Cold Case Unit working with Police Scotland to solve 15-year mystery

Glasgow Caledonian University’s Cold Case Unit is working with Police Scotland to help identify the body of a woman washed ashore on a beach 15-years ago. 

A new facial reconstruction of human remains found at Port Logan, Stranraer, has been released by officers in the hope of identifying the woman whose death is unexplained. 

Over the past six months, GCU’s Cold Case Unit, a team of criminology students guided by Professor Lesley McMillan and Dr Maureen Taylor, has been investigating the case. 

Early on, the team identified the potential for an updated facial reconstruction and approached Professor Caroline Wilkinson, of Face Lab at Liverpool John Moores University, to request an updated image. 

Forensic work has indicated the woman was aged between 30 and 50, was of thin build and between 4ft 11in and 5ft 4in tall. She was wearing size 10 black Bay Trading trousers, a white BHS size 34c bra and tan-coloured tights when she was discovered on Wednesday, November 22, 2006. 

Dr Maureen Taylor, of Glasgow Caledonian University, said: “We hope the new facial reconstruction jogs someone’s memory and adds more pieces of the puzzle as to who she might be. 

“We are very grateful for the fruitful and collaborative relationship we have established with Police Scotland with the mutual aim of furthering these cases. 

“The Cold Case Unit offers a unique opportunity for students to develop real-world investigative skills.”  

Inspector Iain Milligan, of Police Scotland’s National Missing Person Unit, added: “Missing person reports across the UK have been checked without success to this point. I appreciate the help that the Cold Case Unit at Glasgow Caledonian University has provided us with in our investigation over the past several months. 

“I hope that people will take a look and see if they recognise this woman. We want to be able to reunite her with her family and also find out what happened to her.” 

If you have any information related to the case, contact Police Scotland by calling 101, quoting missing person reference number 06-026047. GCU’s Cold Case Unit, the first of its kind at a Scottish university, is run in partnership with Locate International and can be reached by emailing gcu@locate.international.