Cheese wire murder cop desperate to catch killer with DNA breakthrough before retiring

Daily Record

19-07-2025

The four-decade old cold case will feature on a Channel 5 documentary next week.
A detective leading the investigation into one of Scotland's longest running cold cases is desperate to catch the killer before he retires.
‌
Detective Inspector James Callander of Police Scotland's major investigation team has been leading the hunt for the elusive 'cheesewire killer who murdered Aberdeen taxi driver George 'Dod' Murdoch in 1983.
‌
‌
He was found strangled to death outside his vehicle in the city, having just picked up a fare on September 29, 1983.
A cheesewire, believed to have been the murder weapon, was found nearby but his killer has remained untraced for more than four decades.
‌
A new spotlight will be put on the cold case as a two-part documentary is set to be aired on Channel 5 next week.
Presented by Kirsty Wark, Cold Case Unit: The Cheesewire Murder will feature new interviews with some of George's closest friends and relatives as well as follow the decades-long hunt for the killer.
DI Callander has been in charge of the case since 2021. The seasoned crime investigator hopes to crack the case before handing in his badge to retire.
‌
He said: "It's hugely important to me to solve this murder. I'm nearing the end of my time as a police officer and there's nothing I'd like more than to detect this before I retire.
"We've got real hope that we can finally get there - I think we're close. Science is on our side, this is probably the best chance police have ever had of solving it.
"Cold cases never close, we don't stop - we keep going."
‌
There have been a number of major forensic breakthroughs in recent years.
‌
Police have found possible DNA matches and hope to establish any family link to a profile from the scene - with the family urging anyone to come forward to rule out possibly deceased family members.
The documentary reveals that out of 1,000 possible matches around a quarter have now been eliminated - meaning the net could soon be closing in.
Adam Gregory, behavioural advisor, at the National Crime Agency, has assisted with the case.
‌
He said: To be suddenly presented with a DNA breakthrough, it becomes really exciting.
"The George Murdoch murder could become the first familial DNA success in Scotland and it feels like a genuine opportunity to solve a case which has been undetected for 40 plus years.
‌
"I don't think this individual needs to be dead, they just disappear- they go quiet, they stop offending or they start offending in ways, which for whatever reason, doesn't ID them in the interim.
"We have every reason to think they are still alive."
George's nephew Alec McKay and his wife Robina, are leading the campaign for justice and hope the documentary will encourage people to come forward.
‌
Robina said: "Often the suspect names we hear have already been excluded from DNA profiling, but that's OK. One day, we might get one which turns out to belong to the real killer."
‌
Appealing to anyone with information on the killer, she added: "Loyalty to this person must be commended, but it is misplaced. You've had to carry this weight of their guilt around for a long time, but as the years slip by, do you not owe it to yourself now to be rid of it?"
Rewards of £50,000 are available for information that will lead to a conviction and £10,000 for any matching family DNA.
Police Scotland's Major Investigation Team, previously told the Daily Record: 'George Murdoch's family have dealt with his loss with a great deal of dignity over the years since his senseless murder.
"They deserve answers about what happened to him."