Time is not on my side... public inquiry must start now before it's too late

The mum of murder victim Emma Caldwell has accused prosecutors of blocking a public inquiry and warned she could die before finally learning the truth.

- JENNIFER HYLAND

Emma was killed by Iain Packer in 2005 but he wasn't convicted for 19 years after one of Scotland's most notorious criminal justice scandals.

It wasn’t until our sister title, the Sunday Mail, unmasked him as the ‘Forgotten Suspect’ in 2015 that the case was finally reopened after an initial botched investigation.

Packer was jailed for life in February 2024 and the Scottish Government promised an independent judge-led public inquiry.

But 19 months on, that inquiry - which will probe a catalogue of police and prosecution failings and claims of corruption - is yet to begin.

Speaking exclusively to the Sunday Mail, Margaret, 77, said: “I will meet with Solicitor General Ruth Charteris on Wednesday [today] and plead with her to stop this delay - time is not on my side. Some victims have already died - this public inquiry must start now before it's too late for me or others.

“For nearly two decades the police gave Packer a green light to rape and assault women without fear of being arrested.

“It's clear to me that both the Crown Office and police cynically hoped that I would eventually just give up fighting for justice or just die.

“Dorothy Bain taking over as Lord Advocate finally gave me real hope and delivered justice but now over a year has passed since the public inquiry was announced.”

Margaret will meet Charteris at the office of her solicitor Aamer Anwar to push for the probe to begin as soon as possible. They believe the delay is due to a parallel criminal investigation into the officers involved in the original murder inquiry which is to be carried out by an outside force.

However, the Sunday Mail understands no external investigators have been appointed after over a year.