‘Do the decent thing for family,’ detective urges Margaret killers
TWO carers who murdered a vulnerable teenager and covered up the killing have been urged by police to show a ‘shred of decency’ and reveal her resting place.
Edward Cairney, 77, and Avril Jones, 59, lied to hide the murder of 19-year-old Margaret Fleming, who vanished in 1999. Over the two decades that followed, Jones pocketed £182,000 in benefits, using it to fund the hermit-like existence she led with Cairney at their run-down home in Inverkip, Renfrewshire.
The killing came to light in October 2016 when benefits staff raised the alarm.
After an initial trial collapsed, the pair were finally handed life sentences for the murder earlier this year and ordered to serve a minimum of 14 years.
On what would have been Margaret’s 39th birthday, police yesterday issued a fresh appeal for them to reveal the location of her remains and lodged formal requests to lawyers acting on behalf of the couple for a meeting.
Addressing Cairney and Jones in a public speech yesterday, Detective Superintendent Paul Livingstone said: ‘If you have a shred of decency, you will answer the questions Margaret’s family have to allow them to put her to rest.
‘Margaret was a very vulnerable young woman when she was abused, neglected, manipulated and murdered. It’s only right that her family and friends get the opportunity to pay their final respects.
‘Whilst there has been a conviction for her murder and two people are in prison, it doesn’t mean that we will no longer act on information we receive about where her body is. It’s very important that she is given the funeral she deserves and for her family to be able to pay their respects to her.’
He added: ‘I would say again to Eddie Cairney and Avril Jones – your lies have caught up with you, so now do the decent thing and let Margaret’s family know what has happened to her.’