DNA delay 'cost Scots cops seven years' in hunt for World's End murderer

dailyrecord.co.uk:

The infamous World’s End murders might have been solved seven years earlier if detectives had understood the implications of a DNA breakthrough, according to the officer who helped snare serial killer Angus Sinclair.Ex-Deputy Chief Constable of Lothian and Borders Police Tom Wood said DNA analysis of the evidence in 1997 taken from the 1977 murders of Christine Eadie and Helen Scott, which showed traces of the DNA of two men, was not fully realised until much later.The two girls, aged 17, died after meeting Sinclair and his brother-in-law Gordon Hamilton in the World’s End pub in Edinburgh.The next day, Christine’s body was found in Gosford Bay, East Lothian, and six miles away, Helen’s body was discovered in a cornstubble field.

They had been gagged, beaten, tied up, raped and strangled.Wood, in a new edition of his book, The World’s End Murders: The Inside Story, admits that failure to understand new scientific procedures probably delayed justice for the families of Christine and Helen.He said: "In 1997, there was the potential for two new profiles.

We knew there was one profile but, partly due to the fault of scientists not explaining it thoroughly enough and partly due to our ignorance of a new science, the 1997 results were overlooked.Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today.You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland.No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team.All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in!If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'.We also treat our