Hamilton man to stand trial over sister's murder and assault
- Published
Amber Gibson died in November 2021 in Hamilton, South Lanarkshire
A Lanarkshire man will stand trial accused of murdering and sexually assaulting his teenage sister.
Connor Gibson, 20, denies killing Amber Niven, also known as Amber Gibson, at Cadzow Glen in Hamilton last November.
He also pled not guilty to attempting to defeat the ends of justice and attempting to pervert the course of justice.
At the High Court in Glasgow, judge Lady Stacey fixed a trial date for July 2023.
Mr Gibson is accused of removing 16-year-old Amber's clothes and repeatedly inflicting blunt force trauma to her head and body.
He is then said to have strangled the teenager with his hands.
Prosecutors say he did this with intent to rape his sister.
Mr Gibson - who also uses the name Niven - faces claims he got rid of clothes he had been wearing and called the children's home Amber was staying at to pretend she was still alive.
He is alleged to have told police he last saw his sister after she walked off from an argument near a community centre in Hamilton on the day she died.
Hid remains
Another man will also stand trial.
Stephen Corrigan, 44, does not face the murder allegation, but is instead charged with breach of the peace and attempting to defeat the ends of justice.
It is claimed Mr Corrigan found Amber's body, but rather than alert police, he inappropriately touched her and then hid her remains under bushes and branches.
The charges span between 26 and 28 November 2021.
Gibson's KC Tony Graham said his client denied all the charges.
Corrigan's lawyer Rhonda Anderson told the court his defence had lodged a special defence of alibi.