Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Daily Record
Daily Record
National
Grant McCabe

Two men cleared of killing new Scots mum by supplying her with high purity cocaine

Two men have been cleared of killing a new mum by supplying her with high purity cocaine.

Barry McAuley, 40, and Martin Stewart, 34, were found not guilty of the culpable homicide of Rebecca Tollan. The 23 year-old collapsed and died at Stewart's then home in Bellshill, Lanarkshire on July 15 2019.

Rebecca - known to family as Becky - had given birth just weeks earlier and was on her first night out since her pregnancy.

McAuley and Stewart had denied the accusation during a four-day trial at the High Court in Glasgow. Relatives of Rebecca walked out the courtroom almost immediately after the verdicts were delivered.

Jurors earlier heard how Rebecca and her sister in law Pamela Tollan, 31, had met the men in a beer garden at the Railway Tavern pub in Motherwell, Lanarkshire.

The 23-year-old had given birth to a baby boy just weeks before her death (Facebook)

McAuley had handed a "wee bag" to Pamela. The women eventually went to the ladies toilet where Rebecca took cocaine.

The four all ended up back at Stewart's then home in Bellshill. Pamela believed Rebecca went on to take more cocaine there before collapsing.

Prosecutors accepted no one had "forced" the new mum to take drugs. But, advocate depute Alex Prentice KC said: "This was high end cocaine. I suggest the accused knew it was high end cocaine.

"This was unusually high. I say that making that available is the reckless element." The cocaine was stated to be 65 per cent pure.

The four-day trial was heard at the High Court in Glasgow (Daily Record)

McAuley also took unwell that night and needed hospital treatment. The duo's lawyers had insisted they were not criminally responsible for the death.

Neither of the men gave evidence during the trial. McAuley, of Bellshill, was found guilty of dealing cocaine by handing over the "wee bag" to Pamela Tollan at the pub.

Stewart, of Viewpark, Lanarkshire, was convicted of being concerned in the supply of cannabis.

But, Mr Prentice said given those charges would alone been prosecuted at sheriff court summary level as well as the date of the offences, he was not moving for them to be sentenced for those.

Lord Clark allowed both to then leave the dock.

Don't miss the latest news from around Scotland and beyond - Sign up to our daily newsletter here.

READ MORE:

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.