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00:03.
00:09On the 4th of September, 2022,
00:12a police officer discovered human remains
00:16near to a main road in Northumberland.
00:22That body had been in a suitcase,
00:24had been thrown over a wall, and just left there.
00:29Investigators had been looking for the remains
00:31of 75-year-old Peter Coshin.
00:35And after three weeks of searching, they had finally found him.
00:40Due to the condition of the body in advanced stages of decomposition,
00:45the pathologist was unable to determine cause of death
00:47or what had happened to Peter.
00:51Already under arrest for murder was 29-year-old Paul McNaughton,
00:56who'd stolen over £100,000 from Peter.
01:02He obviously wanted to live a lifestyle without working for it,
01:06and he's seen Peter as a way of funding that for him.
01:11McNaughton's greed for Peter's money knew no bounds.
01:15Even after killing him, he's still using Peter's cash cards
01:20to take money out of machines all across Edinburgh.
01:26McNaughton didn't just murder Peter.
01:29He meticulously planned it,
01:31and then ruthlessly tried to get away with it,
01:35making him one of Britain's most evil killers.
02:05McNaughton's greed for the murder of Peter Coshin.
02:09in 2024, people were shocked at the level of premeditation in the killing.
02:17There is no doubt that this was a very calculated crime, and what's more, he took considerable
02:25efforts to hide Peter's body. This was not an act of passion or a single incident, it
02:32was very, very well planned and thought through.
02:38McNaughton had been stealing money from Peter for over a year.
02:44He knew that he couldn't use any of his manipulative tactics on Peter anymore, so he had to start
02:52to plan how is he going to get Peter into the place he needs him to be, basically, so that
02:59he can kill him.
03:00Even after Peter's death, McNaughton continued to treat the 75-year-old with complete contempt.
03:20McNaughton thought he'd got away with it, but investigators eventually tracked the 29-year-old
03:26down and locked up a ruthless and remorseless murderer.
03:37This killer story begins in Edinburgh, Scotland, in 1994.
03:47We don't know very much about Paul McNaughton's childhood, we do know that at one point he referred
03:53to his adverse childhood circumstances, but we have very little idea of exactly what those
03:59were.
04:01Adverse childhood experiences might be something like abuse or neglect, maybe sexual abuse,
04:09but it could be something like divorce and separation.
04:13There's quite a spectrum of things that could cause quite high stress levels for a child or
04:19even trauma.
04:25As McNaughton got older, he found himself on the police radar.
04:34He did have some convictions, but none of them included violence.
04:39But there was a conviction for what is called willful fire raising, which is arson, basically.
04:47And arson is probably one of the biggest red flags to have in somebody's criminal history
04:53that suggests or predicts that they are going to be problematic further down the line.
05:01By the age of 26, McNaughton's downward spiral was continuing, unabated.
05:08We do know that McNaughton did have violent tendencies.
05:12That is not reflected in his criminal record, because in 2020, he did meet up with a man,
05:18and he turned on him violently and threatened to stab him, threatened to damage his car.
05:25So we absolutely know this is part of his behavioral repertoire.
05:33The thing about McNaughton was he had no significant violent convictions whatsoever, none.
05:39I think it tells you that he'd mostly got his own way.
05:45If I get what I want, I'm fine, but I can use the threat of violence.
05:59In 2019, a freelance journalist called Paul, who was in his mid-twenties,
06:05was out drinking at a bar in Edinburgh.
06:10We had plans to go out for a friend's birthday in Edinburgh for some drinks and dinner.
06:15Paul and his friends ended up in a bar in the north of the city,
06:20where he came across someone he hadn't met before.
06:25I met this guy in the toilet. The toilets are tiny.
06:29I was washing my hands, basically, and sort of turned around and said,
06:31hello, you know, how's your night, how are you getting on?
06:35When we were chatting, he told me his name was Ryan,
06:37and he shook my hand, and I shook his hand, and I said I was called Paul.
06:41I just thought he was a normal guy.
06:43I mean, nothing, there was no alarm bells ringing.
06:46He was just being nice, if you like.
06:49General toilet chit-chat on a night out, that sort of thing.
06:52I thought he was a not-bad-looking guy.
06:54There was nothing really in my head telling me to watch out for anything.
06:58He asked me if I was on a certain dating app, which I was.
07:02I basically showed him my profile,
07:05and he sent me a thumbs-up, basically saying we would chat later.
07:13When Paul went back into the bar, Ryan, the enigmatic stranger, called him over.
07:20It was quite close-up to me speaking in my ear.
07:22Basically, he asked me if I had ever paid for sex, which I hadn't, and I wouldn't.
07:28So I told him no.
07:29He then informed me that he was an escort.
07:33Obviously, in his head, he was out to make money that night,
07:37whereas I was out to spend money, but on alcohol and have a good night in other ways.
07:42So I went back and sat with my friends.
07:45I could see him looking over,
07:47and I thought, you know, this guy obviously really likes me.
07:50But in my head, I was like, I know what he wants.
07:52He wants money, and it's not something I'm prepared to do.
07:56I was aware of him all night, but again, there was no alarm bells ringing.
08:01I just genuinely thought, he likes me, and he wants to take things further.
08:09Ryan kept looking over at Paul all evening.
08:15I made it clear to him on a few occasions that I would not be paying,
08:20and he seemed fine with that.
08:23So I genuinely thought there was a bit of an interest there,
08:26maybe a bit of a spark.
08:28When we caught up again, we were chatting, and, you know,
08:31we had a bit of a laugh, and I felt comfortable.
08:36He felt like a decent guy.
08:38Because of that, I felt comfortable leaving with him.
08:42You never know these days, you know, the people you meet online.
08:45And it was the first time I'd met him,
08:47but I did genuinely feel, you know, relaxed and comfortable,
08:51so I decided to leave the bar with him.
09:00Ryan took Paul to his flat nearby.
09:04He offered me a drink.
09:05We had a drink.
09:07Chat was normal.
09:09And then we had sex.
09:13After that, I've sort of started to get my stuff ready,
09:16because I said to him,
09:17look, I need to get back and get my mates, basically.
09:19And he was like, oh, just, you know, just stay.
09:22He started to be quite forceful on me,
09:25like, had his arm around me.
09:27I felt like he was throwing himself on me.
09:31He had his leg over my leg, as if, you know, trying to stop me to get up.
09:36And I said to him, look, get off me,
09:38because I'm starting to feel really uncomfortable here.
09:41And he just wasn't listening.
09:42He was throwing himself on me more.
09:43And at one point, he was, like, physically on top of me,
09:46trying to kiss me.
09:47Come on, let's go again, let's go again.
09:49And I was like, no, look,
09:50you're really making me feel uncomfortable here,
09:52and you're scaring me.
09:54Paul managed to free himself
09:56and swiftly gathered up his things to leave.
10:00So he asked where I was going,
10:02and I told him I was leaving.
10:04He started to become very erratic.
10:09He was quite abusive.
10:11Some of the things he was saying was really unpleasant.
10:15He accused me of taking advantage of him, bizarrely,
10:21because I got free sex from an escort, is what he said.
10:27I knew I had to get out, obviously.
10:29At that point, it was the only thing to do
10:31because I knew something that potentially could have happened,
10:36just the way he was acting.
10:38And if I didn't get out at that point,
10:40then who knows what would have happened.
10:46Paul managed to get back to safety with his friends
10:49and was still processing what had happened.
10:53When I got back home,
10:54I was physically and emotionally drained.
10:58Before I went to bed,
11:00I remembered he'd obviously showed me his profile on a dating app.
11:04So the first thing I did was log in
11:06and report his profile to the site
11:08and just explained a little bit about what had happened.
11:14I did think about reporting it to the police,
11:16surely just because how bad it was.
11:20But instead, I reported it to the dating app.
11:24Paul moved on and tried not to think about Ryan again.
11:30From that incident,
11:32we can learn quite a lot about Ryan, I think.
11:34This is somebody who has no feeling for anybody else.
11:38He almost looks at other human beings
11:43as lesser than,
11:45of no consequence,
11:48as resources to be used for his own benefit.
11:53And, of course, that's quite a dangerous mindset.
11:57What Paul didn't know
11:59was that the man he met in the bar wasn't called Ryan.
12:03His real name
12:05was Paul McNaughton.
12:10I knew there was something evil.
12:13That's the sense I got that night was evil.
12:16And I knew it was only a matter of time
12:17before someone seriously fell victim to him,
12:22purely because his behaviour was so erratic.
12:25Like, it just wasn't normal.
12:27It wasn't normal behaviour.
12:33McNaughton flipped from charm to cruelty in an instant.
12:38And the next person he wanted money from
12:42wouldn't live to tell the story.
12:55In 2022, 29-year-old Paul McNaughton
12:59was living in Edinburgh
13:01and working in a coffee shop.
13:05Across the city on the 12th of August,
13:08Police Scotland received a call
13:10asking if they could check in on 75-year-old Peter Coshin
13:15after his family failed to make contact with him.
13:19Local journalist Thomas Brown
13:22quickly became aware of the story.
13:32Peter had a call lined up with his sister
13:35on the Friday morning
13:36and she texted him to remind him about that call
13:39and Peter never responded to the text message.
13:43That concerned her slightly.
13:45So her and her husband then tried to contact Peter
13:49on WhatsApp, landline and mobile
13:51and got no response.
13:55The following day,
13:57they got a rather strange text,
13:59allegedly from Peter,
14:00which wasn't like him at all.
14:03It wasn't the sort of language he used
14:05and he would never say Tom.
14:07He'd forgotten to type tomorrow.
14:10Peter also signed off all his messages
14:13with a capital P at the end.
14:15These new messages didn't have his signature.
14:19His family knew something was wrong,
14:22so the police decided to do a welfare check.
14:29Police Scotland then attended at the house
14:31and got no answer.
14:32On the same day,
14:33Peter was due to meet a friend
14:35who had travelled in from Europe,
14:36who was in Edinburgh
14:37and they had an arrangement to meet
14:39and Peter didn't show up for that.
14:41After it was reported to the police,
14:43they very quickly deemed him a missing person
14:46and Police Scotland proactively
14:48appealed to members of the public and the media
14:50to assist with any information
14:52to come forward about Peter's whereabouts.
14:57Detectives needed to learn as much as possible
15:00about the missing 75-year-old.
15:06Peter Coshin was a biology teacher.
15:09He had a PhD.
15:11He taught at Fettis College in Edinburgh,
15:13the old school of Tony Blair,
15:15for 33 years.
15:25He lived on his own in the Stockbridge area of the capital,
15:29which is quite a nice area,
15:31and he lived his life very privately.
15:34After retirement,
15:36he appears to have enjoyed travel with friends
15:38and regular trips to the cinema
15:39and meals out with his friends and former colleagues.
15:50Given his background,
15:53Peter's very sudden disappearance
15:55raised serious red flags for the police.
15:58They were quick to appeal to the media for help.
16:02When Peter was first reported as a missing person,
16:05it was a general police appeal
16:06with a description,
16:08a detective asking for information
16:10and a picture of Peter.
16:12And that picture was circulated
16:14a couple of times over the next 48 hours
16:17around Edinburgh,
16:18trying to find Peter.
16:20It was clear then to me at that point
16:22that police were concerned
16:23that there was something more sinister going on here
16:25as opposed to just an elderly missing man.
16:28Police began by retracing Peter's steps
16:31on the day he went missing.
16:34Peter that day had come back from a trip to Norwich.
16:38He'd gone home
16:39and then he'd gone out to the cinema with friends.
16:43After that, they went for a drink in a local pub
16:46and he was dropped back off at his home around half ten.
16:49He told his friend who dropped him off
16:50that he was going in to go to his bed
16:52because he was very tired.
16:57Investigators discovered that,
16:59about an hour later,
17:00Peter called a taxi to take him to Leith
17:03in North Edinburgh.
17:06Former Detective Inspector for Police Scotland,
17:09Michael Orr,
17:10has led numerous murder inquiries.
17:14It's a big lead for the police.
17:16They realise there are no further calls
17:19made by Peter
17:20after he was dropped off in the taxi.
17:22This is his final destination, so to speak.
17:31They tracked down the taxi driver
17:33who tells the police
17:35that he dropped Peter off
17:37at 11.52 that evening
17:39at this block of flats
17:41in Seafield Road, Leith.
17:43So they've begun to establish
17:45where Peter went to.
17:49The driver told the police
17:51that he watched Peter walk into the block of flats
17:54and then drove away.
17:56The police need to get a handle on
17:58what everybody who lives with
17:59in that block of flats was doing that night.
18:02The inquiries surrounding that flat
18:03and every other flat,
18:04they need to be extensive as possible.
18:07Uniformed officers were sent
18:09to the block of flats
18:10to carry out door-to-door inquiries
18:11to see if anybody living there
18:13that had seen Peter,
18:14was aware who he was,
18:15knew him,
18:16or would have any idea
18:17as to why he would have been
18:18at that block of flats.
18:20The police intelligence system
18:21should be probed to the nth degree
18:23about people that live within these flats.
18:25The people that are in there
18:26are the nointes, you know,
18:28who have been charged with anything before.
18:31Detectives narrowed in
18:33on two residents,
18:35one of whom had a criminal record,
18:3829-year-old Paul McNaughton,
18:40who lived with 65-year-old Paul Black
18:43in one of the flats.
18:47They did speak to McNaughton Black,
18:50who denied any knowledge of Peter.
18:52They said they didn't know who he was,
18:54never seen him before,
18:55and no reason to believe
18:57that he would be in that block of flats
18:59for anything that connected to them.
19:02Police made a cursory search of the flat,
19:05but there was no sign of Peter
19:07or any immediate evidence
19:09to suggest something was amiss.
19:12They needed to find a new line of inquiry.
19:20At this point,
19:21it's simply a missing persons investigation.
19:24A natural way for the police
19:26to track any missing person
19:27is to look at their bank transactions.
19:31Have they taken money out of an ATM?
19:34Have they been in cash to check?
19:36As they begin to look into that,
19:39it's obvious that Peter's cash cards
19:42have been used during the night
19:45after he was last seen getting out of a taxi.
19:49There was a huge amount of activity
19:52in his bank accounts.
19:53At two in the morning,
19:54there was £300 taken at one account.
19:56A few hours later,
19:57there was €5,000 purchased
19:59in a shop in Leith in Edinburgh
20:01using one of Peter's accounts.
20:04And hours after that,
20:05there was more items purchased
20:06and more money taken from ATMs
20:08in various parts of Edinburgh.
20:11Officers who went to find CCTV
20:13off the transaction for the Euros
20:15discovered that they were purchased
20:17by a man
20:18and that man was not Peter Cauchon.
20:23Detectives needed to find out
20:25who this mystery man
20:26withdrawing Peter's money was.
20:29All they had was a description.
20:31They continued to follow the money,
20:34looking at Peter's accounts
20:35in the year leading up
20:37to his disappearance.
20:39The police realised
20:41that large sums of money
20:43had been transferred
20:45from Peter's accounts.
20:49£32,000 here,
20:51£10,000 there,
20:52£8,000 there.
20:54Those are very, very considerable sums.
20:57The two names that are linked
20:58to these cash transfers
21:00from Peter's accounts
21:01are McNaughton and Black.
21:04Paul McNaughton and Paul Black
21:06had told the police
21:08they didn't know Peter.
21:10These bank transactions
21:12proved this was a lie.
21:15McNaughton and Black
21:16were now the main suspects
21:18in Peter's disappearance.
21:21The officers who had spoken to Black
21:23and McNaughton
21:25searched the flat.
21:26They left
21:27and a while later
21:28they drove past the block of flats
21:29and they seen Black
21:31going towards the bin
21:33with two bin bags.
21:36They notified
21:37the senior officer
21:38who was in charge
21:38of the case
21:39that they had seen that
21:40and a decision was taken
21:41to go back
21:42and secure the bins
21:43because they believed
21:44that there was potentially
21:45evidence being disposed of.
21:49The bin area was checked
21:50and within bin bags
21:52were found
21:52various items and property
21:54including a glasses case
21:55and a pair of glasses
21:57that were broken.
21:59These glasses were confirmed
22:00to be similar
22:01to those that Peter wore
22:03and this started
22:04to paint a picture
22:05of something untoward
22:06having happened to Peter.
22:10It would be fair to say
22:11that by this point
22:12the police are thinking
22:14this is not a missing person
22:16this is a murder
22:17but they don't have a body.
22:22On the 17th of August
22:24detectives arrested
22:26McNaughton and Black
22:27for the murder
22:28of Peter Caution
22:29but with no body
22:30and no confession
22:32proving their guilt
22:33would be an uphill battle.
22:35Six days had passed
22:36since the 75-year-old
22:38had vanished
22:39six days for the pair
22:40to erase every trace
22:42of Peter
22:43in the hope
22:44that he would never
22:46be found.
22:56On the 17th of August
22:582022
22:59in Edinburgh
23:0129-year-old
23:02Paul McNaughton
23:03and 65-year-old
23:05Paul Black
23:06were arrested
23:07for the murder
23:08of Peter Caution
23:09but police
23:10were still putting together
23:11a picture of exactly
23:13what had happened.
23:14They wanted to learn
23:15more about the
23:16dynamic between the
23:18two men
23:18that they had
23:19in custody.
23:33They'd known each other
23:34on and off
23:34for about 10 years
23:35and in fact
23:37in the last few months
23:38before Peter's
23:39disappearance
23:40McNaughton has actually
23:41gone to live with Black.
23:43He said he was being
23:45evicted
23:45and he had nowhere
23:46to live
23:47and he probably said
23:48to Black
23:48can I just come
23:50and stay for a few nights?
23:52That is actually
23:53a very very common
23:54manipulative tactic
23:56to be able
23:57to get into the middle
23:58of somebody's life
23:59and start drawing
24:01from all of their
24:03resources
24:04probably not having
24:05to pay
24:06and all of that
24:06kind of thing
24:07and then being able
24:08to carry that situation
24:09on.
24:10I think McNaughton
24:11absolutely used
24:13and manipulated
24:15Black
24:16for all sorts
24:18of reasons.
24:20Black was
24:21besotted
24:22and obsessed
24:22with McNaughton
24:23and a kind of
24:25worship the ground
24:26he walked on
24:27so I think
24:29McNaughton was
24:29in a very powerful
24:30position over
24:31Black.
24:32I don't think
24:33the police were
24:34in any doubt
24:35that McNaughton
24:36was the dominant
24:37force in the partnership.
24:39He was the younger,
24:40stronger,
24:41certainly the biggest
24:42ego.
24:44Black by comparison
24:44was rather timid
24:45and quite quiet
24:46and so they
24:48concentrate on McNaughton
24:49but they don't
24:51know anything
24:51for sure.
24:53With both men
24:54under arrest
24:56police needed
24:57to build
24:58a forensic case
24:59against them.
25:01Once detectives
25:02had taken Black
25:03and McNaughton
25:04into custody
25:04a full forensic
25:05search
25:06of the flat
25:07at Seafield Road
25:08was carried out
25:09and during
25:10that search
25:11they didn't find
25:12a huge amount
25:12of items
25:13relating to Peter
25:14but they did
25:14find blood splats
25:15on the carpet.
25:18DNA analysis
25:20identified
25:20that the red
25:21staining
25:21was in fact blood
25:22and that the blood
25:23belonged to Peter.
25:25There is no doubt
25:26the police
25:27are increasingly
25:28confident
25:28that McNaughton
25:29and Black
25:30are guilty
25:30of Peter's murder
25:31but they
25:32haven't got
25:33the final bits
25:34of the evidence
25:35yes plenty
25:36of circumstantial
25:37enough to charge
25:38the pair
25:39with Peter's murder
25:40but there is still
25:42the nagging question
25:43of how he was killed
25:46where he was killed
25:47and why he was killed.
25:51Investigators
25:52still didn't have
25:53the full picture
25:54but they had enough
25:55to charge McNaughton
25:57and Black
25:58for Peter's murder.
26:00Both men
26:01however
26:01refused to speak
26:03so investigators
26:04needed to follow
26:05the evidence
26:06to find Peter.
26:08McNaughton
26:09seemed to be
26:10the one
26:10who'd orchestrated
26:11this murder.
26:13They wanted
26:13to learn more
26:14about how he knew
26:16Peter Caution.
26:18McNaughton
26:19and Peter
26:20met on a dating app
26:21and I think
26:22probably
26:23McNaughton
26:24recognised
26:24straight away
26:25that Peter
26:26was quite a vulnerable man.
26:27He was much older
26:29he was 75 years old
26:30he had physical
26:32vulnerabilities
26:33in that he had
26:34Parkinson's disease
26:35and I think
26:37McNaughton
26:38probably saw
26:38someone he could
26:39manipulate
26:40and control
26:41and use
26:42and that's exactly
26:43what he did do.
26:45The evidence
26:46hinted
26:47at a potential
26:48sexual relationship
26:49between the two men.
26:51It appeared
26:52that Peter
26:53gave McNaughton
26:54small amounts
26:55of money
26:55at first
26:56but
26:57it had started
26:58to increase.
27:00McNaughton
27:01has taken
27:01sizable amounts
27:02of money
27:02from Peter's
27:03bank's account
27:04tens of thousands
27:05of pounds
27:06clearly sped
27:07that money.
27:08Peter himself
27:09was concerned
27:10that the money
27:11was disappearing
27:12and called the bank
27:13and tried to find out
27:14what was going on
27:15and failed to do so.
27:17Police discovered
27:18that Peter
27:19had called the bank
27:20just days before
27:21his disappearance.
27:23They may have
27:24uncovered
27:25a potential
27:26motive for the murder
27:27but there was still
27:28no body.
27:29The investigation
27:30focused on
27:31what McNaughton
27:32and Black
27:33had been up to
27:34in the days
27:35before their arrest
27:36hoping
27:37it would lead
27:38to Peter.
27:42McNaughton
27:43and Black
27:43do not look
27:44like guilty men.
27:46They're not
27:47acting as though
27:48something terrible
27:48has happened.
27:49On the contrary
27:49they're acting
27:50in an extremely
27:51nonchalant way.
27:52After Peter
27:53goes missing
27:54they go to
27:55McDonald's.
27:56They take money
27:57out of a cash machine
27:58using Peter's card.
28:00The following day
28:02they go to a fun fair
28:03in Fife
28:04with a friend.
28:06Detectives
28:07tracked down
28:07this friend
28:08to see if she
28:09could provide
28:10any new leads.
28:12She had told
28:13officers
28:14when she
28:16spoke to them
28:16that McNaughton
28:17and Black
28:18had stolen
28:18a suitcase
28:19from her
28:20when they
28:20last visited her.
28:22That would have
28:22been suspicious
28:23to the officers
28:24given they were
28:24looking for a body.
28:26This was a
28:27major lead.
28:28It was looking
28:29likely that
28:30Peter's body
28:31had been
28:32transported
28:32elsewhere.
28:34Police found
28:35CCTV footage
28:37of McNaughton
28:37and Black
28:38in a shop
28:38purchasing
28:39various
28:39cleaning products
28:40including bleach,
28:41air fresheners,
28:43lengths of ropes
28:44and two
28:45shovels
28:46and a
28:47doobie.
28:48That raised
28:49police suspicions
28:50even further.
28:51The inquiry
28:51moved in a
28:52dramatic fashion.
28:53The police
28:53at that stage
28:54knew, I would
28:55imagine,
28:55that they were
28:55looking for
28:56a body
28:57that's been
28:57buried.
29:00As police
29:01continued to
29:02follow the money
29:03they discovered
29:04another purchase
29:06that McNaughton
29:07had made.
29:09Among the
29:09many leads
29:10the police
29:11have is
29:12that they
29:12realise
29:13that McNaughton
29:14has bought
29:14a Vauxhall
29:15Vectra car
29:16for £750
29:17in the wake
29:18of Peter's
29:19disappearance.
29:20The police
29:21realised that
29:22McNaughton
29:22has bought
29:22a car.
29:23An unbelievable
29:24bit of evidence.
29:25We need to find
29:25the car and we need
29:26to find it quickly.
29:27It would be
29:27the forefront
29:29of their mind.
29:31Using
29:32cell tower
29:33technology,
29:34investigators
29:35began to build
29:36a picture
29:36of where
29:37the pair
29:38had travelled.
29:42They gradually
29:43tracked down
29:44the fact
29:44that the two
29:45of them
29:45got in the
29:46car
29:46and drove
29:47to somewhere
29:49in Northumberland.
29:50They did a loop
29:52coming back up
29:53through the
29:53Scottish borders,
29:54through Gallashields
29:55and Hoyk
29:56and returned back
29:57to Edinburgh.
29:58The following night
29:59they did the same
30:00journey.
30:01About the same
30:01time when it was
30:02dark,
30:02they left
30:03Edinburgh
30:03and set
30:04off on
30:05the journey
30:05again and
30:07at that point
30:08they were able
30:08to ascertain
30:09there was
30:09several areas
30:10that they had
30:11stopped at
30:11on the way
30:12down on the
30:13second journey.
30:14You could
30:15certainly make
30:15assumptions that
30:16the first trip
30:17was a trip
30:18to find out
30:19exactly where
30:20the body
30:21should be
30:21disposed of
30:22and the
30:22possibility
30:23of an
30:23agreement
30:24thereafter
30:24that they
30:25would return
30:25to that
30:26general area,
30:26take the
30:27body there
30:27and dispose
30:28of it there.
30:30Using this
30:31lead,
30:31the police
30:32lodged
30:33an appeal
30:33focused on
30:34this
30:35specific
30:35area.
30:37I'm appealing
30:38for anyone
30:38who may have
30:39been on the
30:39Scottish borders
30:40and Northumberland
30:41including travelling
30:42the A7
30:43or the A68
30:44or any other
30:45roads in these
30:46areas during
30:47the hours of
30:47darkness on
30:48either Monday
30:49the 15th
30:50or Tuesday
30:50the 16th.
30:52I'm also keen
30:53to speak to
30:54anybody who
30:55travelled those
30:55areas regularly
30:56and has a
30:57dashcam.
30:58Please check
30:59the footage
30:59as it may have
31:00captured something
31:01which could
31:01prove vital
31:02in our
31:03ongoing
31:03inquiries
31:04to locate
31:05Peter.
31:06Police
31:07Scotland
31:08and
31:08Northumberland
31:09police
31:09teamed up
31:10in the
31:11search for
31:11Peter.
31:12On the
31:134th of
31:14September,
31:14over three
31:15weeks after
31:16the 75-year-old's
31:17disappearance,
31:18an officer
31:19spotted something.
31:25he discovered
31:26a disposable
31:27blue glove
31:28and a
31:29turquoise
31:30blue
31:30suitcase,
31:32both of
31:33which were
31:33of interest
31:34to the
31:34investigation.
31:35He then
31:37became aware
31:38of the
31:38smell of
31:39decomposition.
31:40At that
31:41point he
31:42made the
31:42decision to
31:43close that
31:44area off
31:44and seal it
31:45off as a
31:45potential crime
31:46scene.
31:47later a
31:49cadaver dog
31:49was brought
31:50in to
31:51search the
31:51area.
31:53In the
31:53undergrowth the
31:54dog gave the
31:56officers an
31:56indication that
31:57it had made a
31:58discovery.
31:59The remains
32:00found near to
32:01the suitcase
32:01were confirmed
32:02to be human,
32:04but the
32:05body was so
32:05badly decomposed
32:07that dental
32:08records were
32:09sent for
32:09comparison to
32:10see if this
32:11was Peter.
32:13In this
32:14instance a
32:15forensic
32:15odontologist
32:16examined medical
32:17records and
32:17compared those to
32:18the human remains
32:19at the scene
32:20and identified
32:21Peter.
32:23This would
32:23have been a
32:24big moment,
32:24there would
32:25have been some
32:25relief, not
32:26just from an
32:27investigative
32:27sense but to
32:28have found
32:29the body and
32:29to give some
32:30closure to
32:31family and
32:31friends that
32:32this body has
32:32been found.
32:35Peter had
32:36finally been
32:37found but
32:38police still
32:39didn't know
32:39how he'd
32:40been killed.
32:42Due to the
32:43condition of
32:44the body in
32:44advanced stages
32:45of decomposition
32:46the pathologist
32:47was unable to
32:48determine cause
32:49of death or
32:50what had
32:50happened to
32:50Peter.
32:52Despite this
32:54police felt
32:54they had a
32:55compelling murder
32:56case against
32:57the two men
32:58and they
32:59continued to
33:00gather evidence.
33:03the police
33:04seized
33:04McNaughton's
33:05phone and
33:06established they'd
33:07carried out a
33:07number of
33:08extremely suspicious
33:09searches.
33:10Some of these
33:10searches related to
33:11what happens to
33:12bodies when they
33:12die, deterioration
33:14of the bodies,
33:15much imprisonment
33:16can be handed out
33:17for abductions.
33:19There were google
33:20searches like does
33:21a body go stiff
33:23after death?
33:25Obviously they're
33:26worried about how
33:27they're going to
33:27transport the body
33:28and how small they
33:29can make it and
33:30does a body leak?
33:31So again this is
33:33how can we do this
33:34without being found
33:35out at all?
33:36So they didn't
33:38know an awful
33:39lot and they
33:40left a massive
33:41trail of their
33:42planning in those
33:43google searches.
33:46Detectives had a
33:47clear case that
33:49this wasn't
33:49spontaneous.
33:52McNaughton had
33:52planned to kill
33:53Peter.
33:55McNaughton's phone
33:56was also able to
33:58show how they got
33:59Peter to the flat
34:00that evening.
34:03McNaughton and
34:04Black used a
34:05dating app to
34:06lure Peter to the
34:07flat.
34:08They used the app
34:09and set up fake
34:09accounts and fake
34:10names and made
34:12contact with Peter
34:13and invited him to
34:15the flat.
34:16Peter attended not
34:18knowing it was
34:19McNaughton and Black
34:20who were behind
34:21these fake accounts.
34:22I don't think he'd
34:23have gone anywhere
34:24near that flat if he
34:25thought McNaughton
34:26would have been there.
34:27He didn't actually
34:27know Black so when
34:30he walked in quite
34:32potentially saw
34:34McNaughton there
34:37he probably at that
34:39point would have
34:39been very frightened.
34:45All the evidence
34:46pointed towards
34:47McNaughton being the
34:48orchestrator of Peter's
34:50murder.
34:51He wanted his money
34:52and he got Black to
34:54help him.
34:55As the trial grew
34:56closer the question
34:58remained.
34:59Would both men
35:00maintain their silence
35:01or would the truth
35:03about Peter's murder
35:04finally be revealed?
35:15In the summer of 2023
35:1829-year-old Paul McNaughton
35:21and 65-year-old Paul Black
35:24awaited trial,
35:25charged with the murder
35:26of Peter Caution.
35:29On the 2nd of August
35:312023, Paul McNaughton
35:33appeared in court.
35:35In a shock turn of events,
35:37McNaughton entered
35:39a guilty plea.
35:46He would have seen
35:48the massive trail
35:49of evidence
35:50that he had
35:52left behind.
35:53There's no way
35:55he's getting away
35:56with this.
35:59This wasn't
36:00McNaughton suddenly
36:02having pangs of guilt
36:03or anything like that.
36:04This was
36:05how do I
36:06minimize
36:07the harm
36:08to myself?
36:10The trial
36:11for McNaughton's
36:12co-accused,
36:1465-year-old Paul Black,
36:16began on the 7th
36:17of May 2024.
36:20It was decided
36:21that McNaughton
36:22would not be sentenced
36:23until the court
36:25had heard
36:25Black's defense.
36:27Black pleaded
36:28not guilty,
36:30placing the blame
36:31firmly on McNaughton.
36:34During the trial,
36:35an unusual witness
36:37took the stand.
36:39McNaughton came in
36:40to give evidence
36:41against his co-accused,
36:42Black,
36:43so the case
36:44was unique
36:44because you had
36:45a man who
36:46has a year earlier
36:47admitted killing
36:48Peter and
36:48disposing of his body,
36:50now giving evidence
36:51against his co-accused
36:53and his friend.
36:54And in his evidence,
36:55he told the jury
36:57and he claimed
36:58that Black
36:59had killed Peter
37:00by using a plastic bag
37:02to suffocate him
37:03moments after Peter
37:04entered the flat
37:04and Seafield Road.
37:05Not only
37:07did he blame
37:08Black,
37:09but it was the first
37:10time that McNaughton
37:12had given a motive
37:13for the murder.
37:14He stated that
37:16Peter had
37:17become aware
37:18of the fraud
37:19that they were
37:20committing against him
37:21and requested
37:22that they pay that off
37:24by giving him
37:25sexual favors
37:25for a year.
37:27I do not believe
37:28he said,
37:29pay me back
37:29with sexual favors.
37:30Because that's
37:31how McNaughton's
37:32mind works.
37:33That's not how
37:34Peter's mind worked.
37:36If everything was
37:37OK between those two,
37:38they wouldn't need
37:39this elaborate scam
37:40to get Peter
37:42round to Black's flat.
37:45I think Peter
37:47was going to go
37:47to the police
37:48and McNaughton
37:49was in a panic
37:51about that.
37:53And literally
37:55had to shut him up,
37:57had to stop him.
37:58And I think
37:59that's why Peter
37:59was killed.
38:03During McNaughton's
38:04testimony,
38:05he also admitted
38:06some shocking
38:07information about
38:08the initial police
38:10search of the flat.
38:15As they were
38:15in the house,
38:16Peter's body
38:17was under the bed
38:18in the bedroom
38:18whilst the officers
38:19were there.
38:20And even after
38:21an officer carried
38:22out a cursory check
38:23in that room,
38:24it was revealed
38:25in court that
38:26the body was believed
38:27to have been under
38:28the bed at that time.
38:30I think McNaughton
38:31was quite a confident
38:32person and when
38:34the police came knocking,
38:35he probably wasn't
38:36expecting that.
38:37He's got a body
38:38in the flat
38:39that he needs to hide.
38:41Bodies are quite
38:42big things
38:43and probably
38:44putting him
38:45under the bed
38:46was the only thing
38:48that was open to him
38:49at that particular
38:51point in time.
38:52Even if the police
38:52were going to start
38:53searching through the cupboards,
38:54they're probably not going
38:55to crawl under the bed.
38:56It was this house call
38:58that prompted
38:59McNaughton and Black
39:01to try and get rid
39:02of Peter's body
39:03as soon as possible.
39:07There wasn't really
39:09a coherent plan
39:10for getting rid
39:12of Peter's body.
39:13And that becomes
39:14more obvious
39:14when you track
39:15what these two have done.
39:17They try and buy
39:18themselves some time
39:19by making it look
39:20as if Peter is alive
39:22and not dead.
39:24They then take
39:26Peter's body
39:26in the car
39:28and they go
39:29to a location
39:30and they think,
39:30well, we're going
39:31to bury him here.
39:32They start digging,
39:34find out that it's
39:35a lot more difficult
39:36actually to dig
39:37a hole big enough
39:38to put a body in
39:39so that they
39:40abandon that plan.
39:43And that's when
39:44they go to
39:44a different location
39:46and think,
39:47well, we're just
39:47going to chuck
39:47the body here,
39:48dump it,
39:49and we're just
39:49going to run.
39:50And that's what
39:51they did.
39:58Whilst he admitted
40:00to helping
40:01McNaughton,
40:02Black's defence team
40:03painted the picture
40:04that he was simply
40:05following the younger
40:06man's lead.
40:09Given that
40:10Paul Black
40:11appeared to be
40:11obsessed with
40:12Paul McNaughton,
40:13it appears that
40:14his position was
40:15that he just went
40:16along with it
40:16because he did not
40:17want to upset
40:18McNaughton.
40:18Whether that was
40:20out of fear
40:21of violence
40:22or out of fear
40:23of losing his
40:24friendship
40:25or the relationship,
40:26whatever it was
40:27they were involved in.
40:29Black seemed to be
40:31under some kind
40:32of a spell
40:33with McNaughton.
40:34He was definitely
40:36being coercively
40:37controlled.
40:38He probably felt
40:40himself to be
40:41in love with him
40:42and would really
40:43go along with
40:44anything that
40:45McNaughton said,
40:46no matter how
40:47difficult it might
40:48be for him.
40:49And it must have
40:50been very,
40:51very difficult
40:52when it gets
40:53to court
40:54and McNaughton
40:55completely turns
40:56on him
40:56and tries
40:58to put
40:59all of the blame
41:00onto Black.
41:07The jury agreed
41:09with Black's
41:10version of events.
41:11He was found
41:12not guilty of murder
41:13but guilty of
41:15perverting the course
41:16of justice.
41:18Lord Scott
41:19was now ready
41:20to sentence
41:21both men.
41:23He sentenced McNaughton
41:25to life
41:26for the minimum
41:26of 22 years
41:27and he sentenced
41:29Black
41:29for perverting
41:31the course
41:31of justice
41:32not for murder
41:32to five and a half
41:33years.
41:37They expressed
41:38no remorse
41:38for what they've
41:39done
41:40and it didn't
41:42appear to affect
41:43them in any way
41:43shape or form.
41:45The trial
41:46had attracted
41:47a lot of publicity
41:48and McNaughton's
41:49name and image
41:50were widely
41:51circulated.
41:53The story
41:55piqued the interest
41:56of Paul
41:56who'd encountered
41:57a man he thought
41:59was called Ryan
42:00three years
42:01before Peter's
42:02murder.
42:03Paul was working
42:05as a journalist
42:05at the time
42:06when he first
42:07heard the killer's
42:08real name.
42:10I then instantly
42:11searched as
42:12Paul McNaughton
42:13on Facebook
42:14so I clicked
42:15on the photo
42:16on his profile
42:17and I recognised
42:18the face.
42:19It took me
42:20a few minutes
42:21and I was confused
42:22because when it
42:23clicked
42:24when the penny
42:25dropped
42:25as to who
42:26this person was
42:27that was Ryan
42:28who I had met
42:29in a bar
42:30that night
42:31I was in disbelief
42:33I was shocked
42:33I felt physically
42:34sick
42:36I just kept
42:37looking at the
42:38picture and
42:39swiping through
42:39the profile pictures
42:40and I genuinely
42:42could not believe
42:43what I was seeing
42:45but at the back
42:46of my head as well
42:47I believed it
42:48because of how
42:50violent
42:50and aggressive
42:51he was
42:53with me
42:53with me
42:53that night
42:57As a journalist
42:59Paul decided
43:00he would share
43:01his story publicly
43:02about his own
43:04encounter
43:04with McNaughton
43:07I decided to speak
43:08out
43:08purely to raise
43:10awareness
43:10of who you
43:11speak to
43:12in a bar
43:12or who you
43:13speak to
43:14online
43:15they may seem
43:16nice at the time
43:17but you just
43:18don't know
43:18what happens
43:18behind closed doors
43:20On the surface
43:21McNaughton
43:23had appeared
43:23to both Paul
43:24and Peter Caution
43:25as a charming
43:26young man
43:27but what lay
43:29beneath
43:29was something
43:30much more
43:31dangerous
43:33McNaughton
43:34has killed
43:34Peter
43:34due to greed
43:35he wanted
43:36Peter's money
43:36I think he was
43:37clear about that
43:38Peter
43:39never deserved
43:40any of what
43:41happened to him
43:41absolutely he did not
43:42and Black
43:43and McNaughton
43:44treated him wickedly
43:47I think the word
43:49that best describes
43:50McNaughton
43:51is user
43:52he uses
43:53everybody
43:54that comes
43:55into his path
43:56no matter
43:57the cost
43:59he will
44:00never change
44:07McNaughton's greed
44:08was limitless
44:09he exploited
44:11Peter Caution
44:12in life
44:12then discarded
44:14him in death
44:15this was no
44:17impulse killing
44:18it was planned
44:19executed
44:20and concealed
44:22with chilling
44:23intent
44:23ruthless
44:24remorseless
44:26and driven
44:27solely by gain
44:28Paul McNaughton
44:31has undoubtedly
44:32secured his place
44:33as one of
44:34Britain's
44:35most evil
44:36killers
44:38two
45:03ones
45:04let's
45:06to war
45:07what
45:07is
45:07is
45:07You
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