The Met Police have confirmed the discovery of a bone in the hunt for the body of murdered Muriel McKay, a kidnap victim mistaken for Rupert Murdoch’s wife.
Ms McKay, the spouse of Australian newspaper executive Alick McKay, was abducted in Britain for a £1m ransom back in 1969.
Two brothers, Arthur and Nizamodeen Hosein, were found guilty of Ms McKay’s murder and kidnapping 55 years ago, despite her body never being discovered. On 5 March, a scan was conducted in the garden of a property in Bethnal Green, east London, at the request of the family.
(Image: Daily Mirror)
A Scotland Yard spokesman said: “Police are aware of reports surrounding the discovery of a single bone in the garden of a property in Bethnal Green Road, Hackney. The bone was uncovered during an independent search.
“Officers are now on scene and work is being undertaken to establish the origin.”
“Today, following excavation in the exact area indicated, a bone has been discovered,” a family spokesman said.
“The family believe this may be the remains of Muriel,” they added.
(Image: Mirrorpix)
The family discovered the potential location after receiving fresh details from Hayley Frais, whose father operated a tailoring business on the Bethnal Green Road site where Arthur Hosein was employed during the murder.
She alleged her father revealed on his deathbed that he detected a pungent odour at the premises following Ms McKay’s disappearance.
Ms Frais stated her father was frightened to approach authorities because “he had a lot of dealings with the mafia, including the Kray brothers”, the infamous London criminals.
The family suffered a High Court defeat in November last year when seeking a comprehensive survey of the properties.
The court heard police were unwilling to excavate or examine the garden as it failed to reach the evidential threshold, but remained “receptive” should information emerge from any independent scanning undertaken at the location.