Margaret Fleming's carers "couldn't look after themselves", court told

A former friend of two carers accused of murdering missing Margaret Fleming told a jury they could not look after themselves.

Alison Nugent, 55, was giving evidence today at the High Court in Glasgow where Edward Cairney, 77, and Avril Jones, 59, deny murdering Margaret Fleming at Seacroft, Main Road, Inverkip, between December 18, 1999 and January 5, 2000.

Margaret, who would now be 38, has allegedly not been seen for more than 19 years.

Mrs Nugent told jurors: “They couldn’t look after themselves never mind anyone else.

“They were in ill health and their house was falling apart around their ears.

“They didn’t have the wherewithal to care for another person.”

Nugent said the house was “in disrepair” and the ceiling was peeling away.

The court had previously seen pictures of the home that was described as “chaotic” by a Police Scene Examiner.

The court heard that Jones never told Mrs Nugent about Margaret until there was a missing persons’ inquiry into her disappearance in November 2016.

She said: “Avril said she came back from getting her hair done and Margaret and Eddie had gone on a walk to Weymss Bay.

“She said there was someone at the door looking for Margaret and then the police appeared.

“Then Margaret ran away.”

Mrs Nugent claims Jones told her Miss Fleming had gone to go with travellers.

She stopped all contact with Jones as she “couldn’t believe the story anymore.”

Jones’ cousin Margaret Millar told the jury she was told Margaret would come back and collect her benefit money.

“When we were contacting each other by letter and Avril said they fell out and the girl had left but she didn’t go into specific details.

“This was before the year 2000.”

Cairney and Jones are accused of defrauding £182,000 in benefits and attempting to defeat the ends of justice by claiming Margaret was alive.

They deny all the charges against them.

The trial continues before Sheriff Lord Matthews.