THE family of Muriel McKay – missing for almost 56 years – today launched a legal bid to carry out a search of a former tailor’s shop in London’s East End where they believe her body is buried.
Australian newspaper executive’s wife Muriel was kidnapped in December 1969 by brothers Arthur and Nizam Hosein, who demanded a £1 million ransom for her release.
Muriel McKay’s grandson Mark Dyer and her son Ian McKay[/caption]
They took 55-year-old Muriel to a farm in Stocking Pelham, on the Herts and Essex border, where they murdered her.
Both brothers were convicted of Muriel’s murder at the Old Bailey the following year but her body was never found.
Met cold case detectives carried out searches of the farm last year acting on information passed by surviving brother Nizam to Muriel’s family.
But the searches drew a blank and this year Muriel’s family offered a £1 million for information leading to the recovery of her body.
The children of Jewish tailor Percy Chaplin came forward to reveal he suspected Muriel was buried in the yard of his former shop on Bethnal Green Road, where Arthur Hosein worked for him.
Muriel’s family want to gain access to the site to use ground penetrating radar to see if her remains are there but have been refused permission to search by the current owners.
They brought a bid at the High Court yesterday for a court order to be allowed on the land to perform the scan.
However, the case was dismissed because of a technicality, since her children are not executors of her will and do not have the legal right to her remains.
Christopher Machin, representing Mrs McKay’s children Diane and Ian McKay, told the court there was now “persuasive and cogent evidence” that her current resting place has been identified.
He said the police do not think there is sufficient evidence to seek a warrant to dig at the premises.
But Mr Machin said if there is an expert report saying a scan shows there are human remains present, that would provide enough evidence for a search.
He also told the court that Mrs McKay’s children were not executors of her will, and that no death certificate or declaration of death had been obtained.
Judge Sir Anthony Mann said that it would have to be established who has a ‘right’ to the body before it could be determined who could bring such an application for a search.
Dismissing their case, the judge said a ‘grant’ of permission from Mrs McKay’s estate would have to be obtained before the application could be made again.
The judge said he remembered the case from the time and that the application made by Mrs McKay’s children was ‘novel’, adding he’d never come across something like it before.
Tailor Percy – who died in 2022 aged 98 after moving to Israel in the 1980’s with his family – told his children he suspected Arthur and another employee buried Muriel behind the shop.
‘TERRIBLE STENCH’
He told daughter Hayley Sara Frais and her brother Richard how he gave a key to the shop to the other worker and one morning in early 1970 remembered a “terrible stench” coming from under stairs of the property.
Mum of seven Hayley said: “He said it was an obnoxious smell but the following morning it had gone.”
She added: “There used to be a cherry tree in the yard and my father said the following year it grew and flowered like never before.”
In addition, she said Percy’s other worker had brought some “very expensive” jewellery into the shop which her father suspected was stolen.
Muriel’s jewellery vanished when she was kidnapped.
Hayley – who has rejected the offer of any reward – also said her father had mentioned seeing a grey Hillman car parked across the road from his shop.
It matches the description of a car which Muriel gave when she spoke to her family by phone while being held.
It is our last realistic hope of finding my mother
Ian McKay
And a telephone box which the Hosein brothers ordered police to go to with the ransom money was across the road from the tailor’s shop.
The tailor’s shop is now occupied by a bookies and the yard is owned by the leaseholders of two flats above.
They are refusing to grant the family access to carry out a search of the small site with ground penetrating radar.
Muriel’s family yesterday tried to seek an injunction at the High Court to seek an injunction giving them temporary access.
Her son Ian McKay told The Sun : ‘’It is our last realistic hope of finding my mother.
“All we want is to give her a burial place where we can visit.”
Muriel’s grandson Mark Dyer added: ‘’This is the best lead we have had.
“We are desperate to find my mother and believe there is a very good chance she is there.’’
‘CLOSURE’
Muriel’s husband Alick McKay worked for Rupert Murdoch and was instrumental in helping to launch The Sun.
The Hosein brothers kidnapped Muriel by mistake believing they were taking Mr Murdoch’s then wife Anna.
The Trinidad-born brothers were shadowing the tycoon’s Rolls Royce car which he had loaned to his right hand man Mr McKay while visiting Australia.
Muriel’s family are holding talks with Met Police detectives and hoping to win their support for a search of the former tailor’s shop site.
Her grandson Mr Dyer said: “We want closure and will do eveything we can to find my grandmother.”
Muriel was kidnapped in December 1969 by brothers Arthur and Nizam Hosein[/caption]
