THE killer of pensioner Jenny Methven has abandoned his legal bid to be cleared of the murder.
William Kean killed 80-year-old Jenny by bludgeoning her over the head at her rural cottage in Tayside in February last year.
Kean was sentenced to life and told he could not apply for release for 22 years – but his lawyers vowed to appeal.
But a spokeswoman for the High Court in Edinburgh today confirmed that the December 28 deadline for lodging an appeal had been missed.
“It’s been deemed abandoned as no appeal has been received,” she said.
Inquiry
It is understood that Kean’s legal team contacted court officials to confirm no appeal will be lodged.
Mrs Methven’s murder sparked one of the largest inquiries In Tayside Police’s history, and shocked the close-knit rural community of Forteviot, Perthshire.
The pensioner died was battered with a blunt instrument and her body was discovered wrapped in towels.
Kean, from Blairgowrie, a former special constable with Tayside Police, was a close friend of Jenny’s son David and knew his victim well.
Handyman Kean, 46, tried to blame David for the killing, concocting a story that David had convinced his “druggie friends” to murder his mother.
Challenge
But Kean’s family claimed the conviction was a “miscarriage of justice” and said every effort would be made to prove his innocence.
In September, Kean’s legal team lodged a notice he would challenge the conviction and sentence at the High Court one day before the deadline.
As the deadline loomed for the appeal to be lodged Kean’s lawyers were granted a two-month extension to prepare the legal challenge.
But this extended deadline has now passed without any formal action being lodged.
The High Court spokeswoman said any further bid for an appeal would have to be considered by a judge.
At the time of the notice of an appeal being lodged, Detective Chief Inspector Colin Gall insisted the right man was in jail for a crime which had “appalled the nation”.
DCI Gall, who led the murder inquiry, said: “There’s absolutely no doubt in my mind that William Kean is the person responsible for the murder.
“I’m confident that the murder inquiry will stand up to any appeal lodged.
“We gathered CTV evidence, forensic evidence and evidence from witnesses of Kean’s movements that day.
“That provided us with corroboration of the fact that William Kean was responsible for the murder of Jenny Methven.”
Brother
Kean was caught after DNA evidence at Mrs Methven’s cottage linked him to the crime.
Speaking after Kean’s sentencing, David Methven said the guilty man had been like a “brother” to him.
Mr Methven said: “No verdict will bring my mother back or spare her the terrible ordeal that took her life.
“I will never be able to imagine her suffering in those moments or comprehend the cruelty of a man who would do that to an elderly woman who regarded them a friend to the family.”
No-one was available to comment at Kean’s lawyers, J Myles & Co of Dundee and Carnoustie.
A member of Kean’s family said they could not comment on the news and any appeal was a matter for Kean.
