Accused attacker in Mark Squires murder trial '˜bleached his shoes to wash off blood'

Three men are accused of killing Mark Squires who died near Longstone Road.

Chloe Adams,19, told a jury on Tuesday how she witnessed Aiden Welsh, 25, use bleach to get rid of the bodily fluid from his trainers.

The High Court in Edinburgh heard Ms Adams say she had earlier seen Welsh kick Mark Squires during an incident near a Hearts FC supporters club in the Scottish capital last October.

Ms Adams told prosecution lawyer David Taylor that she had witnessed Welsh using the liquid in a house a short time after the alleged attack on Mr Squires.

She said: “Aiden said he was going to the bathroom to bleach his shoes – to wash the blood off which I saw him do.”

Ms Adams, of Edinburgh, was giving evidence on the third of proceedings against Welsh and his co-accused Nico Allan,24, and 20-year-old Liam Tierney.

The three men deny murdering Mr Squires on October 22 2017 at Burnside Lane near Longstone Road, Edinburgh and other charges.

Prosecutors also claim that Welsh attempted to defeat the ends of justice and arrest for the alleged attack on Mr Squires by using spraying his shoes with bleach.

The Crown claims that Welsh did this to “prevent forensic examination and analysis” of them.

Ms Adams told the court how she and her friends had spent the evening before the alleged murder drinking.

The court heard that she is the girlfriend of Tierney and is still involved in a relationship with him.

She said that she was present with the three men when they became involved in a confrontation with Mr Squires and his childhood friend Charles Murray,45,.

Ms Adams told Mr Taylor that she witnessed Mr Squires being attacked by Allan and Welsh.

Ms Adams said: “I saw a couple of kicks to Mark from Nice and Aiden.”

She told the court that following the confrontation, the party returned to a nearby house.

The three men, who all come from the Edinburgh area, have denied all charges.