Remorseless monster gets 28 years’ jail for dismembering gran
‘Please tell us where Julie is’
‘A propensity for violence’
A KILLER who dismembered a vulnerable grandmother after stabbing her to death was yesterday jailed for life as her family pleaded with him to reveal where he hid her remains.
Heroin addict Andrew Wallace killed 47-year-old Julie Reilly at her home, then cut up her body and hid the parts. Only two of her leg bones have been recovered.
As he was jailed for at least 28 years at the High Court in Glasgow, Miss Reilly’s family pleaded with the killer to reveal where he hid her remains.
Judge Lady Rae had earlier asked Ian Duguid, QC, who represented 41-year-old Wallace, whether he would co-operate with police to recover the remains. He said his client was ‘prepared to entertain an approach from the police’.
In an emotional statement outside court, Miss Reilly’s sister Lynne Bryce, 37, said: ‘Please tell us where Julie is. Let my mum have her wee girl back. Let her first grandchild have somewhere to go and grieve for Julie. I hope that if he has a heart he could now please tell us where he put my sister and let her come home to be put to rest properly.’
Miss Reilly, who had suffered a brain injury, had allowed Wallace to stay at her flat in Glasgow’s Govan area after he split with his girlfriend.
He is believed to have stabbed her to death after a row. Wallace, who was also convicted of killing a woman when he was 15, texted a friend to ask ‘how to assassinate’ someone and get away with it.
Judge Lady Rae told him he was guilty of an ‘evil and despicable act’. She said: ‘You have shown a complete lack of remorse. It is clear you have caused indescribable suffering to her family. You are a dangerous man who has a considerable propensity for violence.’
Wallace pleaded guilty to murder and attempting to defeat the ends of justice by chopping up and disposing of his victim’s body it.
The trial heard forensics officers uncovered the grim crime scene using a chemical called Luminol which glows in the dark in the presence of blood.
Police found traces of blood in the hall, kitchen, bedrooms and living room. The chemical revealed a bloody trail leading from the living room, through the hall and into the bathroom.
Scoring that seemed to have been made with a knife was found in the bath, where traces of Miss Reilly’s blood were also found.
The last sighting of Miss Reilly was at an Aldi in Paisley Road West on February 6 last year. The next day Wallace told a friend: ‘I’ve murdered a c***.’
The trial was told Wallace, who sent texts claiming that Miss Reilly had moved to another area of the city, later turned up at a friend’s flat with heavy suitcases containing Miss Reilly’s remains.
On April 19, a man found a bone in his garden in Govan, which was Miss Reilly’s right femur. Days later another person contacted the police about an apparent burial site and a bone was identified as the victim’s left femur.
Wallace was then arrested and a search of his friend’s flat uncovered a knife he left there. Miss Reilly’s blood was found on the blade.
Wallace showed no emotion as he was lead to the cells. Detective Chief Inspector Mark Bell said: ‘I would appeal directly to Andrew Wallace to engage with me and tell me where Julie is.’