A reinvestigation into the 2004 murder of Alistair Wilson is to be launched by a cold case team.
The Lord Advocate has instructed for a “complete reinvestigation” into the cold case almost 20 years after the banker was shot on the doorstep of his Nairn home.
A new team of prosecutors from the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) and a new police team will be involved.
Lord Advocate Dorothy Bain KC said: “This was a deeply disturbing crime in which a devastating loss was suffered by Mr Wilson’s family.
“There have been strenuous efforts made over many years to resolve this case and a great deal of evidence has been gathered.
“However, I have decided that it is appropriate for all the details of the case to be considered afresh and for further investigations to be made.
“It is my sincere hope that this secures justice for Alistair Wilson’s family and for the wider community who have been affected by this violent crime.”
‘Determined to get justice’
Assistant Chief Constable Steve Johnson, from Police Scotland, said: “We are now approaching the 20th anniversary of the murder of Alistair Wilson, and our thoughts remain with his family and the loss they have suffered.
“We remain committed and determined to identify Alistair’s killer and to get justice for his family.
“We are in the process of identifying the investigation team and it will be overseen by a Detective Chief Superintendent in their capacity as a Strategic Senior Investigation Officer.
“They will conduct a thorough reinvestigation of this murder.
“Unresolved murder cases are never closed in Scotland and there is no time bar to providing the police with information.
“We would appeal to anyone who may have information not yet shared with the police to come forward and report.”
Last year, Mr Wilson’s family made a complaint to the Police Investigations and Review Commissioner (PIRC) over the handling of the investigation.
A spokesperson from COPFS confirmed justice officials had met with the family to discuss the matters they had raised.
Alistair Wilson case to be ‘reinvestigated’
The father-of-two was shot on the doorstep of his Crescent Road home at around 7pm on November 28, 2004.
His wife, Veronica Wilson, answered the door and was asked by a man, aged 20 to 40, to get him by name before he was handed a blue envelope with “Paul” written on the front.
Mr Wilson, 30, briefly went back inside before returning to the door for a second time when he was fatally shot.
The weapon, a Haenal Suhl Model 1 Schmeisser’s patent handgun, was found in a drain on Seabank Road by council workers 10 days later.
Detectives have followed up on several lines of inquiry over the past two decades but nobody has been prosecuted for the murder.
An updated appeal shared in 2022 stated officers believed the answer to the murder lay within Mr Wilson’s personal life rather than his employment with Bank of Scotland.
They also said his objection to a planning application for a decking area outside the Havelock Hotel, opposite his home, may be significant.
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