In February 2024, 65-year-old Brian Low was murdered while walking his dog on a secluded path near Aberfeldy. Although his body was found with visible injuries, including blood on his face, local police initially failed to identify the death as a homicide, treating it as a non-suspicious medical event for several days. It was not until a post-mortem examination revealed gunshot wounds—and shotgun pellets were recovered from his body bag—that a murder investigation commenced.
The delayed response significantly hindered evidence collection. Key forensic opportunities, such as footprints and CCTV footage, were potentially lost during the six days before a police cordon was finally established. A formal murder inquiry only began ten days after the body was discovered.
The perpetrator, David Campbell, was a retired gamekeeper who had previously worked with the victim at the Edradynate Estate. A long-standing grudge regarding past allegations of bird poisoning investigations drove Campbell to plan the execution. CCTV evidence tracked a figure resembling Campbell riding a bicycle toward the scene, and witness testimony confirmed his intense animosity toward Low.
Following a 15-day trial, Campbell was found guilty of murder and sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 19 years. Lord Scott condemned the act as a calculated and wicked assassination. The victim’s family, featured in a BBC documentary, remains deeply troubled by the initial police errors, which they believe failed to uphold justice during the critical hours following the crime.
