High Court blocks radar scan request in search for Muriel McKay’s remains

A High Court judge has ruled that the family of Muriel McKay, who was kidnapped and murdered more than five decades ago, cannot carry out a radar scan of a residential garden in east London where they now believe her body may have been buried. The decision comes after months of tension between the family and a homeowner who opposed the request, citing distress and repeated attempts to gain access to her property.

Muriel McKay was abducted in 1969 after kidnappers mistakenly believed she was the wife of media magnate Rupert Murdoch. She was actually the wife of newspaper executive Alick McKay. The kidnappers held her at a farm in Hertfordshire and demanded a ransom of one million pounds. She was never found, and her disappearance remains one of the UK’s most notorious unresolved murder cases.

The McKay family recently sought an injunction to perform a ground penetrating radar survey at the shared garden of two homes on Bethnal Green Road, following new information suggesting the site might contain her remains. However, one of the homeowners, Madeleine Higson, strongly objected, accusing the family of harassment and deception in their attempts to access the property.

At the hearing, Mr Justice Richard Smith described the behaviour of some individuals linked to the family as “appalling”, saying it involved bullying, dishonesty and repeated harassment. The court heard that numerous people had visited Ms Higson’s home under false pretences. One man allegedly claimed he needed to take photographs for a sentimental project for his grandfather, while another visitor said she was planning to buy a nearby property and needed to conduct a drainage survey. A representative said to be a solicitor or consultant connected to the family also came to the door, failing to disclose his role and stating he might return daily.

Ms Higson’s lawyer, Callum Reid Hutchings, told the court his client had sympathy for the family’s desire to find answers but argued there was no legal basis for the injunction. He said the family’s conduct amounted to a bombardment of requests that crossed acceptable boundaries and caused significant distress.

The McKay case has resurfaced periodically in recent years. Brothers Arthur and Nizamodeen Hosein were convicted of kidnapping and murdering Muriel McKay in 1970. Arthur died in prison, but Nizamodeen later told McKay’s daughter Dianne that her mother had been buried at Rooks Farm, the site where she was originally held. Last year, police spent several days excavating areas of the farm, though no remains were found.

With the High Court now denying the request for a radar scan of the Bethnal Green garden, the family faces another setback in their decades-long search for closure.