Teen denies accused’s claims she killed girl (6)

A YOUNG woman blamed by a murder accused for killing a sixyear-old girl and “planting” his DNA on the child’s body has told a court she had nothing to do with the crime.

Toni McLachlan (18) was giving evidence at the trial of a 16-year-old boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, accused of raping and murdering schoolgirl Alesha MacPhail.

He denies the charges and has blamed Ms McLachlan, girlfriend of Alesha’s father.

Alesha was found dead in woodland on the Isle of Bute on July 2 last year.

Asked if she had anything to do with Alesha’s murder, Ms McLachlan replied: “No.”

She told the High Court in Glasgow: “I loved her to pieces.”

The court heard Ms McLachlan and her partner would deal cannabis to the accused, who phoned them in the early hours of the day Alesha was allegedly taken from her bed at her grandparent’s house on Ardbeg Road, where the couple also stayed.

Ms McLachlan said she returned the accused’s call at around 6.30am after being woken up to search for Alesha. Call logs showed he messaged around 9am that day.

Questioned by the accused’s lawyer, Brian McConnachie QC, Ms McLachlan denied the suggestion she had been in a sexual relationship with the accused.

Mr McConnachie suggested she messaged the accused on the night Alesha went missing and they went to a shed and had sex using a condom she provided.

He said she then went into Alesha’s room, took her to the woods where she was found “attacked and brutalised her” and “planted” the accused’s semen from the condom, then murdered her, all of which Ms McLachlan denied.

The case continues today.