UK - Alesha MacPhail, 6, raped & murdered, Ardbeg, Isle of Bute, Scotland, 2 Jul 2018 -teen arrested

[raithjames]

I think the person was hoping to maybe move her body further possibly but got frightened and did just dump her at the easiest option first .. everyone in the area is quite close and supposedly a lot rarely lock their doors could this be a neighbour who developed an obsession with the wee girl and finally snapped in madness and then panicked once the crime was commited? the wee girl was young she could have trusted and known the person to easily go with them

I think they panicked too. Surely on the island if you wanted someone to go missing. You would put them in the sea! They were never far from it, and would of been an easy way to get to the sea in front of old hotel away from eyes.

 

[KarenUK]

I've been thinking that the perpetrator may have wanted her body found because they cared about her enough to want her to have a funeral. A search at the seafront may have been to steer away from knowledge of where she actually was.

Echos of JonBenet Ramsey (if you are RDI)

 

[Ironside]

I've been AWOL from Websleuths since the change over as I used to access WS via the Tapatalk app, which no longer works.

My first thoughts were 'Mikaeel Kular' ...

The new site is fine on a phone browser. MK was my first thought too. Kids don't just wander off in the middle of the night. <modsnipped- not victim friendly>

 

[Redgoblin]

<modsnipped quoted post>

I had also thought of this, although the police have come out directly and said it's a murder investigation, unless of course it's a scare tactic.

I thought perhaps she might of ingested something she shouldn't have, and the rest is a cover up. I find it worrying that there has been advice put out on certain media sites about keeping windows shut... still, it could be a tactic though?

 

[Tortoise]

I had also thought of this, although the police have come out directly and said it's a murder investigation, unless of course it's a scare tactic.

I thought perhaps she might of ingested something she shouldn't have, and the rest is a cover up. I find it worrying that there has been advice put out on certain media sites about keeping windows shut... still, it could be a tactic though?

Until they've gathered enough evidence to make an arrest they have to give out this advice because any hunch could prove to be wrong. IMO.

 

[raithjames]

I wonder if the downstairs flat did sell? It was only put up 20 days ago. A new neighbour maybe? Also interesting they have the out house maybe further back in picture of recovery vehicle. A new person renting?

 

[Jennifer17]

I wonder if the downstairs flat did sell? It was only put up 20 days ago. A new neighbour maybe?

I thought that was a different but similar house.

 

[evans242]

I found a freedom of information release from Police Scotland from March 2016 which details known Sex Offenders on the Isle of Bute:

https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/314650/response/776999/attach/2/2016 0345 Final Response.pdf?cookie_passthrough=1

That's interesting. Mmm, I bet the islanders didn't know that!

 

[raithjames]

I thought that was a different but similar house.

No that one I found being advertised on gumtree that’s the same one. I put on a similar one earlier different number.

 

[bluebird69]

It does often seem to be poor dogwalkers who find bodies (hence why I don't have a dog!) but this just seemed too quick/convenient.The area also did seem rather overgrown although I could be wrong. It must be traumatic to find a missing child like that in any case

 

[bluebird69]

I have seldom seen the grandfather mentioned as actually being there and thought perhaps he worked away. Possibly just the way the media reports were worded

 

[evans242]

Alesha MacPhail murder - Cops hunt killer of girl, 6, murdered in Bute - as locals warned 'lock your doors'
Apparently a close family source say she went missing from her bed.

 

[Tortoise]

<snipped quoted post and partial response to it>

It is a peculiar (IMO) feature of nearly every case of a missing and subsequently found murdered child that the carers checked on the child. I must be the worst mother going, because unless my children were sick I didn't routinely check on them after I knew they'd gone to sleep! Now I am not even thinking that gran is a suspect but I just thought it always strikes me as odd in these cases that people routinely check on their children, after they've got to the age of sleeping through the night without needing feeds or too young to cover themselves etc. I suppose it might be different when caring for someone else's child.

The other thing I thought about is that this means Alesha was sleeping in a separate room, and not say a camp bed in the living room. It was only a 2 bed flat I think, so she was either in gran's room and that is the time gran went to bed, or in Rab's room. I wonder if that means he wasn't there. Because I doubt gran would have checked in Rab's room if Rab was in there too, and if Rab was still up but hadn't gone to bed yet there would have been a later sighting of her when Rab went to bed.

Maybe he moved out to his girlfriends while Alesha came to stay, meaning grandparents were the only adults in the flat? That's the only way I can justify the 12am check in my mind.

 

[Taskforce88]

A man has just been arrested via Police Scotland Twitter

 

[Tortoise]

Police Scotland can confirm that a man has been arrested tonight on suspicion of the murder of 6-year-old Alesha MacPhail.



Alesha was reported missing around 6.25 am on Monday, 2 July 2018 and her body discovered in a wooded area in Ardbeg Road, Bute around 9.00 am the same day.



The senior investigating officer, Detective Superintendent Stuart Houston, said:



“The response to our earlier public appeals has been significant. However, despite this evening’s major development, I am still appealing for anyone who was in the Ardbeg Road area of Bute on Sunday night or in the early hours of Monday and who may have information about Alesha’s death to contact us.



“Anyone who has CCTV at their home or business, or indeed any motorists with dashcam footage which might help with our investigation are also urged to get in touch.”



Anyone with any information is asked to contact the incident room via 101 quoting incident no 0695 of Monday 2 July 2018.

Man arrested following death of six year-old - Police Scotland

 

[HayLouise]

Breaking: Police Scotland confirm that a man has been arrested tonight on suspicion of the murder of 6-year-old Alesha MacPhail. No further details have been released

Jane Hamilton on Twitter

 

[Tortoise]

<snipped quoted post>
Is that a hunch or you know it?

 

[HayLouise]

Alesha MacPhail: Man arrested on suspicion of murder on Isle of Bute Alesha MacPhail: Man arrested on suspicion of murder on Isle of Bute

 

[kirkassoc]

I wonder if they will have a press conference?

 

[UKWend]

Im glad they have made an arrest this quickly, i too feel its not a ‘stranger’