Angus murder accused Tasmin Glass was “actively trying” to get pregnant to her boyfriend Steven Donaldson in the weeks before allegedly killing him and setting him on fire at a local beauty spot.
Mr Donaldson had confided in one of his closest pals that he thought the then teenager was expecting, and Glass then told the friend that she believed a baby would bring the couple close together.
The fourth day of the Edinburgh High Court murder trial proceedings against 20-year-old Glass and 24-year-olds Steven Dickie and Callum Davidson heard evidence from Martin Johnstone, 49, an offshore worker from Arbroath who described 27-year-old Mr Donaldson as one of his closest friends.
He told the jury of their shared interest in so-called boys’ toys, including cars, motorcycles and jetskis, and how they would see each other on a daily basis when they were not working offshore.
“I could trust Steven with anything,” said the witness.
He told the trial he had met Glass with Steven a number of times and said in the early part of 2017 he was sure their relationship was “100% on”.
“Steven had told me he thought Tasmin was pregnant,” he said, adding that on an occasion when the couple were at his house, Mr Donaldson had gone inside and he took the chance to “banter” with her about that.
He said: “I had said was she looking forward to being pregnant and giving birth, to try and drop him (Steven) in it.”
He told advocate depute Ashley Edwards: “Tasmin had said she was actively trying to get pregnant and that Tasmin thought it would be – she never used the word beneficial – but it wouldn’t have been a bad thing, it would have brought her and Steven closer together.”
The evidence then moved to June 7, the day Mr Donaldson’s body was found at Kinnordy Loch, and the witness said he became increasingly concerned when his friend did not respond to a number of phone calls.
Mr Johnstone added: “It went straight to his answer machine. In all the years I’ve known him he would answer his phone, it wouldn’t matter if he was in America and I was at the other side of the world.”
He then learned about a body being found near Kirriemuir and contacted Glass through Facebook Messenger.
He added: “I had the impression Tasmin was worried about something and was upset. I told her not to worry.”
Glass replied: “I hope so, I’m worried sick Marty”, followed by two sad face emojis.
The court heard of further messages between the pair, including one in which Mr Johnstone asked Glass if they had been arguing.
He said: “She said they had but it was on the telephone and nothing serious.”
He said he pressed her on that and asked her when she had last seen Steven and she told him it was “wayyy before” a motorcycling event some weeks previously.
“That is when I started thinking something wasn’t right,” said Mr Johnstone.
Glass also told Mr Johnstone Steven had been coming to see her in Kirriemuir the previous night, but didn’t turn up at the top of Kirrie Hill, and when he asked her where the body had been found she said it was “about half an hour away” from the place they had been due to meet.
“I couldn’t comprehend why this could be connected, but Tasmin wouldn’t tell me where the top of the hill was,” the witness said.
Increasingly concerned, Mr Johnstone and friends drove to Kirriemuir and came across the police cordon leading to Kinnordy.
The trial continues.
The charges:
The charge faced by all three accused alleges that between June 6 and 7 2018 at the Peter Pan playpark, Kirriemuir and Loch of Kinnordy nature reserve car park, they assaulted Mr Donaldson and arranged to meet him with the intention of assaulting him, and once there repeatedly struck him on the head and body with unknown instruments whereby he was incapacitated, and thereafter took him to Loch of Kinnordy where they repeatedly struck him on the head and body with a knife and baseball bat or similar instruments, repeatedly struck him on the head and neck with an unknown heavy bladed instrument and set fire to him and his motor vehicle, registered S73 VED, and murdered him.
Dickie and Davidson face four other charges including one of behaving in a threatening manner towards two men between January 2014 and June 2018 by making threats, following them on foot and in a motor vehicle, presenting weapons and acting in a threatening manner.
They are also charged with putting a kitten in a bag in Main Street, Lochore, Fife on an occasion between February 1 and May 31 2017, swinging the bag about and punching and kicking the kitten; behaving in a threatening manner towards a man in St Malcolm’s Wynd, Kirriemuir and elsewhere between December 1 2017 and February 28 2018 by following him on foot and in a vehicle, and threatening him with weapons.
Both also deny following and staring at a woman and kicking her car in Kirriemuir between August 1 2017 and April 31 2018.
Davidson faces a further charge of assaulting a man between June 1 2017 and December 31 2017 at a house in Glengate, Kirriemuir by pushing him to the floor and threatening to punch him.
Dickie is also accused of assaulting a woman at the Ogilvy Arms pub in Kirriemuir between February 1 and 28 last year by seizing her by the wrist and neck and threatening her with violence.
