Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
Beast of Bute
Judge lifts the ban on revealing identity of evil lad who raped and murdered girl, 6
THE monster who abducted, raped and murdered little Alesha Macphail can be named as Aaron Campbell.
A High Court judge who lifted reporting restrictions protecting the identity of the 16-year-old killer said he could not think of a case that had “attracted such revulsion”.
It can now be revealed Campbell lived up the road from six-year-old Alesha’s grandparents on the Isle of Bute where she was snatched and murdered.
The cat-torturing killer was obsessed with violent video games.
Self-obsessed Campbell would also post videos online showing himself performing flips on his trampoline. On the witness stand he subjected Alesha’s family to two hours of lies.
He appeared to relish giving evidence, nonchalantly answering questions as he carefully adjusted his hair.
Campbell repeatedly declined offers to take a break during his evidence, saying he was prepared to carry on.
He constantly protested his innocence and even blamed the death on an innocent woman, Toni Mclachlan, 18, the partner of Alesha’s dad.
Campbell did not flinch when harrowing images of Alesha’s injuries were shown during the trial.
The killer’s identity had been kept from the public because of laws preserving the anonymity of under18s involved in court cases.
Campbell’s lawyer argued that the murderer should not be named because of “credible” information suggesting there was a “price on his head”.
But Tony Graham QC, acting on
behalf of journalists, told the judge Lord Matthews at the court in Glasgow it would be in the public interest for the killer to be unmasked.
Mr Graham added: “It is a case that has attracted more media attention than any trial in this court, certainly in the last decade.
“One of the most evil and wicked cases that my lord has encountered.”
Alesha’s parents Georgina Lochrane and Robert Macphail were in court as the restrictions were lifted.
The dead girl’s gran Angela King said the killer would enjoy the notoriety. She said: “I thought I might sleep just a little easier tonight but no...
“I don’t want to speak of him. The only person who matters was Alesha...
“He is never going to be released, he enjoyed his time in court, took pleasure from it, to me his name being revealed is the last thing I want.
“Why? Because he doesn’t deserve notoriety, recognition for what he’s done. That’s what he wants. Let him rot and I’ll see him in hell.
“I don’t doubt he’ll be there sooner rather than later.”
Thought to be popular at school and known to friends as a harmless joker with a “dark sense of humour”, Campbell had started regularly buying cannabis at the age of 14.
He even bought drugs from Alesha’s dad at one time, the court heard.
Reports claim Campbell was fascinated by fictional horror character Slender Man, a faceless figure who stalks and abducts children.
Sources close to the investigation have suggested Alesha’s killing was a carbon copy of Slender Man’s murders.
And last night a leading psychologist said violent video games could have been a contributory factor in the horrific killing.
Dr Mark Griffiths, director of the International Gaming Research Unit, said there may be a link between the murder and video games, but he added long-term and extensive research is needed to prove it.
Alesha’s mum had sent the girl to Rothesay on Bute for a holiday, believing she would be safer there than on their estate in Airdrie, 12 miles east of Glasgow.
Alesha was taken from her bed at her grandparents’ home while they and the girl’s dad and girlfriend were asleep. Alesha’s naked body was found in nearby woods on July 2 last year.
It was hours after she was reported missing from the home that her dad shared with his parents.
“Sweet and angelic” Alesha had suffered 117 “catastrophic” injuries, dying from pressure applied to her face and neck.
A jury took three hours to find Campbell guilty on Thursday after a nine-day trial.
Police found his DNA on the girl’s body and her pyjama shorts, which were dumped nearby.
CCTV of the child killer – some of which was handed to police by Campbell’s mum – shows him looking calm as he strolled home after carrying out the murder.
Brian Mcconnachie QC, defending during the trial, had claimed the images of Campbell “sauntering” hardly pointed to the fact he had carried out a horrific rape and murder seven minutes before. It was Campbell’s mum Janette, 54, who first led the police to her son.
But she later believed him when he told her he was innocent.
Campbell was born on the mainland, but his mum said they moved to the island in the Firth of Clyde to give him a “safe place, a peaceful environment, and to get a good education”.
She also revealed that her son had aspirations of becoming an engineer but that he was “addicted” to gaming and spent hours immersed in his Xbox every night.
Since Campbell’s arrest, his mum has hardly been able to bring herself to visit him where he is locked up in a young offender institution in Polmont near the town of Falkirk.
Campbell is due to be sentenced next month for his horrific crimes.
This is one of the most evil and wicked cases that my lord has encountered
TONY GRAHAM QC URGES JUDGE TO ALLOW KILLER’S NAME TO BE REVEALED