Farm owner will let police search for Muriel McKay’s body after killer reveals where it is buried

The owner of the farm where the remains of murdered Muriel McKay are thought to be buried has said he will let police dig there without a search warrant.

But banker Ian Marsh said it’s up to detectives to judge whether they have enough new evidence to pinpoint the precise burial site.

His offer follows Muriel’s daughter Dianne’s 4,000-mile trip to Trinidad to meet her mother’s killer Nizamodeen Hosein.

She showed him blown up photographs of the Hertfordshire farm and he pointed to the spot, telling her: “Three feet from the hedge, that’s where the body is”.

Hosein and his brother Arthur kidnapped Mrs McKay in 1969 and held her at the farm while demanding a £1m ransom.

They were caught and jailed for kidnap and murder, but denied the charges and Muriel’s fate remained a mystery.

Hosein, 76, who was deported to his native Trinidad after his release from prison, told the family recently that she collapsed and died suddenly and he buried her behind a barn.

Landowner Ian Marsh wrote to the family today: “The Marsh family understand the desire of the deceased Mrs McKay’s family to have a resolution to this matter.

“We have been patient with the multiple requests that we have received and repeat our position: we will cooperate with the police if they determine that a further search of our property is required.

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“We believe that the police will attest to the fact that the Marsh family have done everything, to date, that the police have asked of them.

“If asked by the police to give access to our land because they have compelling evidence of the whereabouts of the remains of Mrs McKay we will consent to giving the police full access to our land, no warrants will be required.

“We believe that it is important that due process and procedure is completed by the police to corroborate any evidence, including any new evidence that is being provided by the family of the deceased and/or the perpetrator.

“We are not in a position to judge that evidence, that has to be a matter for the police. I hope you understand that our trust is in the police, and we rely on them to examine all the information provided.”

‘Ball is in the police’s court’

The McKay family welcomed the offer and hope Scotland Yard will be persuaded to excavate the area indicated by the killer during their trip to Trinidad at the weekend.

Muriel’s grandson Mark Dyer, who organised the trip to the Caribbean, said: “This is good news and we feel we are at last making some progress. The ball is now in the police’s court.”

The family is due to meet police next week to discuss the next step.

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Police searched part of the farm two years ago, but found nothing. The family said they searched in the wrong place.

Mrs McKay, 55, was the wife of newspaper executive Alick McKay.

The bungling brothers mistook her for Anna Murdoch, the then wife of Alick’s boss Rupert Murdoch.