JK Rowling has launched a scathing attack on Police Scotland and the Crown Office, accusing both institutions of providing inadequate support to forensic pathologist Dr Caroline Muirhead, who helped secure the conviction of her murderer fiancé.
The 60-year-old author took to X following the release of a Netflix documentary about the case, writing: "Unbelievable lack of support for a key witness who was literally risking her life to collect evidence.
"'She's highly intelligent so needs no protection,' says it all."
The author continued: "The unspoken corollary is that women in abusive situations must be stupid."
JK Rowling has been a public supporter of women's rights
| PADr Muirhead, 35, played a pivotal role in bringing Alexander McKellar to justice after he confessed to killing cyclist Tony Parsons in a 2017 hit-and-run.
Mr Parsons, a 63-year-old from Tillicoultry in Clackmannanshire, was cycling along the A82 when Mr McKellar struck him with his pick-up truck while intoxicated.
Rather than seeking help, Mr McKellar left the father-of-two to die before returning with his twin brother Robert to hide the body in a peat bog on the Auch Estate near Bridge of Orchy, where both men worked.
The case remained unsolved for three years until Mr McKellar met Dr Muirhead through a dating app.
Dr Caroline Muirhead helped secure the conviction of her murderer fiancé
|NETFLIX
Within weeks of their relationship beginning, he confessed to the killing and took her to the burial site, which she later marked with a Red Bull can before contacting police in 2021.
Dr Muirhead has since described feeling abandoned by authorities after coming forward.
She said: "I went to the police. I had done the right thing.
"But I thought the police would support me through this and they didn't.
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Caroline Muirhead and Alexander McKellar in 'Should I Marry a Murderer?'
|Netflix
"They completely revealed me."
She added: "I was the betrayer. It made me see the police in a completely different light. The police abandoned me."
The ordeal allegedly sent Dr Muirhead into a destructive spiral involving alcohol and drugs, culminating in her arrest and detention in a police cell.
She was later warned that refusing to testify against Mr McKellar and his brother at trial could result in contempt of court proceedings.
Women's rights groups have since called for an inquiry, alleging Dr Muirhead was exploited by police and that her safety was compromised.
Frances McMenamin KC, a former prosecutor now working as a defence counsel and adviser to the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission, told The Scottish Sun on Sunday: "The body of Tony Parsons being discovered and the conviction of his killer would never have happened if it hadn't been for Dr Muirhead.
JK Rowling slammed Police Scotland
| GETTY"From the moment she called police, she should have been treated as a vulnerable witness. Instead, she was failed very badly."
The Crown Office said it was committed to treating witnesses with dignity and respect, but declined to comment further on the specifics of the case.
Police Scotland confirmed that several complaints had been lodged, with one upheld relating to officer incivility.
GB News has reached out to Police Scotland for comment.