A COASTGUARD volunteer has told how he discovered the partially clothed corpse of missing teenager Liam Aitchison in a derelict building.
Ronald MacLean was carrying out a search for the 16-year-old when he made the find in the apparently blood-stained property in Steinish on the Isle of Lewis, the court heard.
The incident was yesterday described by a crime scene examiner as one of the most horrendous she had attended.
The evidence was heard at the trial of Johnathan MacKinnon, of Elgin, and Stefan Millar, of Inverness, at the High Court in Glasgow. The pair – both 22 – deny the murder of Mr Aitchison on November 23, 2011.
Mr MacLean told how he and other volunteers took part in a search for the missing teenager on November 29, 2011. This involved the checking of a number of buildings. Mr MacLean said Mr Aitchison was not expected to be found as it was believed he may have simply left the island.
However, the witness said a run-down property in Steinish was investigated as part of the search.
Mr MacLean followed a colleague in after climbing through a broken door panel. Prosecutor Iain McSporran asked: "Can you tell us what you observed?" Mr MacLean said: "A boy's body lying on the floor."
Mr McSporran: "He certainly was not fully clothed?" He replied: "No."
Crime scene examiner Jody Busby was later called to attend the property.
Quizzed on how this compared to other incidents to which she had been called, the 34-year-old told the trial: "It is one of the most horrendous scenes I have been to."
The trial continues.
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