This story is from September 27, 2016

What transpired in the 90 mins before Scarlett died?

British teenager Scarlett Keeling’s mother Fiona MacKeown, who suspected foul play in the death of her daughter, had made a contradictory statement before the Goa children’s court regarding the time the police recovered her daughter’s belongings.
What transpired in the 90 mins before Scarlett died?
Panaji: British teenager Scarlett Keeling’s mother Fiona MacKeown, who suspected foul play in the death of her daughter, had made a contradictory statement before the Goa children’s court regarding the time the police recovered her daughter’s belongings.
This statement by MacKeown, in addition to inconsistencies in statements of other witnesses, also contributed towards raising doubts about the prosecution case.

During her deposition, MacKeown described her daughter’s belongings found by her behind Lui’s Shack, which she handed over to the police. She identified blue shorts, whitish colour underwear and sandals with leather straps with the strap of one sandal missing.
“To a specific suggestion that the police had recovered the said articles from a place behind Lui’s Shack and had attached the same in the evening of February 22, 2008, Fiona has categorically denied the same and has stated that she found the same on the morning of February 21, 2008. This glaring discrepancy in the case of prosecution certainly goes in favour of the accused persons,” Goa children’s court president Vandana Tendulkar said.
Regarding the allegation made by Fiona that both accused, Roy D’ Souza, Julio Lobo and Roy Naik were giving drugs to the victim, the judge observed, “It is not known on what basis she made such a statement and, if she was aware of such a fact, how could she leave the victim girl in the company of such people, specifically Lobo, in her absence and could stay in the house of Roy D’Souza on rental basis?”
Tendulkar remarked Fiona’s testimony created doubt about her credit worthiness, specifically in view of the considerable delay caused by her in lodging the complaint - from February 18 till March 8, 2008. The court further stated that Fiona was convinced that there was foul play in the death of her daughter as per her first letter on February 22, 2008, but she filed the complaint on March 8, 2008 without any explanation for the delay in lodging the complaint.

Fiona had created a sensation by alleging that former home minister Ravi Naik’s son Roy was involved in the drug trade in the state. Later police gave Roy a clean chit.
Before the incident, Fiona, along with her other seven children, travelled to Gokarna in Karnataka whereas the victim preferred to stay at Anjuna.
On February 17, 2008 the mother had spoken with her daughter at 7pm. On February 18, 2008, Fiona learnt that her daughter had been found dead on the beach. She left Gokarna for Goa at 4pm. She admitted before the court that she was prosecuted for benefit fraud and was convicted for one year in the UK. It was a prosecution for benefit payments she had received for her children, including the victim girl, and it was a case of overpayment.
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