Nameless victim was murdered, say police

A MURDER inquiry was launched last night – even though police admit they don’t know who the victim is.

The unidentified man’s body was found three days ago in a Glasgow tenement flat. Police Scotland’s major investigation team said he had met a ‘violent death’ and the body was in an advanced state of decomposition.

It is thought to have lain there for several weeks before the alarm was raised.

Forensics officers went to the modern building on Kenmure Street, Pollokshields, after the discovery at 9.50am on Thursday.

Neighbours and other residents were quizzed and CCTV footage was taken and examined for clues.

Police then named the householder as Gordon Bolam, but detectives did not reveal if he was the victim or a suspect.

Following a post-mortem examination, a murder inquiry was announced yesterday evening.

Detective Inspector Mark Henderson, of the major investigation team, said the body might be that of Mr Bolam, but that it could not be confirmed. He added that relatives had been made aware of this ‘possible line of inquiry’.

Mr Bolam was described by neighbours as a quiet and pleasant man, thought to be in his sixties, who had lived in the flat for about three months.

It is understood that he lived on the first floor. One neighbour told how he would sometimes walk past Mr Bolam, who lived in the flat above, in the stairwell or in the street.

He said: ‘He’s a nice man, aged about 60. I don’t know if anybody visited him. He used to come out and just go up and down the street.

‘I didn’t know him well, he had only been there about three months. He didn’t go very far.’

Another local said: ‘It’s a really quiet neighbourhood and I feel a bit frightened. I don’t know what happened.

‘Obviously the police can’t tell us anything.’

Yesterday evening, there was still a heavy police presence, with CID officers talking to residents and forensics teams still at work.

DI Henderson said: ‘The man, whose identity has yet to be fully established due to the level of decomposition, met a violent death. We believe that his body had been within the house for a couple of weeks.

‘While we are yet to establish the identity of the man, one line of inquiry is that the body could be that of the householder, Gordon Bolam. However, this cannot yet be confirmed.

‘Relatives have been informed of this possible line of inquiry.’

He added: ‘To establish the circumstances, we are anxious to hear of any information or whereabouts of the householder Gordon Bolam.

‘He was not reported missing to police but I am sure someone must have noticed him not being in the area.

‘What we need to establish, other than who did this and why, are Mr Bolam’s movements recently and we need to ascertain where he has been in the last few weeks.’

‘The man met a violent death’