Boy found guilty in the Rape and Murder of 6-year-old Alesha MacPhail
A 16-year-old boy has been found guilty for raping and murdering 6-year-old Alesha MacPhail.
Alesha was reported missing from the home her father shared with his parents last July. Hours later, her body was found with 117 injuries in woods on the Isle of Bute.
The 16-year-old boy, who cannot be named due to his age, had denied rape, murder and abduction at Glasgow High Court. He blamed the crime on Toni McLachlan, 18, the girlfriend of Alesha’s father Robert MacPhail, 26.
Alesha, her father, and his girlfriend
But the jury took just three hours to find the teenager unanimously guilty today.
Alesha’s father
Judge Lord Matthews told the boy he had committed some of the ‘wickedest, most evil crimes this court has ever heard’.
Alesha’s heartbroken mother
Tomorrow, the court will discuss whether to lift the boy’s anonymity or not. Sentencing is on March 21.
Alesha’s grandparents arriving in court today
As the 16-year-old killer was led to the cells after being found guilty this afternoon, the father of Alesha MacPhail shouted ‘f***ing scumbag’ at him.
