Karen Buckley murder: Man admits 'evil' killing of Irish student in Glasgow

A man has admitted murdering Irish student Karen Buckley, whose body was found on a farm four days after she went missing from a Glasgow nightclub.

Alexander Pacteau admitted repeatedly hitting Ms Buckley with a spanner and strangling her in his car in April.

He then hid the body of the 24-year-old, from Cork, in a barrel.

After sentence was deferred at the High Court in Glasgow, Ms Buckley's father said Pacteau was "evil" and should spend the rest of his life in prison.

John Buckley told reporters that he and his wife Marian had experienced "every parent's worst nightmare" and were "devastated".

"The last face she saw and the last voice she heard was of that cold-blooded, cowardly murderer," he said.

Referring to Pacteau, Mr Buckley added: "He is truly evil and we hope that he will spend the rest of his life behind bars."

The court heard how 21-year-old Pacteau had met Ms Buckley outside the Sanctuary nightclub, where she had been with friends, in the early hours of Sunday 12 April.

The student told her friends that she was going to the toilet but did not return or take her jacket.

Karen Buckley moved to Glasgow in February to study occupational therapy at Glasgow Caledonian University

Alexander Pacteau faces a mandatory life term for murdering Karen Buckley

Pacteau was seen on CCTV images talking to her before they walked off to his car, which he drove to nearby Kelvin Way.

The car was parked on the street for 12 minutes, during which time Pacteau attacked and murdered her by grabbing her neck and delivering 12 or 13 blows with the spanner.

Pacteau's silver Ford Focus was seen on CCTV leaving the area and heading towards Dawsholm Park, where the following morning a member of the public found Ms Buckley's handbag near a bin.

Four days after she was reported missing, the student's body was found at High Craigton Farm, near Milngavie, East Dunbartonshire.

Lord Advocate Frank Mulholland QC, prosecuting, told the court that after murdering Ms Buckley, Pacteau then drove to his flat in Dorchester Avenue and took her body inside to his room.

He used his mobile phone to look up the properties of a chemical called sodium hydroxide, or caustic soda.

He then bought quantities of the chemical from B&Q and Poundstretcher along with masks and gloves.

He texted his flatmate to make sure he was out for the day, then returned to the flat and left Ms Buckley's body in the bath.

Pacteau was found cleaning the hall and stairwell when his flatmate returned home that night.

By that time he had moved Ms Buckley's body into his locked bedroom again and wrapped her remains in a duvet.

The following morning, Pacteau threw the spanner he used to kill Ms Buckley into the nearby Forth and Clyde Canal.

He then bought cleaning products at a supermarket where he asked staff to recommend products for removing blood stains.

Pacteau then made his first journey to High Craigton Farm, where he had rented a storage unit during a previous job selling fireworks.

Pacteau took Ms Buckley's body back to his flat

Pacteau concealed Ms Buckley's body in his bedroom

Pacteau disposed of the murder weapon in the Forth and Clyde Canal

He burned some clothes and later ordered a large blue barrel from a packaging company into which he placed Ms Buckley's body.

Pacteau later burned his mattress and other items at the farmland, before taking the barrel, with Ms Buckley's body inside, to his car.

He bought padlocks, then made his way to the farm, where he arranged to rent two storage units for a week, before moving the barrel into one of the units.

Pacteau visited a car valet on his way home and while there used his phone to create an advert to sell the Ford Focus.

Police interview

By this time Ms Buckley's disappearance had been reported and a massive police operation was under way to locate her.

That evening, when Pacteau returned home, he was visited by police who had identified him as the man seen talking to Ms Buckley on CCTV outside the nightclub.

As he opened the door, Pacteau said: "I was just coming to see you."

The officers noticed a strong smell of bleach in the flat and a tool box and other items in a bedroom. Pacteau agreed to go to the police station as a witness.

Police found forensic evidence at Pacteau's flat linking him to the murder

During a search, police found a Poundstretcher receipt for a series of chemicals and padlock keys in the 21-year-old's pockets.

He gave a statement saying he met Ms Buckley outside the club and they both went back to his flat where they had consensual sex.

He told police Ms Buckley had fallen and injured herself on the bed frame but said he did not notice she had been bleeding until the following morning.

Pacteau told officers that when he realised police were looking for information regarding her disappearance he panicked.

Blood found

He told them he had burned a mattress and clothes on a forest road near Drymen and he did this because he was aware he was the last person to see her alive.

The court also heard how a member of the public had contacted police and told officers about the storage unit at a farm that Pacteau had used in the past.

Ms Buckley's body was found in a barrel at this storage unit on High Craigton Farm

Police then went to High Craigton Farm where they found the blue plastic barrel containing Ms Buckley's body.

When shown an account of his earlier claims, Pacteau accepted his statements were untrue.

Defence QC John Scullion told the court that his client accepted "full responsibility" for his actions but could offer no "rational explanation".

The lawyer said: "He has instructed me to convey on his behalf an apology to Karen Buckley's family and friends but he understands that such words are unlikely to give any comfort to them."

Deferring sentence, judge Lady Rae told Pacteau: "You killed a young woman who was a stranger to you in what appears to be a motiveless, senseless, brutal attack."