Top law officer sorry over handling of 1997 Wick death

Kevin Mcleod's body was found in Wick harbour in 1997

Scotland's top law officer has apologised for how the authorities handled a man's death in the Highlands 25 years ago.

Kevin Mcleod's body was discovered in Wick harbour on 9 February 1997.

His family have long campaigned to have his death investigated as murder because of injuries found on his body.

A review has concluded his death was not suspicious, but Lord Advocate Dorothy Bain said the family was let down during early investigations.

She also said while it could not be ruled out that Mr Mcleod might have been pushed, there was nothing to indicate this happened or that he had any enemies.

Police Scotland has previously apologised for how the case was dealt with in the past.

Mr McLeod's family said they were devastated the review - carried out by a team of Merseyside Police officers at the request of Police Scotland - had not addressed all their concerns.

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Ms Bain and Police Scotland Assistant Chief Constable Bex Smith explained the findings of the more than 300-page report in a meeting with Mr Mcleod's father, Hugh, and uncle, Allan Mcleod, in Wick on Wednesday.

Hugh and Allan Mcleod met Lord Advocate Dorothy Bain on Wednesday

Allan Mcleod said the family was thankful for the meeting and that the Lord Advocate and Ms Smith had listened to their concerns.

He said: "We informed those at the meeting of how the family had served a 25-year life sentence due to the catalogue of failures, mistakes, abdications of responsibility and miscommunications by both the police and the Crown throughout the majority of those years.

"We brought several ongoing concerns to the lord advocate's attention which she assured us will be robustly investigated and that a further meeting will be arranged for later this year."

Ms Bain said she was grateful for the opportunity to meet Mr Mcleod's family to offer them an unreserved apology.

She said: "They suffered a devastating loss and then were let down during the early investigations into Kevin's death.

"The communication they had with the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service afterwards also fell below the standard they were entitled to expect."

'Years of suffering'

Ms Bain said the way sudden deaths were investigated had changed significantly since 1997, particularly over the last 10 years.

She added: "At the meeting, the findings of the full case review by Merseyside Police were explained.

"While a push could not be ruled out, there is nothing to indicate that Kevin had any enemies as he was a well-liked young man of good character."

Ms Smith said Mr Mcleod's family and friends had endured years of suffering as they searched for answers about his death.

She said: "I was grateful to have the opportunity to meet with them and reiterate an earlier unreserved apology on behalf of policing for the response which followed the death."

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Mr Mcleod, a 24-year-old electrician from Wick, was last seen alive on 8 February 1997 while on a night out with friends in the Caithness town.

His body was recovered from the sea the following day.

A post-mortem examination in 1997 revealed he had sustained stomach injuries.

It prompted a procurator fiscal to instruct Northern Constabulary to treat his death as a potential murder inquiry.

But police determined his injuries were not suspicious and described his death as a tragic accident.

They said Mr Mcleod had been injured either by falling on to a bollard, on part of a berthed boat or a boat's fishing creels before he ended up in the water.

A pathologist's report concluded he had died from drowning, but informed the procurator fiscal the "major abdominal injury" was possibly consistent with having been assaulted several hours before his death.

Mr Mcleod's family believe he suffered the injuries during his murder.

A post-mortem examination revealed Mr Mcleod had sustained stomach injuries

In 1998, a fatal accident inquiry recorded an open verdict.

The inquiry's sheriff criticised elements of the initial police investigation. He concluded it had not been established that the "very serious abdominal injuries" were the result of an assault, but this remained "a possibility".

Four years ago, Police Scotland, which replaced Northern Constabulary in 2013, apologised for "serious failings" on the part of the former force and said officers had missed "the opportunity to gather vital evidence".

In 2018, the then lord advocate, James Wolffe, instructed an experienced prosecutor to review police handling of Mr Mcleod's death.

A year later, Police Scotland asked Merseyside Police to carry out a separate detailed review of the case. Merseyside's report was submitted to the Crown Office last summer.