Man to stand trial in 2028 over 1994 murder of Irvine mother Shona Stevens
Fraser Kilpatrick, 68, denies murdering the 31-year-old student in North Ayrshire more than 30 years ago. A trial date has been set for January 2028 at the High Court in Glasgow.
The High Court in Glasgow. File photo. · Photograph: MSeses (CC BY-SA 4.0)
A man is to stand trial accused of murdering a woman in Irvine, North Ayrshire, more than three decades ago.
Fraser Kilpatrick, 68, of Glasgow, is charged with murdering Shona Stevens, 31, in November 1994. He denies the charge.
He also faces 15 further charges dating from between 1986 and 2001, all of which he denies.
Court hearing
At a preliminary hearing at the High Court in Glasgow, his lawyer, Donald Findlay KC, told Lord Arthurson that Mr Kilpatrick pleaded not guilty to all the charges against him.
Advocate depute Alex Prentice KC, for the Crown, said discussions about the case had been going on for a long time.
Lord Arthurson set a trial date of January 2028 at the High Court in Glasgow, with the trial expected to last about 17 days. A further hearing will take place in December this year. The judge also recommended that a single judge be allocated to manage the case as it progresses.
Mr Kilpatrick, who was arrested and charged in July 2025, remains on bail.
Shona Stevens
Shona Stevens was a 31-year-old mother of one and a student at what was then the University of Paisley.
On 10 November 1994, she walked through Bourtreehill Park to the nearby Co-op at Bourtreehill Shopping Centre at about 1.10pm. On her way back through the park she was attacked and suffered serious head injuries.
She was found in a wooded area near her home a short time later and taken to the then Southern General Hospital in Glasgow, where she died three days later. Her daughter, Candice, was seven years old at the time.
A long-running investigation
The case remained unsolved for more than 30 years. Police issued a number of appeals over the decades, and the case featured on BBC Crimewatch. Ms Stevens' mother, Mhairi Smith, made a televised appeal for information in 1994.
In 2021, officers launched a fresh review, known as Operation Short, which included releasing images of a novelty keyring found near the scene. In 2024, Crimestoppers offered a reward of £20,000 for information about the case.
Mr Kilpatrick is presumed innocent unless proven guilty. The Daily Scot will not publish further details of the case until it has been heard in court.