Missing woman 'ripped people off'

Jan 18 2013

A missing businesswoman alleged to have been murdered "was someone who ripped people off", a court has heard.

Lynda Spence, 27, has not been seen since leaving her parents' home in Glasgow in April 2011.

David Parker, 37, from West Kilbride, Paul Smith, 47, from Largs, Philip Wade, 42, from Glengarnock, all North Ayrshire, and Colin Coats, 42, from Glasgow, are on trial accused of abducting, torturing and murdering her.

They deny all the charges against them.

Ms Spence's friend, Amanda Robertson, 29, told the trial at the High Court in Glasgow that the missing woman was involved in a number of property "deals".

Ms Robertson, a call centre worker, was formerly an office assistant at Ms Spence's company, Fraser Properties Ltd, but said unhappy customers started coming in to demand their money back.

Ms Spence once sent Ms Robertson to London with an envelope of documents which she believes were related to a deal involving Stansted Airport she was carrying out with a man named John Glen and a number of foreign nationals including someone known as "Uncle Ben", the witness said. "She said it was going to make her millions of pounds," Ms Robertson added.

Defence QC Derek Ogg, representing Coats, asked if Ms Spence "was someone who ripped people off", to which Ms Robertson replied: "Yes."

Parker, Smith, Wade and Coats are alleged to have forced Ms Spence into a car on April 14 2011 and held her hostage in a West Kilbride flat for up to a fortnight, where they are said to have blindfolded her and cut off her thumb.

The men are also accused of crushing her toes, burning her hands, severing her finger and hitting her with a hammer and a golf club in an apparent attempt to extract financial information from her. Prosecutors say the men cut off Ms Spence's head and attempted to cover up their crimes by bleaching floors, pulling up carpets and laying new floorboards.