Arlene Fraser's Rings

Evidence relating to Mrs Fraser's rings was not made available to the defence or to the court at the time of the trial.

A video taken in the Fraser home in Smith Street, New Elgin, immediately after the 33-year-old housewife's disappearance on

28 April 1998 showed no rings in the bathroom.

On 7 May the rings had re-appeared in the bathroom.

Fraser's defence team claim that two police officers who were in the Smith Street house on the night Mrs Fraser disappeared or the early hours of the following morning saw the rings there.

They are said to have mentioned the jewellery during later interviews in the summer of 2002 as prosecutors prepared their case.

But the early sighting of the rings - before they were "discovered" in the bathroom on 7 May - was not included in any statement passed on by the Crown.

PC witness 'mistaken' over rings evidence in Nat Fraser appeal

 The man who had secured Fraser's conviction and life jail sentence also knew nothing of a statement by a policeman which had the potential to destroy his case, appeal judges were told.

Senior prosecutor Alan Turnbull, QC, said later that if the statement had been shown to him at the trial he would have fainted.

Vital evidence on Arlene Fraser's rings 'kept from murder trial'

THE appeal judges were told that PC David Alexander had been part of the original team investigating Arlene Fraser's disappearance, but he was taken off the inquiry and he raised a number of grievances with Detective Chief Superintendent Keith Wilkins.

One of these related to the rings.

Peter Gray, QC for Nat Fraser, said PC Alexander's belief was that Det Sgt William Robertson had removed the rings from the house, kept them for some days in his drawer and had then returned them to the house, where they were found by a relative of Mrs Fraser. The source of PC Alexander's information had been a colleague, Det Sgt David Slessor, who had later taken his own life.

When one of the appeal judges suggested that this aspect might be a red herring in the case, Mr Gray agreed that Fraser was not basing his appeal on anything said by PC Alexander.

"I simply put it in as part of the background," said Mr Gray.

He added that two officers who were said to have seen rings in the house on the day Mrs Fraser vanished had reported that each had been told by Det Sgt Robertson that they must be mistaken.

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THREE RINGS THAT WILL FREE NAT FRASER