Secret Social Work Report On Shallow Grave Predator Is Revealed

The secret social work report detailing the chilling depravity of shallow grave predator Gavin Murray can be revealed today by the Sunday Mail. Two weeks ago we told how the paedophile who sexually abused a schoolboy and tried to bury him alive was allowed to walk free – despite vowing to do it again.

His sick confessions are in social worker Jim Finnon’s report which calls for Murray to be sectioned under the Mental Health Act. Murray, of Airdrie, was jailed for eight years after he sexually assaulted a 13-year-old boy, attacked him with a hammer and buried him in a shallow grave in woods in 1985.

He was arrested last year after telling North Lanarkshire social worker Finnon and a colleague of his plans to kill a child. But he was freed after the conversations were ruled as inadmissable in court.

For the first time the Sunday Mail can reveal the content of his meetings with social workers, including how he selected his victim – a young blond boy – at the Falkirk Wheel. He missed his chance to snatch the boy by seconds after engaging what he thought was the boy’s grandad in conversation.

Finnon stated: “He said he had seen a young boy with a man he thought was the grandfather. He went over and spoke to this man. As he was speaking to the man the young boy continued walking. It turned out the boy had not been with this man at all.”

Finnon heard how Murray:

• Came within seconds of raping and murdering a young boy who was enjoying a day out at the Falkirk Wheel.
• Warned no child or woman would be safe in their own home while he was on the loose.
• Yet a doctor who heard the second claim refused to section him under the Mental Health Act.

The report also reveals Murray, 42, told a doctor with the power to section him: “If I walked out this door into a house with a woman and kids in it nobody could stop me.” The doctor let him to go home. Murray also boasted of his sick attack on the 13-year-old boy.

In his report Mr Finnon stated: “During my first visit with Gavin Murray at his home he was not embarrassed about telling me about his previous convictions. He told me about his abduction of a child around March 1985 and subsequently almost murdering the child. He was shaking as he was telling me about this.

“Gavin used to love watching my face when he went into detail about what happened with this boy. He told me what he did, including carrying a claw hammer and digging a grave for the boy after he had attacked him.”

Murray spoke to Finnon about an incident in March 2006 when he arrived at Murray’s door and he was in a violent mood. Finnon said: “He had been walking his dog three miles from his house when he saw fields on fire and police and fire engines. The police stopped him. He said he was surprised they had not searched him.

“Gavin started laughing and said they would have found a claw hammer and a pair of pliers. He said ‘who the ******* ***** do they think they are accusing me of starting a fire?’ He went into the kitchen and brought a small claw hammer and also showed me a pair of pliers.

“Out of the blue he said he was dreaming for about six or seven weeks about abducting a child. He went on to say his thoughts were of basically having sexual activity with this child then murdering the child, specifically young males. He said he had the same dreams before he abducted the boy in 1985. He also said he had fantasies of carrying out this act during the day.

“He said he had identified a possible victim. He was talking normally like he was describing a football match. He said he was worried about it as he was getting sexual fantasies during daylight hours. Then he went on to tell me what happened at the Falkirk Wheel.”

We revealed last month how Murray told Finnon he planned to attack another boy. Finnon wrote in his report: “Gavin told me he wouldn’t make the same mistake as the last one had been on his doorstep. He’d make sure the child was dead this time because this was the mistake he had made in 1985. The reason he was caught was because the child had survived the attack and being buried.”

Police became concerned in early 2006 that Murray was free and had not been seen by a doctor – named in the report only as Dr Dewar. Finnon stated: “A senior officer telephoned to say he was disturbed the meeting with Dr Dewar was not taking place until the Tuesday given the circumstances of what Gavin had been saying.”

The team faced a five-day wait to get him before Dr Dewar, who had the power to section him under the Mental Health Act. But Finnon said in his report of that meeting: “Dr Dewar basically said he did not think it appropriate to detain Gavin under the Mental Health Act.

“As we were ready to walk out the door Gavin turned to Dr Dewar and said, ‘If I walked out this door into a house with a woman and kids in it nobody could stop me.’ Dr Dewar told him he had given him enough to think about. Gavin smirked at him.”

A day later, April 5, 2006, Finnon received a call from Dr Dewar, who appeared to have changed his mind. A psychiatrist colleague had told him Murray should be behind bars.

Finnon said: “Dr Dewar’s view was that the police should apprehend him to keep the public safe. Mental health officer Beth Reid wrote in a memo on April 6: ‘I am very unhappy with Dr Dewar’s decision not to detain Mr Murray.'”

North Lanarkshire Council would not comment on the report.

We told last week how Murray was freed at Hamilton Sheriff Court – despite breaking bail. Sheriff Rae Small granted bail after he broke conditions imposed in 2004 for assaulting a policeman. The sheriff set another bail review for August 6 pending a psychiatric report.