Police look for roadside clues in T in the Park death investigation

Police have carried out roadside searches as they investigate the death of a man found dead in an isolated farm after he left T In The Park.

Published 19th Jul 2016

Police have carried out roadside searches as they investigate the death of a man found dead in an isolated farm after he left T In The Park.

Jim Richardson's body was found ten miles from the site of the festival on July 12.

Police Scotland are now under investigation by the Police Investigations and Review Commission over their handling of his disappearance.

Now officers have undertaken searches on the side of the A9 dual carriageway between Auchterarder and Perth as part of the investigation.

A section of the northbound carriageway on the Cairney Braes between the Dunning and Forteviot junctions was shut on Monday night.

Police vehicles sat at the end of the coned off section as officers scoured undergrowth at the side of the road as they probe Mr Richardson's disappearance.

Desperate loved ones posted appeals online for sightings after Jim at the end of the festival.

His wife Samantha, 28, wrote: "He texted the road he was on and that was the last anyone heard from him.

"Getting worried now as it is getting dark and cold and don't know if he even had any money on him to get somewhere to stay."

A spokeswoman for Police Scotland said: "Police Scotland can confirm that the body of a male which was found in the area of the A9 near Forteviot, Perthshire on Tuesday 12th July 2016, can now be formally identified as 29 year old James Richardson from Craigneuk, Wishaw, Lanarkshire.

"Following a post mortem it has been concluded that the cause of his death was not suspicious."

A spokesman for the PIRC said: "The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) has instructed the Police Investigations and Review Commissioner (PIRC) to undertake an investigation after the body of James Richardson, 29, was discovered in the Forteviot area of Perthshire on July 12.

"The investigation will focus on the initial police response following a report of concern made about the man's welfare.

"A report on the Commissioner’s findings will be submitted to the COPFS in due course."