A 21-YEAR-OLD Scottish man has pleaded guilty to the murder of 24-year old Irish student Karen Buckley.
Alexander Pacteau appeared before Glasgow High Court today where he admitted killing the Cork woman, strangling and attacking her with a spanner.
Karen Buckley's parents Marian and John Buckley, along with her brothers Kieran, Damien and Brendan, are the High Court today as details of her brutal death emerge.
It was stated by the prosecutor, Lord Advocate Frank Mulholland, that Pacteau met Karen outside Sanctuary nightclub in the west end of Glasgow city centre at around 1am on April 12. The pair got into his car.
The court heard how Pacteau drove to Kelvin Way, a short drive from the nightclub, where the silver Ford Focus was parked for 12 minutes.
It was in this space of time that Karen was murdered by Pacteau – where he is believed to have strangled her and then hit her 12 or 13 times with a spanner.
24-year-old Karen Buckley, who was murdered in Glasgow on April 12. Photo: FacebookAfter discarding her handbag in Dawsholm Park, near his Dorchester Avenue home, Pacteau wrapped Karen’s body in a sheet and brought it into his apartment.
While his housemate and mother slept, Pacteau went online and searched for the properties of sodium hydroxide – caustic acid – which he bought at a local B&Q store the following day.
The court heard how Pacteau spent the day attempting to dispose of evidence and cover his tracks.
It was stated that he attempted to dispose of her body in the bath of the apartment while his mother and housemate were out. He cleaned the apartment and moved her body to his car in a barrel.
It was noted that when police came to speak to him at his home, Pacteau’s apartment smelled strongly of bleach.
He then dumped Karen’s body in a barrel of caustic acid on a farm at High Craigton, six miles north of Glasgow.
Karen, an occupational therapy student at Glasgow Caledonian University, was enjoying a night out with her friends on the night of April 11 of this year.
She left her friends inside, telling them she was going to use the bathroom, at around 1am on April 12 – but failed to return.
Her friends raised the alarm and her family flew to Glasgow as a massive search was launched.
After four days, her family’s worst fears were confirmed when her remains were found on the High Craigton farm.
