Murder charge man blames co-accused

Jan 22 2013

A man who is alleged to have murdered a missing businesswoman told police he thought two of his co-accused killed her, a court has heard.

Paul Smith, 47, said there was a "very good chance" that Colin Coats and Philip Wade murdered 27-year-old Lynda Spence, during an interview with detectives about her disappearance. Ms Spence, from Glasgow, has not been seen since April 2011.

Prosecutors allege she was abducted, tortured and murdered by Smith, Wade, 42, Coats, 42, and David Parker, 37, which the four men deny.

A tape of Smith's interview was played to a jury at the High Court in Glasgow, during which he told Detective Constables Pamela McCowie and Michael Neill that Ms Spence was "alive and injured" when he last saw her.

He claimed he was aware of the woman being held against her will by Coats and Wade at Parker's flat in Meadowfoot Road, West Kilbride, North Ayrshire, but said he was not involved in assaulting or killing her.

He said he did not see her being assaulted, but things he heard and the "results" he saw made him believe she had been.

When asked by Det Con Neill if he thought Coats and Wade murdered Ms Spence, Smith replied on tape: "There's a very good chance. I can't say because I didn't witness anything. If you're asking my opinion, then it kind of looks that way."

The court also heard a police interview with Parker, in which he said he was frightened of Coats. He told officers he agreed to let his flat be used for "a bit of business" after being approached by Smith at a party, when he claimed to be "pretty nutted" on drink and drugs.

Parker, Smith - who is from Largs, Ayrshire, Wade - from Glengarnock, Ayrshire, and Coats - from Glasgow, are alleged to have forced Ms Spence into a car on April 14, 2011 and held her hostage in a flat for up to a fortnight, where they are said to have blindfolded her and cut off her thumb.

The men are accused of crushing the woman's toes, burning her hands, severing her finger and hitting her with a hammer and a golf club, in an apparent bid to extract financial information from her. Prosecutors say the men cut off Ms Spence's head and attempted to cover up their crimes by bleaching floors, pulling up carpets and laying new floorboards.