World’s End trial told of DNA on bra
Traces in knots likely to be from accused, expert tells jury
A FULL DNA profile for Angus Sinclair, the man on trial for the World’s End murders, was obtained from knots tied in the bra used to strangle one of the victims.
The High Court at Livingston heard it was 20 million times more likely that the DNA within the knots came from a combination of Sinclair and his late brother-inlaw Gordon Hamilton, than from either of them acting alone or from neither of them.
Sinclair, 69, denies raping murdering Christine Eadie and Helen Scott in October 1977.
On the 13th day of the trial, the jury heard a second day of evidence from forensic scientist Geraldine Davidson.
She took them through DNA evidence found on the clothing of the 17-year-olds, who were last seen alive in Edinburgh’s World’s End pub.
Ms Davidson told the jury yesterday that there had been particular interest in the knotted areas of the tights and bra used as ligatures on Christine, as the knots would “preserve” the DNA present at the time they were tied.
She added: “This fits with the DNA within the preserved areas having been present at the time the ligatures were tied.”
In the case of Christine’s bra, recovered with part of her tights from around her head and neck, Ms Davidson said specialist analysis had been carried out. This confirmed that Hamilton had been the major contributor of DNA within the knots.
But although Sinclair had been the minor contributor in terms of the amount of material left on the ligature, he was “fully represented”.
She added: “It’s a full profile. Some of the components of his DNA are shared with the other three reference samples [Hamilton and both victims], but every one of the components of Angus Sinclair’s profile are represented in the profile.”
She said that statistical analysis of the results, carried out by Professor David Balding, who had given evidence earlier in the week, had established that Hamilton had been a billion times more likely to be the major contributor to the DNA in knots on the bra than any unrelated person.
The trial continues.