie’s murder all started a year before in November 1996, when Roddy had given John Parker £30,000, or $41,000, worth of drugs to sell, with his friend Iain vouching for him. John was supposed to sell the drugs and give Roddy the money, however, John decided to keep the money. Roddy was furious about this and obviously pestered his friend, Iain, constantly to get him the money from John, but this never happened. Roddy was annoyed with Iain for allowing John to get away with this and so started going to Spain and smuggling his own drugs into the UK, cutting Iain out. Iain wasn’t at all happy about this and decided the best solution would be to get rid of Roddy permanently.

Dawn:

Ah yes, that’s the best plan.

Cole:

Yeah. And I don’t really think he’s got a leg to stand on because his friend just stole £30,000 worth of drugs from him.

Dawn:

Well exactly. Just get the money for your friend and jobs a good un.

Cole:

I know. But the plan to get rid of Roddy was set in motion by Iain and his friend John Parker, and it culminated on the evening of the 18th of December 1997. Iain had indeed rang Roddy from his burner phone at 7.05pm, and after six minutes finally managed to persuade him to go to his farm that evening, which was 17 miles or 27 kilometres from where the couple were in Bearsden.  And to be fair it was only a small detour on their way home, and of course the promise of £30,000 or $41,000 being paid in full would have sealed the deal for Roddy. So the couple set off on the 27 minute journey and would arrive at the farm about 7.40pm, where they were greeted by the waiting Iain. Iain however had not banked on Anne Marie being present too, and so immediately made the decision that they would have to get rid of her as well. Iain approached the driver side where Roddy was and said to him to come into the house for the money, smiling all the while at the couple he’d known for quite some time and who they saw as a close family friend. Roddy obliged while Anne Marie waited in the car, he’d just be a minute after all. However, unbeknownst to Anne Marie, once inside the house her husband was taken out the back of the farmhouse at gunpoint, made to get on his knees and shot twice by Iain, once in the head killing him outright. Anne Marie would have heard the gunshots and probably would have been a little uneasy, but as it was a farm she maybe thought there was a reasonable explanation. She then saw Iain approaching and again smiling he asked her to come around the back of the house as he had something to show her, to which she trustingly obliged. As the pair rounded the corner of the house what she would have seen would have terrified her, her husband was laying still on the ground with blood all around him. She immediately ran to his side in the hope that she could do something for him, however,  as she knelt crying and terrified at her husband’s side, family friend, Iain, shot her twice in the head.

Dawn:

Oh my God, that’s awful.

Cole:

It really is. When the deed was done, John was responsible for driving the couple’s bodies back to his father’s farm in the horse box attached to the Range Rover. Iain had spent time chopping up the bodies and putting the parts into black bags, before loading the black bags onto the horse box, and John driving the hour long journey south back to his dad’s farm, with Iain following behind driving Roddy and Anne Marie’s blue Vauxhall Astra. When they reached John’s dad’s farm, they proceeded to burn the bodies of Roddy and Anne Marie. Now even though Iain had just cold bloodedly killed his friend and his wife and dismembered the bodies, apparently as the bodies were burning an arm and a hand moved in the flames and for one awful moment Iain thought that it was alive. Apparently this had caused Iain to have nightly nightmares. Iain and John then disposed of the couple’s car. The car has never been found. However, before doing so, John apparently helped himself to the Christmas presents in the couple’s car that they had bought for their two children, and proceeded to sell them on.

Dawn:

Oh lovely.

Cole:

Yes, what a nice man.

Dawn:

He sounds it.

Cole:

When John took the police to where the bodies were, they had to pick through sheep remains until they eventually found the badly burned bodies of the couple. It had taken three months and an extensive investigation, but finally they had the couple’s bodies and their murderers, as well as having taken down a vast drug smuggling ring. The trial of Iain and John started in August 1998 in Glasgow and lasted for three weeks. The couple’s daughter, Anne Marie, attended every single day of the three weeks while witness after witness testified against Iain and John. She cried uncontrollably as the evidence was presented describing just what had happened to her parents at the hands of a family friend. But after three gruelling weeks for the family, finally the verdict was announced. Guilty. When the sentence was read there was a clear relief displayed amongst the family. Iain was sentenced to a minimum of 20 years and John was sentenced to life. After the uncovering of the world that Roddy had actually been involved in, residents in Aberfoyle, who drank alongside Roddy for years, admitted that Roddy never appeared short of money and that they were never quite sure where it all came from, but he wasn’t the sort of man you asked that question to, being a big burly man who could clearly take care of himself. It was also speculated that perhaps Anne Marie put off calling the police for as long as she did due to the fact that Roddy was known to the police and he had made it clear he did not like them, but it could equally have been to do with the fact that her boyfriend had been a drug courier for her dad and she didn’t want anything like that coming out. Whatever the reason, at last Anne Marie and Jamie knew what had become of their parents on that fateful night.

Dawn:

And that’s the end. If you’ve enjoyed this episode and know just the person who’d also like it, please share it with them, don’t keep it to yourself.

Cole:

Please also get in touch on social media if you have any questions, comments or suggestions and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can. All social media and contact details are on our website scottishmurders.com, as well as all the source material and photos related to this episode.

Dawn:

So that’s it for this week, come back next time for another episode of Scottish Murders.

Dawn and Cole:

Join us there. Bye.

Granny Robertson:

Scottish Murders is a production of Cluarantonn.

Scottish Murders is a production of Cluarantonn

Hosted by Dawn and Cole

Researched and Written by Dawn Young

Produced and Edited by Dawn Young and Peter Bull

Production Company Name by Granny Robertson

Music:

Dawn of the Fairies by Derek & Brandon Fiechter

Gothic Wedding by Derek & Brandon Fiechter


The Short Shorts Story – Otzi the Iceman featuring Dawn

Jonas from The Short Shorts Podcast kindly invited Dawn to record his so creative and wonderful Otzi the Iceman short story on his podcast. Why not check it out? It’s something a wee bit different, but still featuring the dulcet tones of Dawn from Scottish Murders.


Shine a Light on Podcasts - October and November

Each Friday in October and November on Twitter we have featured other podcasts that we wanted to #shinealighton. We really enjoy listening to these podcasts, and we’d like to share these featured podcasts here too.

Drunk Theory is hosted by Kara, Kelli, Ryan and Matthew, where every two weeks they talk about conspiracy theories while enjoying a drunk, or two.

Irish Spirits is hosted by Caoimhe, Laura and Alex, where every two weeks the trio bring you an Irish tale about ghosts, fairies or mythical creatures, while drinking a themed cocktail.

Indie Podcaster is hosted by Jeff, where in each episode inspirational guests are interviewed, allowing the listener to find out more about them and their story.

One Nation Under Crime is hosted by Kayla and Leah, where each week the ladies present well told and researched true crime episodes from each year, starting from 1800.

She Will Rock You is hosted by Leah and Bethanne, who aim to teach you more about artists and bands you already know, some you may not, and some you need to know, and give you a deeper appreciation of them.

FilmFloggers is hosted by Ben, Fiona and Tom, who review or flog some fantastic films in a funny and interesting way.

Reverie is hosted by Paige, who each week draws you in to the true crime cases she researches so well and covers so respectfully and empathetically with her silky, smooth voice.

Baby Pod is hosted by SweatyNutz and Ballsak, who talk about different conspiracy theories and try to uncover what the truth is, all while trying to make you laugh. Can be slightly risqué at times.

The Short Shorts is hosted by Jonas, where each episode is a fictional, historical, true crime or real life story, or a poem, between 2 and 16 minutes in length. Perfect for those looking for a succinct, well told, always interesting short story, and you might even recognise one of the voices, as Dawn’s just recorded an episode.


A Knock on the Door

A Knock on the Door

 

Episode Summary

TRIGGER WARNING  – This episode contains horrific and graphic content, so listener discretion is strongly advised.

24 year old Scott Burgess and 19 year old Laura Milne had never met each other and lived in completely different parts of Scotland, but the fates of both would be decided by a knock on a door.  

Please Be Advised – This episode may contain content that some may find distressing. As always, we advise listener discretion. This episode it not suitable for anyone under the age of 13.

Listen on:

Brutal Scots knife killer who stabbed man to death in Paisley flat dodges court over rammy after she was released from prison

Knife killer’s sister caged for sick snaps of murder victim’s butchered body locked up AGAIN for blade rampage in Paisley

Father of mobile phone pics killer reveals death threat after shopping him – Daily Record

Killer who bathed in her victim’s blood has gone on the run after skipping court – Metro

BBC NEWS | Scotland | Glasgow, Lanarkshire and West | Killer who posed with body jailed

BBC NEWS | Scotland | Glasgow, Lanarkshire and West | Teenage murderer posed with body

Life for teen killer who knifed man 80 times | UK | News | Express.co.uk

Karen Duncan is on the run after dodging court

Sick killer Price | Barrhead News

MUG SHOTTS; EXCLUSIVE KILLERS’ JAIL SNAPS ON FACEBOOK Pics of smiling ganglang assassins are posted on fellow inmate’s web page. – Free Online Library

Scots killer Karen Duncan – who bathed in victim’s blood – spared jail for the second time in a month

‘Vigilante’ thugs hurled bricks at home of Paisley court witness who gave evidence against pal – Daily Record

Gunman’s life fell apart after brutal murder of his brother, court hears – Daily Record

BBC NEWS | Scotland | Glasgow, Lanarkshire and West | Jail for murder victim’s brother

Life for teen killer who knifed man 80 times | UK | News | Express.co.uk

Charity battler Betty couldn't help bloodbath killer grandson | Glasgow Times

‘You’re gettin’ it for ma mate’ Yobs smashed in window of court witness’ house with bricks after pal jailed – Daily Record

PressReader.com – Your favorite newspapers and magazines.

Dawn:

24 year old Scott Burgess and 19 year old Laura Milne had never met each other and lived in completely different parts of Scotland, but the fates of both would be decided by a knock on a door.

Hi Wee Ones, it’s just me Dawn today.

So, before I start this week’s episode I need to give you a trigger warning, as both of the cases discussed today are particularly horrific and graphic, so please be warned. 

Scott Burgess was 24 years old and grew up with his mum, dad and seven brothers and sisters. He then moved to Paisley, which is about 12 miles or 19 kilometres east of Glasgow, where he lived in a flat that was right next door to sisters Karen and Irene Duncan. Sadly, not much else is known about Scott, other than he kept in regular contact with his family. Upon moving into the flat in Paisley, Scott just went about his life quite happily, until sometime between the 23rd of August 2007 and the 6th of September 2007, when out of the blue the Duncan sisters, Karen and Irene, and Karen’s boyfriend Stephen Price, came knocking at the door of Scott’s flat.

Laura Milne was 19 years old and was brought up in the town of Ellon in Aberdeenshire, about 16 miles or 25 kilometres north of Aberdeen, which is located in the north east of Scotland. She lived there with her dad, Brian, and her older brother and younger sister. Laura was diagnosed with mild learning difficulties and was described as being vulnerable, naïve and easily manipulated, but that she had a huge heart and just wanted to help others. Sadly, Laura’s school years were marred as she was constantly bullied throughout this time by fellow pupil, Debbie Buchan. However, despite the relentless bullying, upon leaving school, Laura’s disposition hadn’t changed and she still just wanted to help others, which led to her finding work at a homeless charity in Aberdeen, where she was given a room to stay in and she worked in the kitchen, and she enjoyed this immensely. Laura was very close to her family and kept in constant contact with them, phoning and visiting them often. Laura continued to enjoy living and working at the homeless charity, even making friends with some of the homeless people there, including 18 year old Leigh MacKinnon and 22 year old Stuart Jack. However, Laura’s school bully, 19 year old Debbie Buchan, then appeared at the homeless charity. Despite Debbie’s bullying of Laura throughout her school life, Laura held no grudge and was quick to welcome Debbie into the homeless charity and her group of friends. Upon hearing about the reappearance of Debbie in Laura’s life, Laura’s dad, Brian, warned her not to trust Debbie, but Laura was adamant that things had changed, that the bullying was in the past, and that Debbie was now her friend. Laura, Stuart, Leigh and Debbie continue to spend quite a bit of time together, and on the 12th of December 2007 Debbie invited Laura to come to her flat after she had finished working in the kitchen, joining Leigh and Stuart there too. Laura would have been thoroughly looking forward to spending yet more time with her friends, and so upon finishing up in the kitchen Laura made her way to Debbie’s flat, and knocked on the door.

Scott Burgess was watching the TV in his flat having a few quiet drinks, but upon hearing the knock on his flat door he got up to answer it. As he began to open the door he was thrown backwards as three people barged into his flat. The uninvited visitors were his next door neighbours, Karen Duncan who was 16, Karen’s sister Irene who was 18 years old, and Karen’s boyfriend 19 year old Stephen Price. Scott would have quickly realised that the trio had been drinking heavily, and that this probably meant trouble. Just as this thought would have passed through Scott’s mind, Stephen Price head-buttered Scott and then proceeded to repeatedly plunge a knife into Scott’s body. Scott was stabbed at least 80 times in his back, his front and in his temple, with Karen also stabbing Scott twice with a screwdriver. This was an absolutely brutal, unprovoked attack, but what happened after the attack was even more gruesome.

Laura Mine’s knock on the flat door was answered almost immediately by Debbie, who invited her in to join Leigh and Stuart inside. It would have been clear to Laura that Stuart and Leigh had been drinking heavily, but despite this Laura would have been pleased to see her friends. However, having come straight from work she would have first wanted to freshen up in the toilet, before having a drink and joining her friends for the evening. Laura had only just stepped into the toilet and locked the door when suddenly the door was kicked open and she was dragged out and thrown to the floor. What followed was a brutal unprovoked attack on the defenceless Laura. Laura was punched and kicked repeatedly on her head and body by Debbie, Leigh and Stuart, with Leigh later saying that she thought she’d broken her toe she had “belted something so hard.” Debbie also repeatedly stamped on Laura’s head with her feet, while Leigh also hit Laura with a bottle several times. While Laura lay unconscious, bleeding and severely beaten on the floor, Stuart retrieved a knife from the kitchen and cut Laura’s throat, killing her. It was reported in the post mortem later that Laura had extensive bruising to her face and body, that one rib was cracked, her incisor teeth were loosened in their sockets, her jaw was fractured in three places, and she had head injuries. It was possible that Laura would have sustained brain damage due to the severity of the beating had she survived. While this attack was absolutely disgusting, what happened next is equally as shocking.

Scott Burgess was stabbed over 80 times, but what possible reason could there be for Stephen Price and Karen and Irene Duncan to barge into Scott’s flat and attack him so brutally? Well, apparently, it was all because Stephen Price had got it into his head that Scott had said something derogatory about his friends. That, and the fact that they had all been drinking heavily, might also have played a small part. So let’s go back to the day of the attack, because as horrendous as that was, there was much worse to come. So, it’s not known the exact day that Scott was attacked. I guess the trio were that out of it that they’d just forgotten, but it apparently happened between the 23rd of August 2007 and the 6th of September 2007. Stephen Price and the Duncan sisters had been in their flat next door to Scott’s flat getting drunk, and the conversation about Scott apparently having said something derogatory about Stephen Price’s friends came up. So, the trio sat there hatching a plan of revenge, before making there way to Scott’s flat, knocking on the door and barging their way in, with Stephen Price starting to attack Scott straight away. This attack was so vicious that Price actually stabbed himself in the arm. Scott would have quickly slipped into unconsciousness before dying. Now, you’d think after carrying that out you’d maybe be in shock. I don’t know, thinking [s__t ] what have I done. Maybe? Yes? However not these three. Stephen Price then proceeded to pose next to Scott’s dead body, brandishing the actual knife he had just killed Scott with and smiling, while the sisters took the photos on a mobile phone. But it gets even worse. After taking the photos, the Duncan sisters and Stephen Price then went back to the sisters flat where Karen and Stephen got into the bath, fully clothed, and Irene Duncan took photos of Stephen wielding the murder weapon again, while he and Karen splashed about in the bath, which was red with Scott’s blood, all while laughing. The photos also showed that Scott’s blood was all over Stephen, his face and his hands were covered, and it was even in his hair. The trio then carried on with their day as if nothing happened, drinking and laughing, while Scott’s lifeless body lay just through the wall from them. The next day however, after sobering up, there was another chance to, you know, come clean, face up to what had been done and do the right thing. But, no, instead the Duncan sisters went back into Scott’s flat, carried his body to the bathroom, dumped it face down in the bath, then filled it with water and bleach. They then proceeded to cut out parts of the carpet that had been soaked in blood and put it in the rubbish bin, where they attempted to burn it. They then gathered their bloodstained clothes they had all been wearing, the knife, the screwdriver, the mobile phone, after attempting to destroy it, and placed everything together in a black bag and buried it. So while the sisters were doing everything they could to cover up that they had committed a truly barbaric crime, Stephen on the other hand was busy mouthing off to his dad, James. In an article in the Daily Record newspaper on the 26th of March 2008, James advised that Stephen had said “I done a guy in. I stabbed him about 60 times, and I stabbed myself as well.” His dad thought that he was just making it up as he’d been known to make things up in the past, maybe not lies quite as extreme as he’d killed someone but he was known to make things up. Scott’s family however were becoming concerned as they’d not been able to make contact with him. And so after nine days of nobody hearing from Scott, his dad and brother, Christopher who was 18, went to his flat to see if he was there. When they looked through the kitchen window they saw blood and kicked the door in, before making the truly horrific discovery of Scott’s body in the bath, face down. The police were called and started a murder investigation. The details of the murder were soon released and an appeal was made, an appeal which James Price also saw and immediately became suspicious. He said that a week had passed and he had honestly thought that his son was just lying, but on hearing the details and the appeal he immediately called the police and told them what his son had said. He was utterly disgusted by what he had heard and he wasn’t having Scott’s murderer get away with it, whether it was a son of his or not. He said in a newspaper article “‘He’s just a monster. I can’t bear to think what he put that boy through. I know myself that he’s a scary boy, especially when he’s full of the drugs.” He went on to say that the next time he heard from his son it was via a text and it read “You’re dead.” Stephen Price was quickly arrested. He denied the allegation of course, however that was quickly about to change. Through diligent police work the buried bag was found with the blood soaked clothes, the knife, the screwdriver and of course the broken mobile phone. However, the Duncan sisters hadn’t done a very good job of destroying the phone and the gruesome photos were retrieved from it. After the photos were found, a police source reported in a newspaper article “I’ve never seen such graphic pictures of a murder.” Upon Stephen Price being told that they had retrieved the bag and all the pictures that had been taken, he changed his story and admitted he had murdered Scott Burgess. When the Duncan sisters were brought in for questioning they admitted their part in the murder, and were both charged with murder. However, the charge of murder against the two Sisters was reduced and instead Karen Duncan was charged with culpable homicide, and both sisters were charged with attempting to defeat the ends of justice by hiding or trying to destroy evidence. Stephen Price and Karen and Irene Duncan pled guilty to their charges.

Laura Milne was now lying dead on the floor of Debbie Buchan’s flat, having been savagely beaten and having her throat cut, but Debbie, Stuart and Leigh were not finished yet. In the days that followed, Stuart would cut off one of Laura’s ears and breast, before practically detaching her legs from her body, and almost decapitating her. Stuart, Debbie and Leigh then wrapped Laura’s head, torso and limbs in bedding and put them under the kitchen sink, where Laura’s body would stay for a week while the trio came and went from the flat as normal. As Laura was close to her family and contacted them regularly they would become suspicious if Laura didn’t contact them, and so Debbie Buchan replied to six text messages that Laura had received from family members pretending to be Laura, saying that she was fine and staying with friends but that they would see her soon. This would have added to the family’s torment when they eventually found out that Laura was already dead at the time of these text messages being sent to them. And even that is not the most disgusting thing to happen in this case. On the 14th of December, two days after Laura was brutally beaten and murdered, a video clip was recorded of Debbie Buchan and Stuart Jack who both seemed to be disgustingly rejoicing that Laura was dead, with Debbie saying “I feel so happy that she’s gone. She’s on my kitchen floor with a slit throat, a cut mouth, cut tit and her head kicked in.” When Debbie asked Stuart if he was glad Laura was dead he smiled and said “Yes, I am.” And when asked if he enjoyed cutting her throat he replied “Aye”, to which Debbie replied “Good. I really enjoyed stomping her head to [ f__k ]. There’s blood all over my walls.” Another video clip recorded a few minutes later showed Stuart dancing, with Debbie encouraging him. However, the trio were not exactly masterminds and each was desperate to tell their horrific secret. Debbie told an ex-boyfriend that she had been fighting with a female and that she was now “lying there looking funny.” Leigh told one of her friends that she had been at the flat when “a girl had been killed”, but it was Stuart who put the final nail in the coffin. He told two female residents, who were also living at the homeless hostel with them, that Laura had said that she was glad his granddad and sister were dead and so he killed her with a bread knife. He went on to say that Debbie and Leigh had been the ones who had beaten Laura, then he had got a knife from the kitchen and cut her throat. Naturally the two residents were probably dubious about what Stuart was saying, and so he led them to Debbie’s flat, opened the letterbox and said “Can you smell her body? She’s lying in there.” No doubt now believing what Stuart was saying, and also probably frightened, the two residents called the police, who found Laura’s decomposing body wrapped in bedding in a cupboard under the sink. Debbie and Stuart were arrested on the 20th of December 2007, and Leigh MacKinnon on the 21st of December 2007 in Glasgow, where she had fled after the attack and murder of Laura. Stuart Jack admitted murdering Laura and attempting to defeat the ends of justice and Debbie Buchan and Leigh MacKinnon admitted attempted murder and attempting to defeat the ends of justice, and they were charged with the same.

The Scott Burgess court case took place in January 2008 at the High Court in Glasgow. Scott Burgess’s family were also present for all of the evidence to be presented to the judge in order for them to decide on the sentences of Stephen Price and Karen and Irene Duncan, after the three pled guilty to their charges. The family had to sit through the horrendous sequence of events, hearing exactly what had been done to Scott’s body and of the horrific photos that had been taken. Following the evidence being heard, sentencing was deferred so the judge could take stock of all the evidence that had been presented, as well as asking for background reports on Stephen, Karen and Irene, so he could decide on the appropriate sentence for them. So I’ll give you a wee bit of background information about the three. The ring leader of the attack was Stephen Price. He had been brought up by his dad James and his step-mum Helen, when Helen had married James when Stephen was still a wee boy. Over the years Stephen was constantly in trouble with the police and was drinking heavily, having got in with the wrong crowd. And so in 2004, when he left school at 16 with no qualifications and no prospect of changing his behaviour, it was thought it best he move out of his parents home. Helen’s mum, Betty, had also played a part in Stephen’s life and so she agreed Stephen could move in with her at this time, thinking she could put him back on the straight and narrow by providing him with stability and encouragement. How wrong she was. Shortly after he moved in with his gran he was caught shoplifting and assaulted a member of staff. Then a few months later he assaulted a passenger on a bus. However, his gran would also get a taste of his nasty medicine when she had to call the police as he threatened to stab her and had become abusive towards her. After each incident he would always promise to do better and mend his ways, but this never happened. His gran wasn’t going to give up on him though. Anyway, it wasn’t long before Stephen slipped back to his old ways again, living between his gran’s house and homeless accommodation for a couple of years, and then he met Karen Duncan. Not much is known about Karen Duncan or indeed her sister Irene, other than they grew up in care. And according to an article in the Daily Record newspaper on the 6th of January 2007, Karen suffered a traumatic event at a young age. Following the Judge in the Scott Burgess case receiving the requested background information, it was back to the High Court in Glasgow, two months later on the 25th of March 2008, for Judge Lord Brodie to pass sentence. Lord Brodie sentenced Stephen Price to a life sentence, to spend 15 years in prison before being considered for parole. Lord Brodie said “This was a frenzied and sustained attack. It was an unprovoked attack on an unarmed man in his own home, showing a gross level of depravity.” He went on to say that had Stephen Price not pled guilty he would have given him 20 years. Karen Duncan, now 17, was given a jail sentence of seven years for culpable homicide and was to be supervised for a further three years after her release. And her sister Irene Duncan, now 18, was sentenced to 27 months in a young offenders institute for attempting to defeat the ends of justice, and was to be monitored for a year after her release. After the sentencing, Scott’s mum, Anne, spoke out saying she was furious and shocked with the sentences, that they were far too lenient after what the trio had done to her son. She couldn’t understand why the sisters murderer charge had been reduced, feeling that they should instead have been charged with conspiracy to murder, which carries a life sentence. Her feelings were that her son had not got justice. Scott’s mum also said in an interview in the Express Newspaper that she can’t sleep because every time she closes her eyes she sees them stabbing Scott. She said that she cries uncontrollably every time she thinks about Scott, and is still haunted by his death. Stephen’s step-mum, Helen, also spoke out saying that she was heartbroken and that she never thought Stephen could do what he had, but that she couldn’t abandon him.

Stuart Jack, Debbie Buchan and Leigh MacKinnon appeared at the High Court in Edinburgh on the 8th of July 2008 on the charges of murder and attempted murder of Laura Milne, where Stuart pled guilty to murder and attempting to defeat the ends of justice, Debbie pled guilty to attempted murder and attempting to defeat the ends of justice and Leigh MacKinnon pled guilty to attempted murder, attempting to defeat the ends of justice and of fleeing to Glasgow after the murder. The trial was due to begin on the 8th of July, however, due to the guilty plea the court was adjourned overnight in order for full details and evidence to be prepared to be presented to the court the following day. Following these developments, Laura’s dad, Brian, said that the family were relieved and pleasantly surprised that the trio pleaded guilty as it meant that they would not have to endure a four-week trial of heartache hearing exactly what had been done to Laura. He said in an article in The Herald newspaper that they would “just rely on the judge now to do his job.” All of the shocking evidence was then presented to the court on the 9th of July. However, it wouldn’t be until the 31st of July when the court reconvened and the sentences were finally handed down, before which Judge Lord Woolman had a few things to say in his statement. He firstly talked a wee bit about Laura and about her vulnerabilities, about the horrific unprovoked attack, about the attempt to defeat the ends of justice and the shocking video footage, and how it was difficult to comprehend the evil that lay behind this attack. He stated that in determining sentencing he had taken into account the information and evidence that had been submitted by each council, as well as the background reports, ages and the difficult backgrounds of Stuart, Debbie and Leigh. However, he stated that he had also taken into account the ferocious and sustained attack on Laura, on someone who was supposed to be a friend, as well as the fact they didn’t seem to fully appreciate what they had done. Just to let you know there’s not much known about the three, but I’ll tell you what I found out. 19 year old Debbie Buchan already had one prior conviction for assault, and at the time of the attack and murder of Laura Milne, Debbie was already on bail for two further complaints of assault. Debbie told the court that she was embarrassed and ashamed of her actions.  It was also noted that Debbie had said that she was sorry for her part in what had happened to Laura. 18 year old Leigh MacKinnon also had a previous conviction of assault. She had apparently been an intelligent girl and had enrolled in a college course, before drink and drugs took control.  However, the judge said he would not be taking this into account when considering her sentence as he deemed this irrelevant. 22 year old Stuart Jack lived a nomadic and chaotic lifestyle. He had no previous convictions but did drink alcohol to excess. Again, the judge said he would not take his excess alcohol consumption that evening into account when considering the sentence. Finally the judge was ready to pass sentence. Debbie Buchan  received a custodial sentence of nine years and four months. Judge Woolman also felt that the protection of the public was an issue and so he also gave an extended sentence of three years, meaning that when Debbie is released from prison, after serving at least two thirds of her custodial sentence, then she will be on licence and under supervision for a further three years. Leigh MacKinnon received a custodial sentence of nine years, and also an extended sentence of three years. Stuart Jack received a life sentence, meaning he will be on licence for life, with the punishment part of his sentence being 18 years, meaning he will have to serve at least 18 years before he will be eligible to apply for parole and released on licence. If he breaks the terms of his licence he will be recalled back to prison to serve the remainder of his sentence. All sentences were back dated to when they were first taken into custody, the 20th of December 2007 for Debbie and Stuart on the 21st of December 2007 for Leigh. Stuart Jack, Debbie Buchan and Leigh MacKinnon showed no emotion as their sentences were passed or as they were taken away to start them. If you’d like to read the full statement by Judge Lord Woolman, you can find it under the sources for this case on our website. Following the sentencing, a statement was released by the family and taken from the Scotsman newspaper it read “We are appalled that such a horrific crime has resulted in such a lenient sentence. They all played a part in Laura’s death and in our opinion Debbie Buchan and Leigh MacKinnon should have had significantly higher sentences. We also want it put on record that Debbie Buchan’s apology is of no consequence to us, and we hope their evil actions will always weigh heavily on their conscience. Yet again the judicial system has let innocent victims down. It is no wonder we are experiencing increased levels of serious crime with the apparent lack of punishment. No sentence will ever bring Laura back to us or erase from our minds the memory of what they did to her. We will have to live with this for the rest of our lives, Debbie Buchan and Leigh MacKinnon could be out walking the streets again in just six years.”

Speaking of being released and walking the streets again, Irene Duncan served her 27-month sentence and was released, where she proceeded to rack up numerous offenses, including a knife attack and assaulting the police. On the 6th of September 2018 she was witnessed leaving her property in Paisley wielding two large kitchen knives and wandering around the area with them. The police were called and when they arrived they saw Irene running behind a block of flats. When they followed they found the knives and a screwdriver lying on the ground near where they had seen Irene running to. She was arrested, charged and due to her breaking her bill conditions was jailed for 22 months, to be monitored for nine months after she was released. It also transpired that she was pregnant and would be giving birth in prison. Karen Duncan was released from prison in 2015 and also moved back to Paisley. Less than two years later on the 3rd of October 2017, when she was 26 years old, she was arrested after being verbally abusive and threatening towards a woman in the street in Paisley. The woman she was threatening was said to have been terrified. She pleaded guilty to the charge, and due to her being on a three-year supervision order after leaving prison, she was to appear in court to be sentenced for breaching her bill conditions. However, she never turned up and a warrant for her arrest was issued and the hunt for Karen began. She was caught however and she appeared in court, but she was given a reprieve and instead of going back to prison she was ordered to carry out 70 hours of unpaid work in six months. But it wouldn’t be the last time she found herself in court. In February 2019 she was this time in court due to the fact that her Rottweiler and German Shepherd dog had bitten a nine-year-old girl on her left bum cheek. She did apologise profusely to the girl and her mother and the girl made a full recovery, but she pleaded guilty to breaking the Dangerous Dog Act. She was fined £360, or just under $500. And then in August 2019, when she was 28 years old, she was arrested with her boyfriend after the pair carried out an attack on a couple who had been witnesses against their friends in court. Her boyfriend was seen to be carrying a knife and Karen threw bricks through the windows of the house while the couple were inside. She was heard to be swearing and shouting that the couple were going to get it due to them getting her friend an eight-year prison sentence.  The pair were arrested and Karen pled guilty to public disorder, but reported that she didn’t remember much about what happened. On sentencing again she got a reprieve, and instead was handed a community payback order. She would also be closely supervised for two years and ordered to repay damages, which were £297 or $411.

Debbie Buchan was released early from prison and on her release was being known as Debbie Robertson. She was to spend nine years and four months in prison back dated to the 20th of December 2007, however on the 25th of May 2016, eight years and five months after being sentenced, she appeared at Aberdeen Sheriff Court for assaulting her ex-partner. It was reported in court that 20 fresh human bite marks had been noted on her ex-partner’s back and chest, however, her ex-partner also said that his chest had actually never been examined. Debbie’s ex-partner stated that he had sat on Debbie to stop her moving after an argument had turned violent and that this was when she had bitten him, trying to get him off her. He then said he slapped her and knocked her head off the ground as he got off her. Debbie, who was now 27 years old, was cleared of this charge by a jury who determined that she had in fact been acting in self-defence during an argument between her self and our ex-partner.  Leigh MacKinnon, who was given a nine-year prison sentence, was back in Aberdeen eight years and four months after being sentenced, and she had secured herself a job and changed her name to Sheryllleigh while in prison. Leigh, who was now 26, had done some hairdressing training and had been cutting other prisoners hair, and so to put these new skills to good use she had rented herself a chair at a barber shop in Aberdeen using her new name Sheryllleigh The barber shop was located about a mile away from where the horrific murder of Laura Milne had taken place. Not only were the clients she was cutting the hair off completely oblivious of who the person cutting their hair was or her background, but also the owner of the barber shop where she was renting her chair had no idea either. When he found out he was furious, not only because he had been deceived but also because he had known Laura Milne. Laura’s dad, Brian, was also angry saying in the Press and Journal newspaper on the 7th of April 2016 “I want to know why her sentence hasn’t been finished. I’m angry that she got off so easily.” And that just leaves Scott Burgess and Laura Milne’s murderers. Stephen Price will be eligible to apply for parole. after serving the punishment part of his life sentence of 15 years for the murder of Scott Burgess, in 2022. He will be 34 years old. Stuart Jack will be eligible to apply for parole, after serving the punishment part of his life sentence of 18 years for the murder of Laura Milne, in 2025. He will be 40 years old.

The Scott and the Milne families have had to try and find a way to pick up the pieces of their shattered lives after their loved ones, Scott Burgess and Laura Milne, were taken from them so brutally and pointlessly. It’s clear that neither family were satisfied with the sentences that were handed down and feel let down by the justice system. So, has justice been served?

And that’s the end. If you’ve enjoyed this episode and know just the person who’d also like it please share it with them, don’t keep it to yourself.

Cole:

Please also get in touch on social media if you have any questions, comments or suggestions and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can. All social media and contact details are on our website scottishmurders.com as well as all the source material and photos related to this episode.

Dawn:

So that’s it for this week, come back next time for another episode of Scottish Murders.

Dawn and Cole:

Join us there. Bye.

Granny Robertson:

Scottish Murders is a production of Cluarantonn.

Scottish Murders is a production of Cluarantonn

Hosted by Dawn Young

Researched and Written by Dawn Young

Produced and Edited by Dawn Young and Peter Bull

Production Company Name by Granny Robertson

Music:

Dawn of the Fairies by Derek & Brandon Fiechter

Gothic Wedding by Derek & Brandon Fiechter


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The Buccleuch Street Murders

The Buccleuch Street Murders

Episode Summary

TRIGGER WARNING – This episode contains references to sexual abuse and violence, which some listeners may find distressing. Listener discretion is advised.

The murders of Betty Alexander and Emily Mutch may have been separated by 44 years but they are still linked to this day as they both occurred on the same unassuming street in Glasgow, and leading to two firsts for Scotland.

Please Be Advised – This episode may contain content that some may find distressing. As always, we advise listener discretion. This episode it not suitable for anyone under the age of 13.

Listen on:

Scottish Murders is a production of Cluarantonn

Hosted by Dawn and Cole

Researched and Written by Dawn Young

Produced and Edited by Dawn Young and Peter Bull

Production Company Name by Granny Robertson

Music:

Dawn of the Fairies by Derek & Brandon Fiechter

Gothic Wedding by Derek & Brandon Fiechter

Dawn:

The murders of Betty Alexander and Emily Mutch may have been separated by 44 years, but they are still linked to this day, as they both occurred on the same unassuming street in Glasgow.

Dawn and Cole:

Hi Wee Ones, I’m Dawn and I’m Cole, and this is Scottish Murders.

The Great Pop Culture Debate Podcast Promotion

Dawn:

Garnethill is situated in the north west of Glasgow City Centre on a hilly area. It is just under a mile from Sauchihall Street, one of the three main shopping streets in Glasgow.  The other two being Buchanan Street and Argyle Street, all of which Cole and I have visited over the years. Back in 1952, Garnethill was known as the bed sit and theatre land district and so there was an ever-changing parade of seasonal workers, salesmen, actors and young families. Garnethill is made up of 12 streets, one of which is Buccleuch Street, and is where four and a half year old Betty Alexander lived with her parents, Jack and Barbara Alexander, and her grandmother Isobel Alexander. For all Betty was only four and a half years old she loved nothing more than helping people, and Tuesday 7th of October 1952 was just like any other day for her. Betty had first set about the task of helping her gran to make the household beds. She then had taken herself to the local grocers where she frequently spent her time helping him in the shop. Betty then was reported to have returned home and given her gran a bunch of flowers she’d gotten as payment for helping the greengrocer. October in the west of Scotland can be pretty wet and, as expected, the rain had fallen continuously for days, until early evening on the 7th of October when there was a slight reprieve. Due to the bad weather, Betty hadn’t been allowed out much to play with her friends, so when the rain stopped she begged her parents if she could go outside to play. It was about 5pm by this time and she wouldn’t normally be allowed out this late, but on this occasion her parents relented. Betty left the flat to play with her friends wearing a smart brown coat, a kilt, grey, red and green jumper, brown shoes and fawn socks. Isobel, Betty’s gran, was reported to have said that Betty had whistled and sang as she went out to play. An hour or so later Betty’s mum, Barbara, shouted for Betty to come in and get her tea, but there was no sign of Betty. Barbara became worried and started walking from street to street in search of her daughter. An hour later back at Buccleuch Street there had been no sightings of Betty with her distinctive black curly hair and Barbara was sufficiently concerned that she contacted the police to report her daughter missing. Being a close-knit community, upon hearing about Betty’s disappearance, friends and neighbours of the family formed and started a search party, alongside the police. The search party went from street to street, lane by lane, backyard to backyard, through the night searching by torchlight. Barbara Alexander later said that about 8pm on the night her daughter went missing she thought she had heard a shout from Betty saying “mummy mummy” coming from Buccleuch Lane, which runs along the backyards of Buccleuch Street and West Graham Street. She said that she had walked up and down Buccleuch Lane, which was lit by gas light, at this time shouting Betty’s name and looking into backyards where she could, but she never heard Betty’s voice again. By early Wednesday morning, the search party came together again in the hopes someone had news of Betty’s whereabouts, only to be told that there was still no sign of her. Due to the search having turned up nothing by Wednesday morning, CID detectives were then drafted into help. Firstly, as it was daylight now, a further search was set up taking in places that had already been checked the previous night as well as places that hadn’t, including outhouses, cellars and yards. Becky’s picture was also posted across the city on police boxes and at police stations. Newspaper reporters were also now aware of Betty Alexander’s disappearance and they were on hand to help get the word out to their readers, in the hope someone might have a clue to Betty’s whereabouts. They were given Betty’s description and of the clothing she wore, and this was circulated in the evening and daily newspapers. From this exposure many readers of the newspaper contacted the police to share possible sightings of Betty, all of which had to be checked. One such sighting was of Betty apparently seen crying in a large store in Sauchiehall Street just before the store closed on Wednesday night. The manager was asked to open the store to see if Betty had been trapped inside by mistake, however this proved not to be the case. This sighting along with all the other sightings reported of Betty, after being followed up, went nowhere. Another lead that was followed up was of a sighting of a dark saloon car in Buccleuch Street on the very night that Betty disappeared, however, this also turned out to be a red herring. The police were also keen to find a man who had supposedly been seen with Betty on Tuesday night. The description of the man and what he had been wearing was circulated, but nobody came forward to say they recognised this man, and he was never identified. While some police officers were given the task of following up all leads of possible sightings of Betty, others, along with friends and family of the Alexanders as well as complete strangers from the surrounding areas and beyond, carried on selflessly with a search for Betty, neglecting their own families in the process, and the search area gradually widened, eventually taking in the entire area covered by the Northern Police Division, which was at the time 16 square miles. Betty’s headmaster at her primary school also did his bit to help find any clues to Betty’s disappearance. He held an assembly with the children of the school and asked them to come forward if they had seen Betty around the area on Tuesday evening. Apparently a couple of the children were able to give some information, all of which helped police establish the movements of Betty until approximately 6pm, although they did admit that the children’s recollection could be unreliable. There had been no sightings of Betty after 6pm by any of the school children.  Despite the searches, the newspaper appeals and the sightings, there was still no trace of Betty, and by Thursday the 9th of October Detective Chief Inspector Neil Beaton admitted that he was beginning to fear for Betty’s safety. Unfortunately, only a day later his fear became a reality. It was 2pm on Friday the 10th of October, almost three days after wee Betty Alexander first went missing, when she was found in the backyard of the Royal Hospital for Sick Children Dispensary in West Graham Street by Mrs Agnes Hunter, a 55 year old cleaner.

Cole:

As it was the 50s, I assume a dispensary has a different meaning than it does today.

Dawn:

Back then it was a place where poorer families could take their children for free medical treatment and medication.

Cole:

Yeah, that makes sense.

Dawn
Agnes had a routine when cleaning the dispensary, and on Fridays about 2pm she always went out to the backyard to beat the dispensary rugs. There was no reason for anyone else working at the dispensary to go out there, which is why it took until the Friday for anyone working there to find Betty.

Cole:

Didn’t you say that the search parties were looking in every backyard up and down Garnethill? Didn’t they see Betty in the dispensary backyard, or was she put there after people had searched it?

Dawn:

Well you’ll not believe it, but the dispensary backyard wasn’t actually checked.

Cole:

Why not?

Dawn:

Well, the site that the dispensary sat on was private property, along with the backyard. It was surrounded by a seven foot brick wall with iron railings and glass on the top of it, and the wooden gate from Buccleuch Lane into the dispensary yard was always kept locked. The backyard unfortunately was also not overlooked by anyone’s flat or house, except the caretaker’s house and him and his family had moved out six weeks prior. So, there was no one that was just going to look out and see Betty lying there. Apparently the backyard wasn’t searched as it was assumed that there was no way a small child could get into it, and it was apparently initially thought that Betty had just wandered off. Although what Betty’s grandmother said later to the papers contradicts this, something which I found a lot while researching this case actually. When doing an interview with a local newspaper, Betty’s gran said “She was a lovable, sweet wee girl who used to talk to anyone who spoke to her, but would not wander away of her own accord.” 

Cole:

Surely if she was missing for three days you would want to check the dispensary.

Dawn:

Yeah. I mean, even if you initially thought that she just wandered off, after three days I think you would be realising she hadn’t. So, yeah, you would have checked. Anyway, because of this misunderstanding, search parties would have passed by within a short distance from wee Betty’s body numerous times before she was found on the Friday afternoon.

Cole:

That’s crazy.

Dawn:

So when Agnes found Betty she was lying near the top of the few steps down into the backyard from the dispensary back door. Agnes quickly summoned the police, but later she said that it was “a terrible sight” that she wanted to forget. So, when the police arrived they firstly noted that Betty’s clothes appeared to be in disarray, and this is where the contradictions start again. Some reports say that Betty’s coat was folded and placed under her head. Others say that the coat had been placed under her body and she lay on it. Some reports say that her socks and shoes were wet. Others report that her clothes looked like they had been removed and ironed. Can’t imagine why anyone that killed her would then remove her clothes and iron them. Also the state Betty’s body was found in differs slightly too. One report says that Betty had been found badly beaten, had a scarf twisted around her neck and had been strangled. Other reports say that she had no physical marks on her neck, no scarf was found around her neck or otherwise, and that she hadn’t been strangled.  Another report says that she had suffered a serious assault and had died of shock. Another said she had been severely injured, strangled and outraged, which, according to Douglas Skelton’s book No Final Solution, means today that she was sexually assaulted. It’s not known which one of these accounts is accurate, however, all reports did agree that she’d been dead for some time, possibly since her disappearance on Tuesday night, and that she’d probably lain on the steps for the same amount of time. Word of Betty’s body being found had spread like wildfire, and within the hour of her body being found the many people who had spent the last three days away from their families looking for wee Betty, as well as reporters, began to congregate at either end of Buccleuch Lane. It was reported that the crowds grew to around about a 1,000 people over the afternoon. Betty’s dad, Jack, was seen arriving at the dispensary to carry out the horrendous task of identifying his daughter, before his daughter was removed for a post-mortem to be carried out.

Cole:

Oh, so he just identified her at the scene?

Dawn:

Yeah, from what’s been reported this is what happened. Maybe a procedure that’s just changed over time. As the day wore on, the mood of the crowds gathered changed from shock to anger that this had been done to one of their own, to a four and a half year old girl, and finally to fear that it could be one of their children next. They wanted answers. A feeling that was mirrored throughout Glasgow as the news broke of Betty’s body being found. Glasgow had not seen a murder of such a young child for over 30 years and the city as a whole was horrified. Forensic teams descended on the backyard of the dispensary to search every inch of it for clues to what had happened to Betty and who had done it.

Cole:

So, they were definitely treating it as suspicious? After all the different reports, it seems like it wasn’t an accident.

Dawn:

Yeah, straight away they’ve determined that it was a murder. I think partly because they were right, the wee girl herself couldn’t have got into the yard so she had to have been taken there. So, yeah, definitely murder straight away. So, the forensic team firstly came across a small bit of newspaper on Betty’s body, which, after an investigation, was found to have come from a Glasgow morning edition newspaper from the 2nd of October 1952, five days before she went missing. This was later examined for fingerprints but none were found and this lead went nowhere. However, a fingerprint was found on both a wrought iron gate leading from West Graham Street and a wooden door that led to Buccleuch Lane, as well as a fingerprint being found on one of the steps where Betty was found lying. The gate and door were removed from the hinges, as well as sections of the steps, and taken to the forensic lab to be fingerprinted and examined in greater detail.

Cole:

So, they removed part of the steps and took the gate and the door to fingerprint them? Why didn’t they do that at the scene?

Dawn:

Apparently back in the 1950s it was thought that by trying to secure a fingerprint at the crime scene it could result in this being destroyed, so to get the fingerprint they just took the actual source of where the fingerprint was back to the lab to be examined. Obviously things have changed now. Anyway from the items they removed and fingerprinted it would be the wooden gate that provided the only real clue, a partial fingerprint, which is pretty difficult to match, especially back then when there were no computers and everything had to be compared by eye. Betty’s clothes were also taken to the lab and examined for any traces of her killer, but what was actually found in her clothing was dog hairs. Thinking this was a vital clue the police secured hair samples from every dog in the Garnethill area. Through this process they identified the dog, and it belonged to a resident who lived close to Buccleuch Lane. However, the owner and the dog were quickly ruled out of the inquiry. It was assumed that Betty had either came into contact with the dog by patting it before she disappeared, or that the dog had somehow made its way into the backyard where Betty lay and had shed its hair on her. However the hairs got onto her body, it was a dead end. While the forensic teams worked tirelessly, the police began what would be one of the biggest murder investigations. Over the weekend, the 11th and 12th of October, the police undertook the mammoth task of interviewing everybody in the Garnethill area via door-to-door inquiries to try to find any sightings of Betty between Tuesday evening until she was found, and of any sightings of strangers in the area that could be linked to Betty’s disappearance and murder. This undertaking took 120 detectives and 2,000 uniformed policemen. They were said to have interviewed almost 4,000 people by Monday the 13th of October, this included a 69 year old man who happened to live in the closest residence to the murder scene. He said that he was aware who Betty was, but that he hadn’t heard anything on the night in question or the following two nights. He did say they had seen Betty on the Tuesday night about 5pm and that she was playing with his granddaughter. Once all of the information collected from the door-to-door inquiries was gone through and collated, the police were able to ascertain that Betty had been seen about 5.30pm on Tuesday the 7th of October in Buccleuch Street, and then again about 7pm in Rose Street, which is about a five minute walk away, still in the Garnethill area though. However, there was still the hour between 7 and 8pm that could not be accounted for. Do you remember that Betty’s mum said that she thought she had heard Betty shouting “mummy mummy” from Buccleuch Lane about 8pm?

Cole:

Yeah. And that’s where Betty was found so that would make sense. Did the police think that Betty was in the backyard being killed at that exact time?

Dawn:

Well, that could have been a possibility, but apparently the police believed that Betty had actually already been dead when she was carried into the yard, either via Buccleuch Lane over the seven foot high wall with glass on it or from West Graham Street via a short passage at the side of the dispensary and over a lower wooden gate. According to Donald M. Fraser’s book The Book of Glasgow Murders, it was actually proven that she was killed somewhere else before being placed in the yard.

Cole:

But if Betty’s mum said she heard who she thought was Betty saying “mummy mummy” from Buccleuch Lane but she was actually killed somewhere else, how would that be possible?

Dawn:

Well, I’ve actually got two thoughts about that. Either Betty was still alive and she did hear her, then Betty was killed shortly after 8pm and then placed in the yard, or she didn’t in fact hear Betty shouting “mummy mummy” at all. But we’ll come back to that later.

Cole:

Okay.

Dawn:

So, Betty’s post mortem was carried out over the weekend on Saturday the 11th of October. The cause of death was pronounced to have been shock which had been brought on by being a victim of an assault. However, again, this was contradicted later by the police who said that Betty had been suffocated and criminally assaulted. However Betty died, she was still murdered and her murderer was still out there. And while this is at the forefront of everybody’s mind and they wanted this person to be caught and brought to justice, Betty’s family had other things on their mind as Betty’s funeral was to take place on Monday the 13th of October 1952. Thanks to word of mouth, as well as the media, people, mostly women and children from Garnethill as well as across Glasgow, had come to pay their respects, regardless of the rain that poured down. The huge crowd, thought to be of around 5,000 people, lined Buccleuch Street to say goodbye to Betty, as her tiny white coffin went slowly by. It was a sad affair, with many of the women and children crying. The procession started at the Alexanders home in Buccleuch Street and came to an end at Cadder Cemetery, which was about a 20-minute drive north east of the city. Here family and a few close friends stood by the graveside and watched the tiny coffin be lowered into the ground. There was a mass of wreaths and brightly coloured flowers placed all around the grave, many from strangers from all across Glasgow. As well as a card from Betty’s parents which read “To Bunkum, our dear wee Betty, from daddy and mummy.” Now, as the funeral procession was making its way slowly along its route to the cemetery, a 15 month old boy, who was in his pram outside a shop while his mother was inside shopping, was taken by a passing woman.

Cole:

What?!

Dawn:

Thankfully the baby’s aunt saw what had happened and challenged the woman, taking the baby boy from her. However, as you can imagine, tensions were already running high and when the crowd that had gathered from the funeral got wind of this, things reached boiling point. Thankfully the police were on hand and got to the woman and arrested her before the crowds got to her first.

Cole:

So, she just tried to steal a baby off the street? She was very lucky that could have turned really nasty for her.

Dawn:

Yeah, I know, she was lucky. The woman was later charged with a child stealing, but thankfully the day didn’t turn nasty and overshadow Betty’s funeral.

Cole:

Good.

Dawn:

With Betty now laid to rest, on Tuesday the 14th of October the police announced that they had found a partial fingerprint close to where Betty had been found. Unfortunately, having gone through their records and compared the partial fingerprints with male criminals they had on file, they hadn’t been able to find a match. As this fingerprint was the only solid clue they needed to come up with a way to make it work for them. And, therefore, on the Tuesday an unprecedented request was made by Chief Constable Malcolm McCulloch. As detectives were convinced that Betty’s murderer was a local man and that Betty possibly had gone with this man willingly and she had known him, they were willing to carry out Scotland’s biggest ever fingerprinting exercise and requested that all adult males over the age of 17 in the Garnethill area be fingerprinted for comparison with the partial print that had been found at the murder scene. While it was made clear that people could refuse this request, it was strongly hoped that police would have the residence of Garnethill’s full cooperation. The police also gave assurances that the fingerprints taken would only be used for the purpose of comparison against the partial print taken from the crime scene, and would be destroyed once it had been eliminated in their inquiries. Amazingly, no one refused, and the police ended up collecting over 1,000 fingerprints, all of which were compared manually with the partial print, but again none of the prints matched. Police then decided to include in the fingerprint exercise men who worked in Garnethill but didn’t live there, including a church congregation who had been painting railings in West Graham Street. Nearly two weeks after Betty’s body had been found that exercise was complete, again with no matches been found, and so the investigation came to a standstill.

Cole:

Okay, so when the police had no luck fingerprinting the men over age 17 did they not start fingerprinting younger men or women?

Dawn:

No, they didn’t. And, yes, that would have been my thought too, that after not getting a fingerprint match with any of the males living or working in the area that they’d broaden that by fingerprinting younger men or women living and working in the area too, but they didn’t.

Cole:

Why not?

Dawn:

I wasn’t able to find a definitive reason why they didn’t do this during my research of the case. All I can think of is that the police maybe had some sort of evidence that ruled out a younger male or a woman being involved completely. Or maybe it was just due to lack of funding or resources. But, in my opinion, they missed a once in a lifetime opportunity to complete the task and know for sure. Due to the transient nature of the Garnethill area, there will never be another chance to have all the residents who worked and lived in the Garnethill area there again. I feel this was a missed opportunity.

Cole:

I agree. Also, the woman who tried to kidnap the baby during Betty’s funeral, I mean was she never fingerprinted.

Dawn:

I’m not sure. I would assume so if she was arrested and charged.

Cole:

I wonder if her fingerprints were ever compared to the partial print that they had. I mean it seems like a really big coincidence that a woman tried to steal a child at the funeral of another child. Maybe there would be two perpetrators not just one soul man.

Dawn:

That is a really good point actually. I’d like to think that somebody on the investigation thought about this too. But, then, they apparently weren’t interested in women only concentrating on the men in the area. So it’s anybody’s guess.

Cole:

I wonder if there was evidence to suggest that she was sexually assaulted by a man and that’s why they weren’t looking at women?

Dawn:

Yeah that could have been the case. But, again, with all the contradicting stories of what actually happened to her, it’s just not known. But, yeah, that could actually be one of the reasons. But even if it was, there still could have been two people. There could have been a man and a woman involved. So, I don’t really think they should have just ruled out all women for that reason. Just my opinion though. Now, while the fingerprinting exercise was taking place, at the same time other leads were also being investigated, and on the 16th of October a rumour started circulating around Garnethill that a husband, his wife and their son had been taken to the police station, where it later emerged that they had been questioned for 13 hours. This was the same man that had said that he had seen Betty at about 5pm playing with his granddaughter. While they were being questioned at the police station in Maitland Street, more and more people turned up there demanding to know what was going on, assuming that they were somehow involved in the murder of Betty. They began to get more and more rowdy until detectives finally made a statement saying that the family hadn’t been arrested and were just helping police with their inquiries, with a chief superintendent saying that “There is no particular man being sought, in fact we could not even be certain at the moment that it was a man. No possibility is being overlooked.” However, they did state that they believed the killer had to be local due to their knowledge about the dispensary yard being a secure place to take Betty and not being overlooked by any residence, but that nothing was being ruled out at this point. Reporters however were convinced it was a male perpetrator they were looking for due to the fact Betty’s body had been sexually assaulted. After 13 hours of being questioned the family were taken back to their home, having been cleared of any involvement in Betty’s murder. Anyway, as the police tried to find any clues to Betty’s murder, they carried out searches of properties in Garnethill, including the empty caretakers house and a number of other houses in the vicinity of Buccleuch Lane, as well as a cellar.  Some items from these properties were apparently packaged up and taken away for forensic examination, but again nothing came off this. However, as time went on and nobody had been caught for the murder of Betty, the Garnethill community became restless and I suppose needed to feel that they were doing something, even if not productive or evidence-based, and so they hounded and abused the caretaker and the elderly man who lived closest to the dispensary, who had been questioned with his family for 13 hours. The abuse apparently became so bad that when it was reported to the police a statement was immediately released reminding the locals that neither of the men being harassed were under suspicion of anything. 

Cole:

And I can’t imagine that would help anything either.

Dawn:

No, it didn’t. It just tied up the police even more and they had enough to be getting on with, especially when they had to follow up all the leads, including potential leads from cranks. One of which came on the morning of the 16th of October when a man had phoned from a phone box in the Glasgow area confessing to the murder. The police swooped on the phone box and the man was taken to the police station for questioning, but again this was found to be a dead end. Now another line of inquiry that had to be checked out at the same time as the police were undertaking the mammoth task of fingerprinting the Garnethill residents, was following up the lead from Barbara Alexander, Betty’s mum. She told the police that when she and her friend were looking for Betty she had spotted an ambulance outside the Sick Children’s Dispensary in West Graham Street. She said she saw a man standing beside the ambulance and he appeared to be holding a child in his arms, wrapped in a blanket. She remembered saying to her friend at the time “Look, there’s another wee kiddie, and us looking for Betty.” The police contacted the ambulance service for the area in an attempt to identify who this man could have been, only to be informed that no ambulance had been recorded as being in West Graham Street on the evening of the Tuesday the 7th of October. The police also put an appeal out for this man to come forward if he was the driver of the ambulance, however nobody ever came forward. It was assumed at the time that perhaps the driver had gone to the dispensary in error or that had been there unofficially and so didn’t come forward for fear of getting into trouble. However, Mrs Alexander then changed her story and said perhaps it could have been a brown van instead of an ambulance. Again, this lead had to be followed up and an appeal for a brown van being in the area on the evening of Tuesday the 7th of October was released, but again neither the van nor the driver were ever traced.

Cole:

How could you mix up an ambulance and a brown van? Was her friend ever interviewed for her point of view?

Dawn:

I thought exactly the same, and I wasn’t able to find anything to suggest her friend had corroborated Barbara’s story. I think her changing her story after having the already overworked detective searching for an ambulance may have led to some police officers becoming a bit suspicious of Barbara, especially as she also mentioned vital information in an interview  she gave to the press, that she didn’t deem important enough to provide to police officers at the time of the search for Betty. You remember how she said that she had thought she had heard Betty’s voice calling out “mummy mummy” near Buccleuch Lane about 8pm on the Tuesday the 7th of October?

Cole:

Yes.

Dawn:

Well, apparently she didn’t disclose this to the police officers until after Betty was found.

Cole:

That’s pretty important information.

Dawn:

It is. I know. And I think it would have probably annoyed the detectives that she didn’t advise any one of this at the time of the search for Betty, as they said later that if she had they would have definitely concentrated their search more in that area and probably would have found Betty sooner. Maybe another black mark against Barbara at this point.

Cole:

Yeah, I can see why the police would be suspicious of Barbara forgetting to tell them vital Information and then sending them on a wild ghost chase for an ambulance, which in fact might actually have been a brown van.

Dawn:

Yeah. And I have a feeling these two incidents with Betty’s mum made the police very suspicious of Barbara, and they maybe wondered if she possibly had something to do with Betty’s disappearance and murder, although I don’t believe this was ever a line of investigation, even though it was hinted at later by the police.

Cole:

I think in any murder investigation blame tends to fall around the people closest to the victim. But I also think that when you’re grieving and when you’ve had such a shock like that, you are likely to miss things or not say things straight away or not think that they meant anything when they might have. It’s a weird situation to be in, and I don’t think any of us can comment on how we’d behave in that situation.

Dawn:

I absolutely agree with you. I think she probably just was in shock. It was a horrible situation and she missed things, she forgot things. But, no, I personally don’t think that she was involved. Anyway, towards the end of October police advised that they were going back through the 3,000 or so statements they had taken from the door-to-door inquiries, and then on the 31st of October 1952, nearly four weeks after Betty first went missing, there was an appeal to try to identify a male that had been seen in Buccleuch Lane on the night of Betty’s disappearance with two other young girls, but no description of this man was given.

Cole:

So, someone said that they saw him but they weren’t able to give a description? That’s strange.

Dawn:

It is strange that they didn’t give a description. It’s possibly why this man was never identified. However, towards the end of November there was another sudden flurry of activity, when two detectives made their way to Inverness to interview a man who was in custody. Apparently on being questioned by officers in Inverness, he had begun to mention Betty Alexander’s murder, and had apparently been residing in Garnethill at the time of the murder, leaving suddenly on the 8th of October, the day after Betty went missing. The Inverness police officers informed Glasgow police officers and they immediately left for Inverness to interview this man themselves. However, when they got there they quickly realised this was another red herring. The man was drunk, and after checks being made it was determined that he was not involved in Betty’s murder. This was just another dead end. As Christmas approached the crowds that had once gathered daily outside the police station and Buccleuch Street started to disperse and become less and less until one day nobody turned up, and wee Betty Alexander gradually started to fade from people’s minds. The horror and shock of what had happened not forgotten, but everyday life began to take back over. The team investigating the case went from 120 detectives and 2,000 uniform policemen carrying out door-to-door inquiries to a team of only 40, and that eventually was whittled down to only a few. Every lead had been investigated and had led to dead end after dead end. With no new evidence being uncovered, there was nowhere else to go with the case, and so it was eventually filed away under unsolved. Until 1955, three years later, when Jack and Barbara Alexander, Betty’s parents, got back in touch with the police insisting they wanted the case to be reopened as they felt they had new evidence to provide. Do you remember that Barbara had said she had firstly seen an ambulance outside of the dispensary on the day Betty went missing and then changed her story and said it was a brown van?

Cole:

Yes.

Dawn:

Well, the new evidence was she believed she had seen the same brown van, or at least a similar one, in the Garnethill area. Betty’s dad, Jack, told the Evening Times newspaper “We won’t rest until whoever murdered our little girl is caught.”

Cole:

So did the police reopen the case?

Dawn:

Well I can’t find any information about the case being reopened at this time. I imagine the police gave this the cursory glance, maybe they even tracked down the brown van and its driver and interviewed him and again came to a dead end. Sadly, Betty Alexander’s murder slipped from the minds of the residents of Glasgow and Garnethill once again, as children who lived there grew up and moved away, families came and went from Garnethill, the Sick Children’s Dispensary was relocated from Garnethill to another part of Glasgow, and the Garnethill area gradually moved on, until Betty Alexander became a distant memory. That is until 1996, 44 years after Betty Alexander first went missing, when her murder was once again thrust into the limelight, but sadly not because new evidence had been found or a suspect had been identified, but for a very different and equally as horrifying reason.

Cole:

Emily Mutch was born in 1920 and brought up in Glasgow. She lived with her parents until she was about 16 years old when she ran away from home, but she still continued to live in the Glasgow area as this was her home and she knew it like the back of her hand. Upon running away from home she started working in a munitions factory, until she met and married her husband, Teddy, in 1949 when she was 29 years old. The couple continued to live and work in Glasgow and in 1952, after three years of marriage, the pair would have been shocked as everyone else in Glasgow about the murder of Betty Alexander. No doubt this would have crossed the couple’s minds again in 1983, 31 years after Betty Alexander’s murder, when they decided to move to a sheltered housing complex in the ever changing neighbourhood of Garnethill in Glasgow, specifically a small fourth floor flat in Buccleuch Street, not far from Betty Alexander’s old home.

Dawn:

Ooh small world.

Cole:

It really is. Where Garnethill had a different reputation back in 1952, in the 80s this sheltered housing complex was considered to be quite safe and secure, which was also felt by Emily and Teddy’s extended family who visited the couple frequently. In 1988 five years after moving into the complex after being married for 39 years, Teddy sadly died. At the time of Teddy’s death, Emily would have been nearly 69. She had been ill for some time with dementia, but Teddy had successfully been covering this up so well that it wasn’t until his death that their family members became aware of just how severe her dementia was. However, Emily had now been living in the complex for five years and she had made friends there and enjoyed living there as well, and so despite her severe dementia she continued to live in Buccleuch Street. Over the years Emily’s health continued to decline; she was profoundly deaf, had Parkinson’s disease and severe and painful arthritis in her hands.  While Emily’s health may have deteriorated and she had become more frail over time, she still enjoyed life. Over the years she made many friends in the complex, some of whom would check on her regularly to see if she was okay. She would usually leave the door to her flat unlocked and slightly open as she was unable to lock the door due to the severe arthritis in her hands. On Sunday the 30th of June 1996, 77 year old Emily returned home after being released from hospital, spending the next couple of days airing out her flat and settling back in. On the 4th of July 1996, she attended a regular day hospital that helped patients with dementia, before returning back to her home the same day. Emily probably would have then had some tea and maybe had an early night or went to bed to watch TV after an exhausting day, having no idea of what horror was about to show up in her bedroom. Trigger Warning. What happened to Emily is quite disturbing so some listeners may find the following upsetting. Sometime between Thursday the 4th of July 1996 at 7pm and Friday the 5th of July 1996 before 8.30am, an unknown person had made their way into Emily’s flat and headed to her bedroom, where they proceeded to brutally attack her. Emily was dragged to the floor from her bed and sexually assaulted, before being stamped and beaten to death. The killer then proceeded to rip through the flat destroying everything in their path. It was reported that the bed frame had been turned upside down and the mattress had been dragged to the other end of the bedroom.  The bath panel had been kicked repeatedly leaving it dented. A toy dog that Emily had kept was torn apart, with bits of it strewn throughout the flat.  Before leaving the flat the killer also roughly took Emily’s wedding ring from her arthritic finger, the same ring her husband, Teddy, had given to her 47 years prior, as well as a jewellery box and an ornamental fan.

Dawn:

Oh my God, it’s just awful to hear.

Cole:

Yeah, especially to such an old woman. It seems savage.

Dawn:

It is. It’s just disgusting.

Cole:

Especially since, according to Emily’s niece Elizabeth, Emily had lost a lot of weight and was very frail, that amount of violence would have not been necessary to kill her.

Dawn:

So sad.

Cole:

Emily was found on Friday the 5th of July just after 8.30am by one of her neighbours that had come to check on her. She was lying on her bedroom floor, her nightie pulled up and her face was covered in blood.

Dawn:

Oh I just can’t imagine what they must have felt finding Emily like that.

Cole:

It must have been so upsetting. So the police were called and it was reported that what they found when they got there had even the most hardened detectives traumatised. Before the forensic team could arrive to process the scene, Elizabeth, her husband William and their daughter Lauren, who was six at the time, arrived outside Emily’s flat, to be met by a large police presence.  They had come to visit Emily as they often did. They were heartbroken when they were told what had happened and what had been done to Emily. William revealed that had they visited Emily earlier in the morning his daughter Lauren would have been the one to discover her body and the horrific scene. For all the family were in shock and were profoundly affected by what had happened, they were extremely thankful that six-year-old Lauren was not the one to have found Emily battered to death. It is reported that the police straight away thought that the killer had been a local man, Emily may even have known the man and his agenda was more than likely robbery. Although there had been an appeal for anybody to come forward with information into the murder of Emily Mutch, there apparently had not been a great public response. And so on the 9th of July the lead detective in the murder inquiry, Detective Superintendent Bob Lauder, appealed yet again for anybody with any information surrounding Emily’s death to come forward. He urged anyone in the vicinity of the Buccleuch Street area, Rose Street or Cambridge Street between 7pm on Thursday the 4th and 8am on Friday the 5th of July to please come forward if they saw anything at all suspicious. Despite the many appeals that were made for information, nothing of any significance arose. However, following the forensic team combing the flat for evidence of Emily’s killer, they revealed that they had discovered a fingerprint and a palm print on various items throughout Emily’s flat, as well as obtaining DNA from the potential suspect, describing it as an “anonymous profile of the killer”. Basically they just had to find the right person to match the DNA profile that they had and they would have their killer. The police reported they would be undertaking the largest DNA profile exercise, to include swabs of every male over the age of 12 in the Garnethill area. This amounted to well over 2,500 swabs being taken, which were then compared to their anonymous profile. However, after seven months and every sample having been logged and checked against the DNA sample found at the scene, the exercise had failed and there were no matches. The case grounded to a halt. Emily’s niece, Elizabeth, was determined not to give up and she reported in The Herald newspaper on the 3rd of February 1997 that she felt positive that her aunt’s killer would be found. She hoped that it wasn’t just wishful thinking on her part as her and her family would not have any peace until they caught her aunt’s murderer. This sentiment was backed up in the same article in The Herald newspaper by Detective Superintendent Bob Lauder when he said “We are not going to give up and hopefully we’ll be able to produce enough evidence to identify that person and put him before the courts.” Despite the failed DNA exercise, it was confirmed that a team of 20 officers were still working hard on Emily Mutch’s murder, and that neither course nor time would affect the investigation.

Dawn:

That is really good that he said that actually, ’cause I feel in the Betty Alexander case that might have been the reasons that they didn’t fingerprint the younger men or the women of Garnethill when they had the chance.

Cole:

Yeah, lack of resources.

Dawn:

Yep.

Cole:

Despite the best efforts of the 20 strong team and the many appeals made by both the police and Emily’s niece Elizabeth, Emily’s murderer continued to elude the police. It wouldn’t be until a chance encountered 16 months after Emily’s murder that the police would catch their next break. In November 1997, Police Constable Kevin Pike, who was 34, and Police Constable Colin Montgomery, who was 28, were just working another ordinary night shift when they got a call to attend to disturbance at a petrol station located in the West End of Glasgow. When they arrived at the petrol station they found the man who had been causing the bother hiding in a bush. (laughs)They retrieved him from the bush and tried to ask him what he was doing at the petrol station, but he was just being evasive. Call it instinct or call it experience but the two police officers were just a bit suspicious of this man, so they decided to arrest him and take him to the local police station to question him further. Once at the police station the man started to calm down and become more cooperative. He told them his name was Thomas Galloway and that he lived in Murano Street in the Maryhill area of Glasgow, which is about a 13-minute drive north of Glasgow City Centre.  The police did a check on their database to find out more about Galloway, and it revealed that he had previous convictions for assault, robbery and carrying knives.

Dawn:

Ooh what a nice bloke. Good instincts by the two PCS though.

Cole:

Definitely. Due to these previous convictions and just not having a good feeling about Galloway, the two officers decided to take a DNA sample from Galloway, and they sent the sample off requesting a DNA profile. As Galloway had calmed down and had been cooperative, there was nothing to actually hold him on, he was released that night and the two PCS carried on with their night shift. It wouldn’t be until late February 1998 when PC Pike and PC Montgomery were called into Detective Superintendent Bob Lauder’s office that they even gave Galloway a second thought. Detective Superintendent Lauder, who was in charge of the murder inquiry, told the pair that the sample that they had taken from Galloway three months earlier and sent away for DNA profiling had come back and it matched the DNA profile of Emily Mutch’s killer.

Dawn:

Oh that must have been such a relief for them to finally have some answers.

Cole:

I bet.  So, on the 23rd of February 1998 Thomas Galloway, who was 41, was arrested at his home in Murano Street and charged with committing indecent sex acts on Emily, of robbery and of kicking and punching Emily to death.  He appeared at Glasgow Sheriff Office on the 24th of February for these charges. He made no plea and he was remanded in custody for further investigations to be carried out and to await further trial. Galloway’s home was searched and the jewellery box and the ornamental fan that had been stolen from Emily’s flat was found. Before Galloway’s trial, he not only tried to persuade doctors that he was insane to use as his defence, which failed.

Dawn:

Good.

Cole:

But he also sacked two separate legal teams before finally settling on defending himself.

Dawn:

And that’s always a good choice.

Cole:

Always. He clearly didn’t like what everyone was telling him. However, in late January 1999 Galloway’s trial began, where the jury were told about and shown photos of the horrendous attack carried out on Emily. They were told of Galloway’s DNA sample matching the DNA profile that had been compiled from samples taken from Emily’s flat. They were told there was a 500 million to one chance that this DNA profile belonged to anyone other than Galloway.

Dawn:

Yeah, he’s not getting out of this is he?

Cole:

I wouldn’t have thought so. They also heard that apparently Galloway had confessed while on remand to the killing of Emily. But even without the supposed confession it really was the slam dunk, and how he thought by defending himself he could possibly get any other outcome. Clearly the jury felt exactly the same, as after only one hour of deliberation they convicted Galloway. Before handing down his sentence, Lloyd McCluskey said to the now 42 year old Galloway that he had “carried out an appalling and outrageous murder”, stating that the act of attacking and murdering Emily had been “brutal, disgusting and horrifying.” He then sentenced Galloway to life in prison, to serve a minimum of 20 years.

Dawn:

A life sentence means different things in different countries, but in Scotland life sentences are always given for murders and the judge will hand down a minimum term sentence known as the punishment part of the sentence. This means that the person will have to spend the punishment term in prison before even being considered for release into the community. If the person is eligible for parole and released from prison, they continue to be on a lifetime license, and if the terms of this are breached in any way they can be recalled to prison.

Cole:

Galloway might have eluded the police for 19 months, but finally one of Scotland’s most wanted men was brought to justice. Emily’s niece, who was 42 at the time, while obviously still devastated, was happy to get a bit of peace saying that she hopes he “rots in jail”. Before going on to say that her auntie Emily was “a wonderful and loving person who would never harm a fly.”

Dawn:

I’m glad they finally got justice.

Cole:

I know. It’s a tough story.

Dawn:

So while I’m really pleased that Emily and her finally got justice for what happened to her, the same thing can’t be said for Betty Alexander and her family because her killer has never been found. However, in 2011 a Cold Case Unit was set up in Scotland and on the 16th of April 2012 it was announced that Betty Alexander’s case had been sent to the Cold Case Unit. They have advised that they will be focusing on five priority cases initially. It’s not known which five cases these are, but the fact that Betty’s case has been handed to them could hopefully mean a fresh pair of eyes will be looking at her case in the hope of finally solving it.

Cole:

It would be great if Betty’s murder was finally solved and whoever committed that crime was brought to justice.

Dawn:

Exactly, I agree. And of course we’ll keep you all updated if there are any new developments. So, while Garnethill has certainly had its fair share of heartache and back in 1952 was well known for its ever-changing population and some unsavoury characters and dealings, in recent years the area has had a new lease of life, according to an interview in The Herald Newspaper in 1997 by Betty Brown, who was not only a community activist but won the Evening Times Scots Women of the Year Award in 1995, where her huge efforts in turning the Garnethill area into multicultural, close-knit community where people felt safe and wanted to live. The National Trust for Scotland even acquired a flat at 145 Buccleuch Street to preserve it in its early 20th century condition, now called The Tenement House, which is open to the public and gives a glimpse into times gone by. Now, the activist, Betty Brown, that I mentioned above was from the Glasgow area and loving the city so much she never left, which was good news for the Garnethill residents, as she campaigned relentlessly to improve the area and its reputation. She was 22 at the time of Betty Alexander’s murder and she remembers the Garnethill residents being shattered at the time by the murder. She went on to say that because the murderer was never caught it had left the community suspicious of each other for a long time. Over time though the community did get its soul back and neighbours began to trust each other again, and the area began to prosper. Until that is Emily Mutch’s murder in 1996 which rocked the community once again. This time however while the community was shocked and scared that a murder had been carried out so close to their homes once again, it certainly helped that the evil man that carried out this horrific attack on Emily was found and put behind bars. Sadly, Betty Brown passed away in 2006 at the age of 76, but her hard work and dedication to the Garnethill area had not been forgotten. A mural to honour Betty Brown was completed in 2015 called “Betty Brown’s Eyes”, suggesting she will always be casting her eyes over the Garnethill area that she loved so dearly, an area that has suffered so much but still came out stronger than ever.

And that’s the end. If you’ve enjoyed this episode and know just the person who’d also like it, please share it with them, don’t keep it to yourself.

Cole:

Please also get in touch on social media if you have any questions, comments or suggestions, and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can. All social media and contact details are on our website scottishmurders.com, as well as all the source material and photos related to this episode.

Dawn:

So that’s it for this week, come back next time for another episode of Scottish Murders.

Dawn and Cole:

Join us there. Bye.

Granny Robertson:

Scottish Murders is a production of Cluarantonn.