What happened in Shona’s last hours?
■ Antrim teen was found dead three days after going missing ■ Suspicions were raised after bruising found on her body ■ Now her family pleads for help to get answers they desperately need
THE heartbroken family of a teenage girl found dead in a river have said they want to know how she died.
Shona Gillen’s body was discovered in the Six Mile Water last month — three days after leaving her mother’s home in Antrim.
Relatives were originally told there was nothing suspicious about her death, with police investigating what appeared to be a tragic accident.
However, her family are now questioning aspects of Shona’s disappearance and the circumstances in which she was found.
They revealed that, as they waited for Shona’s body to be returned, they got a call from the undertaker saying the PSNI had told him to return the remains for further examination. But her remains had already been embalmed, ruling out a second post-mortem. The family also discovered scratches and bruising on Shona’s body.
THE family of a teenager found dead four days after she went missing have made an emotional appeal for information about her final movements.
Shona Gillen left her mother’s home in Valiant Court in Antrim on Wednesday, March 3.
Her body was found by a dog walker on the Saturday morning in a one-foot deep stretch of Six Mile Water.
The bubbly 18-year-old — the youngest of nine children — had gone to meet friends but was never seen alive by her family again.
Relatives were originally told there was nothing suspicious about her death.
Having ruled out suicide, police appeared to be investigating a tragic accident.
However, major aspects of Shona’s disappearance and the circumstances in which she was found set off alarm bells almost immediately.
Amy Reid had been looking for her sister since she disappeared.
She explained how, with Shona’s phone switched off, the family made a series of appeals on Facebook for anyone who may have seen her to get in touch.
On the Saturday morning, by now frantic with worry, they rang police to report her missing.
Amy said: “Shona would have always rung to let someone know where she was, she was 18 so she had her own life, but we knew something wasn’t right.
“My younger brother would be really protective over her and he rang her on Wednesday night to see if she was okay.
“A male answered, he asked to speak to Shona, and managed to briefly talk to her. When he tried to ring back the phone was switched off. That’s the last time anyone spoke to her.”
Shona’s phone was last used at 11.40pm on Wednesday, and after that police say there was no other activity from her number.
Four hours after Shona was reported missing the family received a call to say “an object” had been discovered in Six Mile Water.
Amy rushed to the scene. She was told a body had been found.
By this time Shona was in the back of a coroner’s van. It was then that 27-year-old Amy had the unthinkable task of identifying her sister’s body.
“They warned me she was still wet. Her fake eyelashes were still attached, one was sitting on her cheek, but she didn’t look as though she’d been in the water for any length of time,” she explained.
“Where she was found, the water is really shallow. It’s a popular place with walkers. I can’t understand, if she’d been there since Wednesday night or Thursday morning, how she wouldn’t have been found sooner.”
Police at first explained they had to search Shona’s room in case there were any notes or anything that might indicate she took her own life.
“There was nothing,” added Amy.
“Shona was signing up to do a nail course, she was talking about getting her own place. In the week after she died packages of creams and make-up she’d ordered online were still arriving at the door.
“They (police) ruled out suicide, and said her cause of death was consistent with drowning, but added we shouldn’t read too much into that as it was still being investigated.”
However, as the days went on the family became aware of more unusual aspects to Shona’s disappearance.
Amy explained: “There are questions about how she got to the river. It would be less than 15 minutes’ walk away from where we think she was last seen, I find it difficult to believe that she would have walked there alone in the dark.
“Shona was scared of the dark, and I mean terrified. She wouldn’t even go to the toilet if the light was off. She would never have walked alone at night.”
But the biggest cause for alarm was on the Monday after Shona had been found.
The family were told a post-mortem examination would take place in the morning and that she would be returned home to be waked by 4pm.
As they waited for her body to be returned they got a call from the undertaker shortly before 4pm saying the PSNI had told him to return the remains immediately for further examination.
Despite suspecting a crime
may have been committed, the teenager’s remains had already been embalmed, ruling out a second post-mortem.
When her body was finally returned to the family they noticed marks on her face and scratches on her knuckles.
Amy’s brother Ryan Reid said he was alarmed to discover the marks.
“There was a dark bruise just behind her ear,” he said.
“We just want to know what happened to Shona, that’s our only motivation for speaking out — to encourage anyone who feels they may have information who can help us put together Shona’s last movements.”
Shona’s mother Deirdre is devastated by the loss of her youngest child, and had to be hospitalised on the day of the post-mortem.
“On the Monday when Shona’s body was found, my mother went blind in both eyes and I had to take her to hospital,” said Amy.
“The staff in the Royal were amazing. The pressure had built up behind her eyes so much she had lost her sight completely.
“She needs an operation, and we don’t know what the outcome of that will be.”
Amy has been trying to gather information to pass to police and went through her sister’s social media accounts looking for anything that may give an indication as to what happened to her.
She added: “We just want to know what happened, and as her family we all feel like we owe it to her to make sure that her death is fully investigated.”
PSNI Inspector Julian Buchanan has urged anyone who believes they saw the teenager at any time between Wednesday and Saturday to get in touch.
He said: “As part of our investigation into the circumstances of her death we are keen to establish when and where Shona may have entered the water and to give her family those answers.
“This is obviously a deeply upsetting and distressing time for Shona’s family and loved ones, and I am appealing for anyone who saw or spoke to Shona in recent days, or who can provide information to police, to please call us on 101, quoting reference 1122 06/03/21.”
‘She’d never have walked alone at night’