THE SON of an Irish woman whose body was found in a shallow grave has been charged with her murder.
Scottish police revealed today (Tuesday) that remains discovered more than a month ago in Edinburgh belonged to Dublin woman Phyllis Dunleavy.
The 66-year-old's son James, 39, appeared before Edinburgh Sheriff Court this afternoon charged with her murder.
Mr Dunleavy, who has an Edinburgh address, made no plea or declaration and was remanded in custody as the case was continued for further examination.
He is expected to appear before the court again on July 17.
The identification of Ms Dunleavy follows a month-long appeal for information from police following the discovery of her buried remains by a passing cyclist on June 6 on Edinburgh’s Corstorphine Hill.
Police in Scotland then began working with gardaí after discovering a Claddagh ring among the remains.
They launched several different appeals, including the release of pictures of the woman’s rings and the broadcasting of a BBC Crimewatch special, but struggled to identify the remains until a reconstruction of Ms Dunleavy’s face was released last week.
A family member in Ireland then saw the image and contacted police.
The BBC reported that Ms Dunleavy had been visiting her son and that he lived at the foot of Corstorphine Hill.
