17:57 2024-04-22
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_ The fatal love triangle that led to schoolgirl's murder: How 14-year-old Caroline Glachan was pelted with bricks and left to drown after being lured to bridge by her boyfriend, 18, his friend and her jealous love rival - as last member of trio is jailed
_ The fatal love triangle that led to schoolgirl's murder: How 14-year-old Caroline Glachan was pelted with bricks and left to drown after being lured to bridge by her boyfriend, 18, his friend and her jealous love rival - as last member of trio is jailed
A jealous love rival who murdered 14-year-old Caroline Glachan alongside her lover and his friend has been
Donna Marie Brand, 44, was today sentenced to life with a minimum term of 17 years for her part in a murder that shocked the nation.
It followed the sentencing of her lover Robert O'Brien for a minimum of 22 years and accomplice Andrew Kelly for 18 years in January. Brand was not sentenced at the time because she was in hospital.
Caroline was
The schoolgirl, who told a friend she was pregnant shortly before her death, had known 'violent' 18-year-old O'Brien for just two months before he, Brand - who had previously threatened to 'batter' her - and Kelly lured her to a bridge and killed her.
After being beaten and having bricks thrown at her, Caroline was left to drown in the River Leven. Her body was discovered on August 25.
Caroline first met heroin addict O'Brien, who bragged about seeing multiple girls at once, in June 1996 and quickly became his girlfriend.
Her mother Margaret McKeich said her daughter was 'infatuated' with him, and said she did not approve of her daughter's relationship.
Caroline suffered physical abuse from O'Brien, telling her mother he had 'lifted his hands to her'.
A friend, Joanne Menzies, now 42, revealed at trial he had threatened to kill her after she was seen 'kissing another boy' and described him as a serial 'bully'.
Soon after the two struck up a relationship, the 14-year-old confided in another friend, Tracy McFetridge, that she had become pregnant.
Ms McFetridge told the trial she was initially skeptical, but testified that she accompanied Caroline to a pregnancy test and that the result came back positive.
However, forensic pathologists found no evidence of a pregnancy during their 1996 investigations.
At the same time as seeing Caroline, O'Brien was also in a relationship with another schoolgirl, Donna Marie Brand.
Before her death, a jealous Brand had threatened to 'batter' Caroline if she spent time with O'Brien, friends of the 14-year-old said.
On the night of August 24, O'Brien, Kelly and Brand arranged to meet Caroline at a bridge near the towpath beside the River Leven, between Renton and Bonhill in West Dunbartonshire.
Kelly and his then-girlfriend, Sarah Jane O'Neill, had been babysitting four-and-a-half year-old Archie Wilson and his brother at a nearby house.
O'Brien and Brand then arrived and the four teenagers left the property with the young children at around 11pm before returning later that night.
Once they had met with Caroline, they launched a vicious assault on the schoolgirl which included repeatedly punching and kicking her to the face and body.
They then threw bricks or similar items at her, causing further blunt force trauma to her head and body.
She was pushed or fell into undergrowth and in the river, and was left there to die.
Tragically her body was discovered the following day, which was also her mother's 40th birthday, at Place of Bonhill, Renton.
Caroline sustained at least ten blows to the head and extensive skull factures before ending up in the river.
Her cause of death was drowning, with pathologists concluding she was still alive when she entered the water, but had been knocked unconscious by a head injury.
After ending up in the River Leven, the 14-year-old was left to die by the callous group of killers.
More than 20 years later, it was the evidence of one of the children, Archie, that was pivotal to solving the case.
Now in his 30s, he was unfit to testify at trial but had previously told his mother, Elizabeth Wilson, how he had been taken down to the River Leven late that night.
He told her he witnessed a 'lassie' being 'battered' and falling into the water.
Asked what he said happened, Ms Wilson told jurors: 'He said they were down the Leven... that they were fighting with the lassie, that she ended up falling in and that they had battered the lassie.'
Both Ms Wilson and her son were interviewed in 1996, and the mother was again in 2020 when the case re-opened.
Miss Wilson admitted she had not wanted her young boy 'involved' at the time. But, asked by police what her reaction was when she discovered Caroline had been found in the river, she stated: 'The blood just kind of drained from my face.
'I just knew that the story Archie had told us was related to the body.'
The tragedy witnessed by the two youngsters occurred as Caroline's mother was out celebrating her birthday with friends.
O'Brien was said to be the primary assailant who attacked the teenager with the other two responsible on an 'art and part' basis - with Kelly also throwing rocks at the teenager.
All three lied and concocted alibis, which were only exposed when a new probe in 2019 saw police take statements from more than 200 people who had not spoken to the initial investigation.
One of the key missing pieces for police was the evidence of neighbour Linda Dorrian, who was at home on the night of the murder with her ten-year-old daughter.
She told police how she saw two young men and women leave Ms Wilson's house, and later returning. This was the first time any evidence had emerged to counter the trio's alibi that they were inside the house the whole night.
O'Brien also told brazen lies to police at the time of the investigation, claiming Caroline had a stalker who had followed her home on multiple occasions.
He told a newspaper: 'She had been followed by a man with a moustache several times as she made her way home.
'She had no idea why it was happening, but she seemed pretty scared by it all.'
In the years following Caroline's death, O'Brien continued his violent criminal behaviour.
He was put behind bars for 18 months in 1997 after being convicted of serious assault and robbery.
Then in 2003 O'Brien was given a three-month term for drug dealing and possession of a knife.
He was labelled a 'violent man' by a judge after being convicted of the attempted murder of a stranger with a crossbow in 2006.
He was yesterday ordered to serve a minimum of 22 years behind bars for Caroline's murder while Kelly was handed a minimum of 18 years.
Kelly, who was 16 at the time of Caroline's death, also had other crimes on his record, including several drugs offences. Brand had no criminal convictions.
Brand, who was hospitalised with a respiratory infection at the time of the hearing, will be sentenced in March. She also faces a life sentence.
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