By Sammie Jones-
Two evil carers have been convicted of murdering a 19-year-old woman whose death they covered up for 20 years and whose body has never been found.
Edward Cairney, 77, and Avril Jones, 59, were found guilty of killing Margaret Fleming in December 1999 or January of the following year. An extensive police search followed high suspicions about her well being, after a benefit claim was made by Jones on behalf of Flemming. The two convicts had previously claimed to a BBC reporter that the missing girl was alive and living as a gang master, despite the known fact of her learning disability and no trace of the Flemming.
She had no active bank records, nor had ever seen a doctor or used social media throughout the time she was missing. Cairney continued to claim his innocence during the trial at the High Court in Glasgow, insisting that that Ms Fleming is still alive and had gone to London. He claimed Ms Flemming fled out of the back door when police first arrived to search the house, known as Seacroft, for her. However, a jury unconvinced of their accounts found both Cairney and Jones guilty of murder after a seven day trial. The basis of their conviction rested on strong circumstantial evidence which indicated the pair must have been responsible for some harm that had befallen Flemming.
Left: Eddie Carney And Right: Avril Jones Image:bbc.com
Murdered: Margaret Flemmings
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In particular, letters purportedly sent by Flemmings to the pair who were meant to have been in London at the time sent alarm bells ringing. Bogus diary and calendar entries were also written to suggest Ms Flemmings left the house voluntarily. Jones, who had continued to receive benefits payments into her account on behalf of Flemmings for over a decade, was found guilty of fraudulently claiming £182,000, pretending that the dead woman was alive.
Judge Lord Matthews, deferred sentence until after the submission of social work and medical reports on the pair