Man on trial accused of murdering teenage sister

Connor Gibson is also charged with sexually assaulting Amber Gibson in Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, in November 2021.

The men are on trial at the High Court in Glasgow (PA) (PA Archive)

A 20-year old man has gone on trial accused of sexually assaulting and murdering his sister.

Connor Gibson is accused of assaulting Amber Gibson, 16, removing her clothes and repeatedly inflicting blunt force trauma to her head and body at Cadzow Glen in Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, on November 26, 2021.

Prosecutors also accuse Gibson – who is also known by the surname Niven – of compressing Amber’s neck with his hands and strangling her with the intent to rape her.

Gibson is further accused of attempting to defeat the ends of justice by disposing of bloodstained clothes, and calling the children’s home his sister was staying and pretending she was still alive.

The trial got under way at the High Court in Glasgow on Thursday.

He also faces a charge of attempting to pervert the course of justice by telling police he had argued with his sister on the evening of November 26 before going to someone’s home.

Amber was reported missing on the evening of Friday November 26 and her body was discovered in Cadzow Glen at around 10.10am on November 28.

A second man, Stephen Corrigan, 44, is also standing trial.

He is accused of discovering Amber’s body between November 26 and 28 last year but instead of alerting police, he is alleged to have inappropriately touched her and then concealed her body.

He is accused of attempting to defeat the ends of justice by hiding the body under bushes and branches to prevent its discovery, and altering or destroying evidence that he had touched her body and clothing.

Both men have pleaded not guilty to all charges against them, with Corrigan’s defence agent Rhonda Anderson submitting a special defence of alibi on his behalf.

The trial continues.