A blind widow is battling prosecutors for thousands of pounds owed from assets seized from her murdered brother.
Jessie Mill, 83, paid almost £5000 for the funeral of her brother, convicted drug-dealer Alex Cameron, following his murder in January 2015.
She had also loaned him £23,000 before his death.
Since his death, Jessie believed her money would be repaid to her even though a proceeds of crime order of £525,000 had been made on her brother’s estate.
Now, the order has been paid from his assets but Jessie has received nothing and is demanding answers from the Crown Office.
She said: “It came as a shock when I learned how Alex was making a living. He had a smallholding and he also was quite successful as a property developer.
“When he was charged with dealing drugs, I was totally shocked and at first I thought it must be a mistake. But he was convicted and went to jail for it, so I accepted what he had done.
“Maybe he deserved to have his money taken from him but I shouldn’t be punished for what he did.”
Jessie said she helped him out with loans when he fell on hard times but is in desperate need to get the money back.
She said: “He was still my wee brother. So when he came to me twice asking for a loan of money, and promising it was a temporary problem and he’d repay me, I helped him out.
“Then, when he died in such horrible circumstances, I wanted him to be at rest as soon as possible and I offered to pay for his funeral, though I was told the money would come back to me when his estate was settled.”
A letter from her lawyers at the time, Clancy Hendrie Legal, in July 2015 to an administrator appointed by the Crown, Aver Chartered Accountants, refers to a minute of agreement showing Jessie was owed more than £27,000 from the estate.
The estate has been settled, the confiscation order completed but Jessie remains out of pocket.
The Crown Office says Jessie should take the matter up with the lawyers dealing with her brother’s estate.
A spokesman said: “The settlement of a deceased person’s estate is a civil matter, not for the Crown Office.”
Jimmy Smith, 63, was jailed for life after he murdered Edinburgh gang rival Cameron and hid the body in manure.
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