Couple 'left lying in crashed car for days despite police call'

  • Scotland
John Yuill and Lamara Bell had been missing since Sunday morning. Credit: Police Scotland

A dead man and a seriously injured woman involved in a crash may have been left lying in a car for days, after police failed to respond to reports of the accident.

Police launched an appeal to find missing couple John Yuill, 28, and Lamara Bell, 25, on Monday.

Officers searching for the pair confirmed that a dead man and a critically injured woman were found in a crashed Renault Clio on Wednesday morning on the southbound M9 near junction nine.

Police Scotland said it believed the incident is connected "to the ongoing missing persons search'' for Mr Yuill and Ms Bell.

The force admitted that a call was made about a crash on Sunday morning but was not followed up.

An investigation has now been launched by the Police Investigations and Review Commissioner (PIRC).

Ms Bell remains in a critical condition in a hospital in Glasgow.

Assistant Chief Constable Kate Thomson,of Local Policing East, said:

Mr Yuill and Ms Bell were last seen among friends on the south shore of Loch Earn, Stirlingshire on Sunday morning.

Police Scotland said their disappearance was "completely out of character" and issued a photograph of the car they were travelling in.

A spokesman for the Police Investigations and Review Commissioner said: