Police find body in hunt for missing Dundee woman

Published on Wednesday 10 March 2010 16:01

POLICE searching for a woman who vanished on a night-out in Dundee today found a body in undergrowth.

• Mary McLaren has been missing for almost two weeks

Mary McLaren, 34, was last seen early on Thursday February 25 after a visit to Fat Sams nightclub with her sister.

The mother-of-three was last seen in Marketgait near to its junction with King Street at around 3am with a man she met at the club.

At around 3pm today officers from Tayside Police found the body of a woman in undergrowth on an embankment to the north of Ladywell roundabout in Dundee city centre.

A spokeswoman for the force said: "The area has been cordoned off to allow investigators to examine the scene. In order to facilitate the examination of the scene, the Marketgait will remain closed eastwards between the Lochee Road roundabout and King Street for the next 48 hours.

"The Marketgait will remain open for vehicles travelling westwards."

A reconstruction of her movements on the night she disappeared, which was due to be staged tonight, has been cancelled.

On the night she disappeared she was wearing a black-and-white leopard print dress, black leggings, a white duffel coat and flat black shoes.

She was also carrying a black handbag, a pink floral umbrella and a pink inflatable adult toy.

More than 50 officers and police staff have been working on the missing person inquiry and using Holmes, the Home Office Large Major Enquiry System, to help with the investigation.

Police had issued photos of Ms McLaren and handed out fliers to pub and club-goers in Dundee city centre during the search.

After issuing CCTV stills from Ms McLaren's night-out, officers traced a man seen dancing with her before she disappeared. Tayside Police said today the man was still helping with their inquiries.

Officers found the woman's body during a search of the area, a spokesman added.

He continued: "It is too early to say whether the death is suspicious or not."

A post-mortem will be carried out to discover the cause of death.