The family of a banker murdered on his doorstep have expressed their “extreme disappointment” that the most senior police officer in Scotland has “refused” to meet with them.
Alistair Wilson was shot dead at his home in Nairn in November 2004 by an unknown man. With the case remaining unsolved, a full reinvestigation was ordered last year.
The family’s requests for a meeting with Police Scotland Chief Constable, Jo Farrell, have so far been denied. However, his widow and son have met with the First Minister earlier this month, which they have shown gratitude for.
Their local MSP has now put the issue to Parliament in the hope that “something can be put right”.
Veronica Wilson answered the door of the family home in the Highland town on November 28, 2004, to a man who asked for her husband by name, before handing him an envelope and shooting him.
With the killer still at large, a complete reinvestigation of the case was ordered in September 2024, with an entirely new team of police officers and prosecutors.
On Wednesday January 15, Fergus Ewing MSP, whose constituency includes Nairn, told the Scottish Parliament the Wilson family had suffered “unending grief” since the killing, and that they had pursued a 20-year “campaign for justice”.
He said he had met with the family on Tuesday and they had asked him to express their “disappointment” that their requests for a meeting with Chief Constable Jo Farrell to discuss the unsolved case had so far been refused.
“Today, they wish me to express their extreme disappointment that the chief constable of Scotland, the top police officer in the land, has thus far refused to meet with them,” he said.
He added: “They hope, presiding officer, that that is something that can be put right.”
He pointed out the family had met with Scotland’s top law officer, Lord Advocate Dorothy Bain KC, who last September ordered the reinvestigation of the case.
They also had a meeting with First Minister John Swinney earlier this month, who agreed to look into issues they brought to his attention.
Mrs Wilson said: “I was extremely grateful to John Swinney for meeting with myself and Andrew and engaging with us over the ongoing investigation. It is welcome that he agreed to look into issues that we brought to his attention and come back to us in due course.
“That is in sharp contrast to the chief constable, who continues to refuse to meet with myself and our family. We find that deeply insulting and hope that she will urgently reconsider. We will not stop demanding answers and it was pleasing to have the opportunity to raise them with the First Minister.”
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Justice Secretary Angela Constance said the Scottish Government recognises the Wilson family have endured an “unimaginable loss”.
She said would not “abuse” her position as Justice Secretary by making “requests or orders that are not appropriate to me”. However, she stressed the importance of extending “the hand of engagement” even in difficult cases.
Conservative MSP Douglas Ross said he had also spoken to the Wilson family, and that he “cannot understand the thought process” of the chief constable in refusing to meet with them.
He said: “If the head of the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service in Scotland, the Lord Advocate, can meet with the family, if the head of the Scottish Government, the First Minister, can meet with the family, surely the head of Police Scotland can also meet with the family.”
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