Suzanne Pilley murder basement available on rental market

THE basement in which Suzanne Pilley was murdered is being marketed to city businesses following the sentencing of the man convicted of her killing.

Property agents have advertised the ground and basement floors of the city centre building where the 38-year-old bookkeeper was last seen.

Last month, David Gilroy was sentenced to 18 years imprisonment for murdering his former lover and disposing of her body by unknown means in May 2010.

Two lower floors at 11 Thistle Street are now on the market, with use of the car parking facilities where Ms Pilley was murdered among the key features.

No mention of the case is made on the property particulars, which boast its location and car park as an asset.

Infrastructure Managers, where both Gilroy and Ms Pilley worked, is still based on the second floor of the building.

Forensic teams spent weeks examining the basement where Ms Pilley is believed to have been killed and placed in the boot of Gilroy’s Vauxhall Vectra.

The area remained cordoned off for months, but the floors are now being marketed after a refurbishment.

The brochure by estate agents Jones Lang LaSalle and DTZ says: “Eleven Thistle Street benefits from 6 garaged car spaces accessed off Thistle Street Lane North. The parking ratio equates to a generous 1 space per 179sq m.”

It goes on: “This central location is ideal for all the superb facilities and amenities offered in the city centre, including unparalleled transport connections, numerous bars, restaurants & hotels together with ample shopping on Princes Street, George Street, Princes Mall and the St James Shopping Centre.”

The Georgian tenement is surrounded by legal firms, upmarket restaurants and bars.

The sales pitch adds: “The east end of George Street is regarded as a hub of commercial activity and includes office occupiers such as Standard Life, Royal Bank of Scotland, Scottish & Newcastle, Ernst & Young, Royal London, IBM, HBOS and Fidelity.”

The Suzanne Pilley investigation was among the largest missing person appeals mounted in the Lothians.

Ms Pilley, from Stenhouse, arrived for work but never made it to the second floor. It is believed she met Gilroy in the basement where he killed her.

Police spent nearly £320,000 searching for her body and hired specially trained sniffer dogs at a cost of £18,000. Gilroy also claimed £105,000 in legal aid fees.

He was eventually convicted on circumstantial evidence, which included cadaver dogs detecting an “interest” in the boot of his vehicle.

Gilroy is appealing his conviction.