Doonies Adorable Duo

Two lonely farmyard animals have forged an unlikely bond in Doonies Farm near Cove on the outskirts of Aberdeen.

Lisa the lamb and Larry the calf have become best friends after being separated from their mothers. By coincidence both of the babies is a twin and their mothers did not have enough milk to feed them.

This match made in heaven are now sharing an enclosure and keeping each other company.

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North-East Drugs Survey

A major North-East survey could help shape Scotland’s future drug policies.

Members of the public will be asked for their views on drug misuse and treatment.

Researchers from the University of Aberdeen will be sending out questionnaires to 3,000 households on a wide range of drugs issues.

People will be asked about their understanding of drug dependency and whether anyone in their family has an addiction.

Views on the use of methadone as a heroin substitute and whether drug users should be detoxified will be among the questions posed.

The survey will also ask for views on treatments such as supervised heroin prescribing.

People will also be asked whether they would be willing to pay towards treating drug users and if so, how much.

Dr Catriona Matheson, who leads the university’s drug misuse research team, said: “We hope our findings will help inform future drugs policy in Scotland.”

Woman Saves Husband from Armed Attackers

A Blackburn woman bravely fought off two assailants after finding her husband severely injured by a gunshot wound.

Lois Smith, 55, who works as a part-time nurse, was horrified to find her husband, Jonas Smith, 54, bleeding heavily after a gun wound to the chest. 

He was shot after going outside to check on the livestock after the couple suspected that a fire had broken out on their farm.

Mrs Smith was alarmed when she heard faint cries from her husband. When she found him she was shocked to discover that he was bleeding heavily from a gunshot wound to the chest.

With no thought for her own safety, Mrs Smith did her best to stabilise her husband’s condition by grabbing some sheets and covering the wound. She then called for an ambulance.

Mrs Smith then ran out to the barn beside the house to free the livestock, where she was attacked by two men.

Because it was dark and the air was smoky, Mrs Smith was unable to identify the two men.

When one man grabbed her, she kicked him, but then the second beat her about the face. Mrs Smith did her best to fight off the two men and bravely resisted their repeated demands for money.

Mrs Smith felt “angry” that they had not only severely injured her husband but that they had also started the fire. She suspected that they had started the fire in an attempt to empty the house, so that they could look for money.
 

It was at this point that the ambulance was heard and the two assailants fled.
 

Both men ran up the hill out of the main gate of the farm.

Mr Smith’s heart had stopped and he had to be immediately resuscitated by paramedics. He is currently in a stable condition at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary.

It is thought that the attempted robbery occurred as a result of Mr Smith’s win of £500,000 on the popular quiz show ‘Who Wants to be a Millionaire’.

Mrs Smith is very concerned that the two culprits are still at large: “They are very dangerous and will stop at nothing and if anyone can help to catch them they should call the police.”

Barbershop Apocalypse Hitting Aberdeen

Barbershop singers – they wear striped waistcoats and sing about the good old days, right?

Wrong.

The latest batch of barbershop singers still sing in delicious close harmonies, but their choice of material is rather different, and comes served with a large helping of comedy.

Welcome to the strange and wonderful world of 'Barbershopera', a musical quartet who are about to unleash their third a cappella comedy musical on the world – and this time they’ve gone apocalyptic.

In the show, 'Apocalypse No!', which visits Perth, Inverness and Aberdeen over the next few days, audiences will learn that God has had it with the world and summons the four horsemen demanding they sort it out.

Company director of 'Barbershopera' Productions is Rob Castell, who is also an established actor whose roles include playing Tony in 'West Side Story' and Dr Rance in 'What the Butler Saw'.

“I grew up with barbershop music, as my mum is American and my grandad sang in barbershop choirs.” said Rob.

“We used to sing with our friends, but we also enjoyed acting and comedy so wanted to create something which brought all these elements together. The result was 'Barbershopera'.

It was their first full-length a cappella musical and they took it to the 2008 Edinburgh Fringe, where it got rave reviews. A second show, 'Barbershopera II' (subtitled 'In the Mane of the Father', and later re-subtitled 'The Barber of Shavingham'), made its debut in 2009.

It was while touring with that production that the latest show was born.

“We were appearing at Lyth Arts Centre, in Caithness. William Wilson, who runs the centre, is very keen on barbershop singing and let us stay in the centre for a week so we could develop our next show.” said Rob.

“So it was in Caithness that 'Apocalypse No!' was first formed.”

With plenty of laughs, a farcical storyline and lots of close harmonies – along with elements of the blues, boy bands and soul music thrown in for good measure – this show will be unlike any other barbershop show seen before.

Drug Dealing Binman Jailed

A binman who spent two years drug dealing while working for a local authority was jailed for three years at the High Court in Perth today.

John Smith stashed the Class A drug internally and tried to escape from hospital as police officers kept a bedside vigil waiting for him to pass the illicit package.

Smith was arrested by police on April 14 last year after they were tipped off that he had travelled to Inverness to source the Class A drug and would be returning with it to Fort William.

Advocate Depute Laura Thomson said Smith appeared "nervous and uneasy" when he was detained on his return on April 14 last year and was taken to Fort William police station for a strip search and asked to submit to a medical examination.

Ms Thomson said that on April 17 he got up from bed and started to wash his hands. She added: "He then ran out of the room in an effort to escape. He was quickly restrained.

"Almost immediately he passed a green sausage shaped package."

The package contained nearly 23 grams of heroin with a street value of £2,287. Police found out that several drug users would regularly buy 20 pound bags of heroin from Smith. Some of them would get the drug from him several times a week.

Counsel for Smith, Graham Robertson, told the court that his client had started using cannabis to alleviate back pain and had then moved onto heroin. Mr Robertson said: "These are matters he is somewhat ashamed of. He was a recreational user of cannabis but because of a back injury he suffered severe pain.

"It wasn't being alleviated by the medication he was given and his error was to start taking heroin as a pain relieving analgesic. He ended up finding himself addicted.

Smith admitted being concerned in the supply of the Class A drug between April 14 in 2008 and April 14 last year in Fort William and in Lochaber, Aberdeen and Inverness.

Kean on Myles Deal

Blackburn manager Steve Kean has defended his pre-contract agreement with Aberdeen's Myles Anderson, despite him playing just two minutes of competitive football.

Despite his lack of experience Kean feels Anderson could emerge along the same lines as Manchester United’s Chris Smalling, who less than three years ago was playing for non-league Maidstone United.
 

“We feel that Myles Anderson is a player with great potential as a late developer,” Kean told the Lancashire Telegraph.
 

“He could become something of a Chris Smalling who came through late in football and Myles has done the same because of his schooling.
 

“We think he has a lot of potential but there was the opportunity for him to go Scotland in January and we and he felt that would be a good experience for him.
 

“There was interest in him from a couple of Spanish clubs but he is our player and will be at our club full time in July.”
 

Aberdeen manager Craig Brown, who brought in Anderson in January, said he always expected the defender to make the move to Ewood Park at the end of the season.
 

He said: “He was signed as cover and it was always his intention to go to Blackburn."

Deliberate Fire Exposed in Webster Trial

A forensic scientist who specialises in fire investigation today told a court he believed a fatal car blaze was started deliberately.

Andrew Wade, Bachelor of Science, told the jury at the Malcolm Webster trial that he produced two reports after investigations at a North-East crash scene, where Claire Morris died.
 

Mr Wade, who has investigated several high profile cases including the Windsor Castle blaze and another in Edinburgh which saw a firefighter killed, said he had come to the view the fire had been started intentionally.

Advocate depute Derek Ogg questioned Mr Wade about the conclusions in his reports.

Reading from the report, Mr Ogg said: “In my view the fire has almost certainly originated in the engine compartment of the car, the long delay between the crash and the fire, the inability of Claire Webster to escape, the additional fuel cans in the car, provides strong support to this being a deliberate fire.”

He asked if this was Mr Wade’s conclusion. Wade replied: “Yes.”

The court also heard that, in all of Mr Wade’s experience, he had never come across an example of a crash where a fire had started five minutes after the smash happened.

The jury was also shown a demonstration of how a fire spreads in the direction of where the fuel is provided, by Mr Wade.

He told the court he came to his conclusion after he saw which angle the car had ended up in after the collision – facing downwards on embankment.

Webster denies the charges against him and the trial continues.

Webster denies murdering his first wife Morris Claire by drugging her with temazepam, crashing his car on the Auchenhuive to Tarves road, at Kingoodie, near Oldmeldrum, on May 27 or 28, 1994, and setting it on fire.

Chris Crosses Brown

 

Aberdeen FC manager, Craig Brown, has today slapped down speculation that he has given up on the task of keeping Chris Maguire at Pittodrie.

Brown has dismissed a claim from Maguire’s agent – Willie McKay – that the young striker has rejected a new contract offer from the club and plans to move on in the summer.

Maguire’s future at Aberdeen has been subject to much speculation for the past few months, as he has struck a rich vein of form in the final few months of his current contract.

While his agent claims he has decided to move on, the player hasn’t ruled out staying at the club. He said: “We are still speaking.”

Craig Brown is refusing to concede defeat and still hopes he can prolong the player’s stay at Pittodrie.

He said: “We are determined to keep Chris Maguire. It is very difficult to compete with some of the finances spoken about but we have made him a very competitive offer. There is also the issue of compensation which will have to be addressed if he does decide to go.”

Maguire is currently with the Scotland squad, preparing for Sunday's international with Brazil. 

Credits Roll for Belmont Cinema?

 

The Belmont Picturehouse will be closed if no firm agreement is reached to take over the Aberdeen cinema.
 
The previous deadline of March 31 was extended today to 26 May.
 
Aberdeen City Council has been subsidising the city centre cinema at a cost of £75k a year.
 
The three screen cinema was reopened in 2000 after being closed for nearly fifty years.
 
The major refurbishment that was required was funded by Aberdeen City Council with help from the National Lottery and Scottish Screen.
 
The cinema shows a combination of mainstream, independent, art-house, and foreign language films.

Not So Golden Graham

A man who pled guilty to speeding up to a junction and crashing a car has been fined today. Graham Gordon appeared at Aberdeen Sheriff Court to face the charges.

The 26-year-old, whose address was given in court papers as the Haugh Ballabeg Farm, was charged with driving a car, registration number R116 MES, whereby he failed to give way at a give way sign.

The charge also read that Gordon did speed towards a junction and collide with another car on January 11 2010.

Sheriff Buchanan fined him £350.

SQA Fees Out of Tune

Officials have called for councillors to scrap SQA exemptions for music tuition in Aberdeenshire. This will create an extra £150k a year for the music service. 

A meeting of Aberdeenshire Council’s Education, Learning and Leisure Committee in Woodhill House will take place on Thursday, where this proposal will be brought to light.

It will be asked that pupils who receive tuition as part of their SQA study will soon have to pay fees for music tuition. This will create a fairer system for all music students as currently, certain instrument lessons must be paid for.

It will also be proposed that sibling discount should be scrapped. This will create an extra £7,500 a year. Tuition will remain without cost for those who are entitled to free school meals.

This move means Aberdeenshire Council will be able to create more income for the Education, Learning and Leisure Service.

The report says: “The removal of SQA music fee exemption would generate significant additional income from music tuition fees.”

The instrumental music service provides lessons for over 3,000 pupils and generates over £250k in charges.

The report from Aberdeenshire Council makes clear that there is a danger that pupils may withdraw from music tuition if fees are introduced.

Taxes Take Toll on Taxis

Taxi fares in Aberdeen could rise for the first time in three years due to increased VAT and fuel costs.

Aberdeen Taxi Group have called for a 5% hike in fares, to reflect a drop in profits caused by increased running costs.

Chairman of the group, Russell McLeod, said: “Aberdeen taxi drivers are not looking to get back to where we were, which would need at least a 10% increase, we are only looking to slow the erosion to our earnings.”

The increases are being discussed at a meeting of Aberdeen City Council’s Licensing Committee at 2 o’clock this afternoon.

If approved, the basic tariff will be set at £2.40 for the first 950 yards instead of the first 1000 yards, with a 20p charge for every additional 180.5 yards instead of 190 yards.

Waiting time costs could also increase from £20 to £23, and passengers being picked up at Aberdeen train station may have to pay a £1 starting cost rather than 50p.

Fuel prices have risen by 15% since the last review of prices in March 2008.

Mr McLeod added that even if the price increases are passed, fares in Aberdeen will remain lower than those in Aberdeenshire.

An Aberdeen Rainbow City taxi driver said: “We need at least a 5% increase, with fuel costs, servicing and MOT prices going up. It may cause a lull in trade for a few weeks, but business will pick up again.”

Schoolgirl Boots Racism into Touch

 An Aberdeen schoolgirl has been recognised in a nationwide campaign to stamp racism out of football.

Laura Booth is a pupil at Bucksburn Academy in Aberdeen and was one of the runners up in the S1-S3 category of Show Racism the Red Card awards.

Laura designed a poster, which was picked from thousands of entries across Scotland at the ceremony for the anti-racism contest at Hampden Stadium in Glasgow.

Alongside her poster she wrote: “When I heard about the competition I knew straight away I wanted to enter. I tried to think of a slogan that would put a clear message across that racism has no place in our country.”

Laura’s poster read “We are all one race… The Human Race!”

The event, run in conjunction with the Scottish Qualifications Authority, invited pupils from across Scotland to create posters, art work, short films and multi-media displays to put across the anti-racism message.

Amanda Peebles, spokeswoman for Show Racism the Red Card said: “The Creative competition is now in its eighth year and continues to be a highly successful and integral part of our campaign.

“I have been amazed at how creative our young people can be in finding ways to get the anti-racism message across.”

Flat Fire Shuts Market Street

Market Street remains closed after a fire this morning.

Guests and staff were evacuated from the Douglas Hotel today after the fire began in a top floor flat next to the establishment.

Three fire engines, a height support vehicle and firefighters using breathing apparatus were sent in to tackle the blaze. One of the fire engines was sent to the rear of the building to tackle the fire from there. Firefighters had concerns the flames could spread to properties attached to the fire-hit building.

Hotel manager Gavin Paterson said: “I looked out of the back of the building and the smoke coming out of the window was thick and black.
“Some smoke drifted into the hotel and the fire alarms were set off and everyone was evacuated safely.

“It could have been a lot worse, the fire brigade did a great job.”

A grateful Mr Paterson brought out a tray load of bacon sandwiches and coffee for the firefighters as they rested after tackling the blaze."

Callum Eddie owns the Grampian Health Store on Market Street. He said: “I couldn’t see any flames but I saw two firemen with faces and clothes blackened with soot.”

The kitchen at the second floor flat was described as “extensively damaged” and the ceiling had collapsed due to the fierce heat of the blaze.

Fire officers estimated the blaze had been going for up to half an hour before the window was blown out by the pressure of the fire and the alarm was raised.

Grampian Fire and Rescue Service group manager Ally Birkett said: “We don’t know what caused the fire at this stage but a fire investigation unit has started work to try and establish the cause.”

There was nobody in the flat at the time of the fire.”

Budget Boost for North-East

Chancellor George Osborne could be poised to make tax changes to help the North-East.

The Tory MP, who is due to set out his budget today, said he was considering changes to the tax system for the oil and gas industry – to help prolong the future of North Sea oil fields.

Thousands of people across the North-East work directly for oil companies or manufacturing companies associated with the industry.

Mr Osborne was asked questions in the House of Commons by West Aberdeenshire MP Robert Smith, who asked for assurances that there would be some good news for North-east subsea industries in today’s budget.

Mr Osborne said: “Of course we want to ensure that we prolong the life of the North sea fields.

“One area on which we can work with the industry is ensuring greater certainty about decommissioning costs and about the tax regime that was operated under previous governments and how that will apply over the next 10 years.

“I hope to work with the industry on that.”

Lib Dem MP Malcolm Bruce said he welcomed the Chancellor’s sentiments. He said: “My hope is what he does encourages the industry and is not a disincentive.

“It is of huge importance to the North-east, it still has around 50,000 people employed directly and it is absolutely crucial to our economy.”

Mr Osborne’s budget was also expected to feature tax cuts of up to £320, with the level of income people can make without paying tax set to rise to £8,085.

And he was widely expected to cancel a fuel duty rise to ease the burden on motorists and the haulage industry.

Lights Out for Earth Hour

Aberdeen’s His Majesty’s Theatre will be turning off its lights this Saturday to raise awareness for the environmental campaign Earth Hour.

The theatre will switch off or fade all unnecessary lights in the building at 8:30pm to show its concern over climate change. 

The Aberdeen theatre will join forces for Earth Hour, with the only other His Majesty’s Theatre in the world, situated in Perth, Australia. 

Earth Hour is a global annual event that takes place on the last Saturday of every March. It is organised by the World Wide Fund and asks all businesses and households to turn off unnecessary lights and electric appliances to draw attention towards the need for action over climate change.

Earth hour began in Sydney four years ago, when over 2.2 million households and businesses switched off for the foundation.

His Majesty’s Theatres in Perth and Aberdeen were twinned in an official ceremony in Australia in 2004 and in Aberdeen in 2005.

Duncan Hendry, chief executive of Aberdeen Performing Arts, said: "I'm delighted that we are able to mark this important international occasion with our friends in Perth, Western Australia and Perth, Scotland."

Hunter Hunted

A hunter feared for his life when his shooting party came under fire from an unseen gunman, a court has been told.

Owen Jackman gave evidence at the trial of farmer Michael Sutherland, who is accused of culpably and recklessly firing a gun at eight men.

He told Aberdeen Sheriff Court yesterday: "My memory, to the day I go to the grave, would be that I expected to see one of my mates rolling out of the hide with a bullet in him.”

50 year-old Jackman was part of an organised bird-shooting event in a field at Foveran, Aberdeenshire, when the incident took place on October 26, 2009.

He said he spotted a man through his binoculars, who looked as though he was “brandishing” a rifle. Jackman tried to remain calm as a succession of nine or ten shots were fired within 3ft of his head.

When the shooting stopped, Mr Jackman said that the group abandoned most of their equipment and sheltered behind their minibus until being advised to leave the area immediately by the police.

Sutherland, of The New Farmhouse, Newburgh, faces a further charge of possessing 230 more rounds of ammunition than were covered by his license. He denies all the charges.

His counsel, Ian Duguid QC, suggested that Mr Jackman and his group may not have been seen from neighbouring land. He also argued that Andrew Richardson, who had been hired by the party as shoot organiser, had not informed the owner of the neighbouring property that a shoot would be taking place.

The trial, before Sheriff Kenneth Stewart, continues.

Offenders Turn Over a New Leaf

A union boss today blasted plans to make Aberdeen the pride of Britain by employing criminals to keep the city blossoming.

Council chiefs have proposed using people on community “payback” orders to help win In Bloom competitions.

But union leader Mike Middleton fears that the move could threaten council jobs.

The plan follows the replacement of probation, community service orders and supervised attendance orders with community service.

Unpaid public work must now be completed within three or six months compared to the previous twelve months.

A report by city council officer Lesley Simpson said: “As a result it is imperative that new big work placement projects be identified to accommodate more community service workers on a regular basis.”

But Mr Middleton said: “We are vehemently opposed to community payback workers engaging in day-to-day maintenance that staff are employed for.”

Offenders have so far been involved in maintenance at Stewart Park in Hilton, but the plan would see them further develop the park to improve its amenities.

The report said community service workers would be involved in the refurbishment and redecoration of the pavilion and gardening, landscaping and maintenance of the park’s green space, which would involve upkeep of the play area.

The report also stressed that offenders in the supervised work parties were risk-assessed.

Man to be Sentenced over Child Porn

An Aberdeen man has appeared in court after admitting to having over 40,000 indecent images of children.

44-year-old Ian Hardie was found at his home in Formartine Road with 42,318 pornographic photographs of children.

Hardie has also been accused of taking, or allowing pornographic photos of children to be taken, but has pleaded not guilty and this has been accepted by the Crown.

Sheriff Malcolm Garden has postponed sentencing for background reports and this includes a restriction of liberty assessment.

The 44-year-old has been placed on the sex offenders register until he returns to court for sentencing on April 21.

Hardie’s solicitor, Peter Shepherd, has also requested a medical report because his client has previously suffered from depression.

A second Aberdeen man has also been placed on the register of sex offenders after admitting to possessing indecent photographs of children.

Robert Ratter, 36, admitted being in possession of pornographic images between October 7, 2005 and December 13, 2007.

Ratter faced charges between 2003 and 2007 of taking indecent images of children, but his not guilty plea was accepted by the Crown.

Sherriff Garden has also deferred sentence in this case until Ratter returns to court on April 14.

Sheran Appointed Blue Toon Boss

Peterhead Football Club last night confirmed the appointment of former Montrose and Cove Rangers boss John Sheran as the club’s new manager.

The announcement followed the Blue Toon’s 2-2 draw against Stenhousemuir. Sheran met his new players after the full-time whistle and is keen to get underway.

His main priority will be to steer the club clear of relegation.

“This is a huge challenge but an exciting one. If I did not think we could avoid relegation I would not have taken the job.

“There is a lot of hard work to be done but if everyone at the club – from the players, coaching staff, board and supporters – all pull together, we can achieve it.”

Earlier yesterday, the club terminated the contract of manager Neale Cooper, after a run of eight matches without a win.

Cooper said: “I have no sour grapes. I loved my time at Peterhead.

“They made me feel very welcome and it is sad to be going. I wish them all the very best for the future.”

Hotel Evacuated after Fire

Guests and staff were evacuated from a city centre hotel today after a fire broke out.

People spilled out onto Market Street from the Douglas Hotel when the alarm was raised. A Grampian Fire and rescue Service spokeswoman said firefighters were alerted at 8.19am.
She said: “There was a fire in a top floor flat behind the hotel.
“We don’t believe there was anybody in the flat. The hotel has been evacuated.”

A hotel spokeswoman said the blaze was in a building next door: “Everybody had to be evacuated, and nobody was being allowed back into the building.”

Three fire engines, a height support vehicle and firefighters using breathing apparatus were sent out to tackle the blaze. One of the fire engines was sent to the rear of the building to tackle the fire from there. Firefighters had concerns the flames could spread to properties attached to the fire-hit building.

Grampian Police closed a stretch of Market Street between Union Street and Guild Street while emergency crew tackled the flames.

Ann-Marie Wedderburn, manager at Waves hairdressers next to the blaze-hit property, said: “It was quite a shock. We thought the fire engine was just trying to get up Market Street, but then it parked next-door.

“They arrived at about 8.15am and half an hour later I saw the firefighters coming out so I guess they had managed to put it out.”

Dominic Lees, manager at the William Hill branch on Market Street, said: "I think it was one of the flats. There's firemen everywhere, it must have been pretty bad."

Union Terrace Gardens Competition

An international competition is to be held for a design to replace the planned scheme by Brisac Gonzalez in Union Terrace Gardens.

The architect’s plan for a £13million arts project in the city centre was scrapped last year in favour of a much larger development called City Square. The £140 million scheme has since been renamed City Garden Project after local people made it clear they wanted the existing gardens at the heart of any redevelopment.

Local businessman Ian Wood has pledged £50 million towards the project which will see new civic and cultural facilities as well as reconfiguring existing road and railway links.

Malcolm Reading, who is in charge of the competition, said it would be formally launched next month with shortlisted designs being made public this September.

Council Merging Mini Schools to Save Money

Two tiny North-East primary schools are a step closer to being merged with bigger neighbours.

A public consultation on merging the schools has now completed. The proposals would see Clatt Primary School being joined with Kennethmont School which is just over two and a half miles away.

Logie Coldstone Primary School would be merged with Tarland Primary School, which is less than four miles away.

The two schools each have eight pupils making them the smallest in Aberdeenshire.

It is expected the plans would save Aberdeenshire Council money and the children involved would benefit both educationally and socially.

If approved the mergers could lead to annual savings of just under £124, 000 for the Clatt merger and nearly £83, 000 for the Coldstone merger.

If supported the changes would take effect in line with school terms meaning pupils would finish the classes in their current schools on July 2 and move to new schools at the beginning of the new term on August 16 this year.

Parent Councils, pupils, staff, trade unions and HM Inspectorate of Education were all consulted in the process.

The Marr Area Committee will consider the consultation and make a decision on the next step forward when it meets on Tuesday.

Should the committee support the mergers, Scottish Ministers would be notified before the council could progress the plans.

Aberdeen Youngster Set for Move

Aberdeen defender Myles Anderson has signed a pre-contract agreement with Blackburn Rovers.

He will move to the Premiership club on a free transfer on July 1.

He had previously been on trial at Blackburn at the beginning of the season.

The 20-year-old player is the son of football agent Jerome Anderson, whose company assisted new Blackburn owners Venky’s in the recent takeover of the club. His company also represent Blackburn manager Steve Kean.

Young Anderson, capable of playing at left back or centre back, began his career at Leyton Orient. He joined Aberdeen in January. He had previously trained at Motherwell, while Dons manager Craig Brown was in charge of the Fir Park club.

At the time, he said: “I am delighted and very proud to be here.

“I had a number of opportunities to sign for different clubs at home and abroad. But, after spending some time at Motherwell with Craig and Archie, I knew I wanted to work with them.

“I was honoured they were so keen to bring me to Aberdeen.

“I have a huge respect for them and they are the right people to take my career forward.”

Despite his high hopes, the player has only played one game for the Dons. He came on as a substitute for the final two minutes of Aberdeen’s 5-0 win over Kilmarnock on February 19.

AFC Press Officer David Macdermid said: “In terms of pre-contract agreements, we’re in no position to hold back a move, since he was out of contact in the summer.

Obviously the club are delighted for the lad.”

Nat Fraser Trial: Missing Rings

Key evidence that was not revealed at the murder trial of Nat Fraser would only have strengthened the case against him, a court has heard.

One of the essential threads of the killer's new appeal against conviction focuses on a statement from Constable Neil Lynch that he saw Arlene Fraser's rings at the family home the night she disappeared.

Fraser’s Counsel Maggie Scott QC has claimed in his appeal against conviction that the decision by the Crown not to disclose a witness statement denied him a fair trial.
 

The jury was told at Fraser’s 2003 trial that the rings were not found in the initial police search and were not found until five days later.
 

His lawyers argued at the Supreme Court in London that this statement “severed the link” between Fraser and the body.
 

But Solicitor General Frank Mulholland QC said that this evidence would have served only to strengthen the case against Fraser that he murdered his wife, as it would have corroborated the evidence of witness Hector Dick. 

He said: “Had the evidence been available to the Crown, it would have supported a key piece of Mr Dick’s evidence - when he said the appellant had told him he had been in the house on the night of Arlene’s evidence, that he had gone there to tidy up the evidence.

“Lynch’s evidence, had it been available, would have supported that.”

Maggie Scott QC argued that if Lynch’s statement had been disclosed at the original trial, it would have allowed the defence to pursue other lines of cross-examination.
 

Having heard two days of submissions, the panel will now deliberate in private before announcing its judgement at a later date.
 

Fraser was jailed for life in 2003 after a jury found him guilty of killing his wife in April 1998, despite no body ever being found. He is serving a minimum term of 25 years.
 

Meanwhile, the sister of Arlene Fraser has vowed never to stop looking for her body. Speaking outside the Supreme Court, Carol Gillies said: “It has been 13 years now, how long is it going to go on for?
“Enough is enough.

“We will always keep looking for her and do the best for her.That’s why we are here - to try to find out the truth about her.”