Man accused of racially abusing and murdering his wife in their Hamilton home

A man appears in court accused of murdering his wife.

Walter Buchanan is accused of killing Darrel Buchanan at their flat near Hamilton Racecourse in Lanarkshire on February 18, 2023.

Prosecutors say the 66-year-old grabbed Darrel’s wrists, restrained her and repeatedly struck her in the head in an unknown manner.

Buchanan is then said to have placed his hands around the 37-year-old’s neck and covered her nose and mouth.

Buchanan appeared before the High Court in Glasgow for a hearing expected to last ten days.

At the start of the trial, prosecutor David McLean read a joint report of agreed evidence to the jury.

McLean said Buchanan called 999 and reported that he “woke up in his property to find his wife cold to the touch.”

Paramedics and emergency medical technicians arrived on scene and performed advanced life support on Darrel, but she was pronounced dead at 7:45 a.m.

Buchanan was later arrested on February 24, 2023, at his sister’s home in Cumbernauld, North Lanarkshire.

The doctor examined him and found that he had a scar on his left eyebrow.

Magistrates heard a 999 call made by Buchanan at 7.12am.

He was heard telling the telephone host: “She drank a lot and was nervous at night.

“I don’t know if she choked or something. I did mouth-to-mouth there.”

He was then heard saying: “I can’t wake her up.”

The conversation continued and Buchanan was advised to perform chest compressions on Darrel.

During the compression tests, he could be heard saying “Come on”.

A paramedic told the court that Darrel had no pulse when she first arrived on the scene.

The witness said Buchanan told her he got home at 2 a.m. and that Darrel was pacing back and forth to the bathroom.

He also stated that Darrel had previously fallen into a flowerpot in the bedroom.

She reported that there was dirt on the wall.

Defense barrister Iain McSporran KC asked the witness if Buchanan had been helping her as best he could, to which she replied: “Yes.”

The lawyer also told the woman that his client was “in a state of disbelief”, to which she agreed.

An emergency medical technician found that Darrel had a dark mark on her forehead and neck.

The witness reported that there was blood on the outside of his right ear.

Buchanan faces a separate charge under the Domestic Violence Act – the indictment contains racist allegations.

This period covers the period from April 2019 to the date of the alleged murder.

It lists the same flat in Hamilton Park North as well as Waverley train station in Edinburgh.

The allegation includes claims that Buchanan was shouting and offensive, and also allegedly made comments of a “racial nature.”

The indictment states that Buchanan punched Darrel and hit her with a wooden bat.

It goes on to say that he “controlled” Darrel by buying her gifts, so she “owed” him.

He also accused him of behaving according to his “command” and claimed that he isolated her from others.

Buchanan is separately charged with assaulting Darrel in Waverley in early 2018, as well as threatening behavior.

The trial continues before Judge Lord Cubie.