Crimewatch appeal sparks search for Pilley remains

Police are to research an area in Argyll where the body of Suzanne Pilley, is believed to be buried. Picture: Contributed

It follows an emotional appeal on BBC’s Crimewatchfrom Rob and Sylvia Pilley made for information about the whereabouts of their daughter, four years after she went missing.

Among the dozen calls received there was contact from two new callers which related to an area in Argyll where it is believed her body could be hidden.

The area has been searched before but police plan to recheck it after new information was received.

The Monday broadcast prompted calls after featuring a reconstruction of killer David Gilroy driving Ms Pilley’s body to Argyll, where it is believed he disposed of her remains.

Gilroy was sentenced to life in prison after being found guilty of murdering Ms Pilley and disposing of her body after she disappeared on May 4, 2010.

The fresh information relates to the sighting of a silver car in the area.

It is understood to match the description of Gilroy’s Vauxhall Vectra which police believe he used to transport Ms Pilley’s body to the area. A Police Scotland spokesman said : “We had two callers who had not called before and there was a sighting of the silver car. It has brought the issue to the public again”.

During the initial investigation, police, with the help of mountain rescue teams, carried out a series of searches of over 200,000 acres of forest and land in Argyll.

They scoured the terrain for signs of soil disturbance in case Ms Pilley’s body had been buried, although the exact method of disposal for her remains has never been determined.

Police will now carry out a fresh search in a specific location related to the sighting of the car.

Speaking on the programme, Ms Pilley’s parents, Rob and Sylvia, pleaded for information to help find their daughter’s body.

Mr Pilley said: “The door is just ajar. It’s not fully closed yet and that’s what I would really like – to put closure on it for myself and the rest of my family.”

Ms Pilley, 38, from Stenhouse, was last caught on CCTV camera heading for the office of Infrastructure Managers in the city centre’s Thistle Street, where she and Gilroy both worked.

Gilroy bought charcoal for a barbecue at a petrol station in Craigleith Road at around 4pm on May 4, just hours after he had killed Ms Pilley and with her body in the boot of his car.

Police were not able to recover the charcoal, which Gilroy claimed had been used at a family barbecue.

Detective Superintendent Gary Flannigan, who led the murder inquiry, said during the show that the case would never properly be closed until Ms Pilley’s remains were recovered.