Scottish Daily Mail

WAG and top cop ‘had sex in car at park and ride’

- By James Mulholland

A SENIOR policeman is to appear in court accused of having sex with a footballer’s wife in a car at a park and ride.

Prosecutor­s claim Gareth Blair and Claire Makel were ‘undressed and engaged in sexual activity’ at the car park in Hermiston, Edinburgh.

Blair, 49, and Makel, 41, who is married to former Hearts and Livingston player Lee Makel, are accused of public indecency on April 16 and May 21 last year.

Neither accused was present for a hearing which was scheduled to take place at Edinburgh Sheriff Court yesterday before Sheriff Roderick Flynn, having been excused attendance at an earlier procedural hearing.

Both Blair and Makel have yet to enter a plea.

The case is next set to call on February 12.

Twice-married Blair was head of Scotland’s elite crime squad at Gartcosh Crime Campus in Lanarkshir­e. He has also served on secondment in Northern Ireland.

Blair was made the capital’s divisional commander in June 2018 but was suspended and replaced by Sean Scott in May last year after his arrest.

A biography on the Police Scotland website describes the father one as a fitness fan who loves golf and holidays.

It also emerged yesterday that a policeman is to stand trial charged with causing a serious road crash while under the influence of drugs.

PC George Shearer, of Alford, Aberdeensh­ire, is accused of

Suspended after his arrest

leaving one man badly hurt and a police dog dead after the collision on the A90 near Auchiries, Aberdeensh­ire.

Prosecutor­s also claim the 49year-old had taken tablets he had seized from a suspect on the day of the smash – February 28, 2017. Shearer yesterday appeared for a short hearing at the High Court in Glasgow.

He is accused of causing serious injury to Gordon Morrison by dangerous driving ‘while under the influence of controlled drugs’.

The charge claims he lost control of his van, crossed onto the wrong side of the road and into the path of Mr Morrison’s vehicle.

A separate charge alleges Shearer did ‘neglect or violate his duties’.

It is claimed he stopped and searched a man in Aberdeen on February 28 and found on him a number of tablets, said to be zoplicone and Xanax.

Shearer is accused of seizing them but then returning a ‘quanof tity’ to the man before keeping some for personal use and taking them. The charge further states he did ‘fail to take any other lawful measures’ to investigat­e a criminal offence.

The PC faces five other charges of neglecting his duties. It is claimed he failed to lodge alleged substances at a police station after a number of searches of suspects in Aberdeen between September 2015 and January 2017.

Tony Lenehan, defending, told the court: ‘George Shearer pleads not guilty to the charges.’

Both the advocate and prosecutor Angela Gray said they were ready for a trial to be set.

Lord Turnbull fixed a trial due to begin in June in Aberdeen.

Shearer’s bail was continued.

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