Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Aberfeldy shooting: Timeline of events in Brian Low murder

A closer look at the often confusing developments following the death of the 65-year-old.

Brian Low murder
Brian Low was shot dead near Aberfeldy. Image: Jacqui Low/Kim Cessford/Steve Brown/DC Thomson

The timeline of events surrounding the murder of Brian Low near Aberfeldy has been the subject of much scrutiny.

Mr Low, 65, was shot dead as he walked his dog Millie in the Pitilie area close to the Perthshire town.

A murder investigation was launched by police, but only after his death was initially treated as non-suspicious.

We take a chronological look at what has happened in the case so far.

Saturday February 17: Brian Low dies

Mr Low was walking on a remote dirt track close to his home in the Pitilie area with black Labrador Millie when was found dead at around 8.30am.

It has not been confirmed who raised the alarm, but an ambulance was called to the scene at 8.34am.

At this stage, police treated his death as medical-related due to the way his body “presented” at the scene.

The remote area where Brian Low was murdered. Image: Steve Brown/DC Thomson

Wednesday February 21: Medical examination of body

A medical examination took place on Mr Low’s body, with the death still being treated as non-suspicious at that stage.

It has not been confirmed who oversaw this examination or why it only happened four days after the death.

This examination established that Mr Low had injuries “consistent with being fatally shot”, escalating the case to a potential suspicious death.

Wednesday February 21: Police set up cordon at scene

Given what was discovered during the medical examination, police established a “scene” at the remote dirt track where he died, while they awaited official confirmation of how Mr Low died.

Friday February 23: Post-mortem confirms shooting

A post-mortem was held to establish a cause of death.

This involved two pathologists – which is required where criminal prosecution is likely in a case to ensure evidence is corroborated.

A post-mortem normally takes place in a mortuary examination room which is similar to a hospital environment.

The pathologists involved in Mr Low’s post-mortem confirmed on Friday evening that he had been shot by a third party.

A murder investigation was launched “immediately”.

A tent and a police van on the track where Mr Low died. Image: Steve MacDougall/DC Thomson

Saturday February 24: Family informed

Family liaison police officers informed Mr Low’s next of kin about the murder investigation in the afternoon.

Monday February 26: Public portal set up

Police Scotland set up an online portal – named Operation Newlane – for the public to be able to submit information about the case.

Tuesday February 27: Police announce murder inquiry

Police issued a statement just after 2pm to announce they had launched a murder inquiry.

This was the first time the wider public or the media had been informed about Mr Low’s death and the fact it was being treated as suspicious.

It emerged later that day Mr Low had worked as a groundsman on Edradynate Estate, which is a few miles outside Aberfeldy, for more than 20 years.

Police in forensics suits at the murder scene. Image: Andrew Milligan/PA Wire

Wednesday February 28: Police release more details on sequence of events

Police Scotland released more details about the sequence of events that led to Mr Low’s murder being announced.

More tributes were paid to Mr Low as locals came to terms with the shock around Mr Low’s murder.

Thursday February 29: Family speak for first time

Mr Low’s family spoke for the first time.

His niece, Jacqui Low, who lives in Fife, told The Courier the family were “at a complete loss” over the shooting, adding that they were “devastated”.

The family also released a photograph of Mr Low to The Courier.

Police chiefs faced the media on Thursday February 29. Image: Mhairi Edwards/DC Thomson

Thursday February 29: Police admit evidence may have been lost

A media conference was held in Perth at 11am, where DCI Martin MacDougall and CI Greg Burns answered questions about the murder for the first time.

The officers admitted that the time between the death and gunshot injuries being discovered may have led to evidence being lost from the scene.

They also confirmed they did not believe it could have been an accident, and that there was no information to suggest Mr Low was involved in any criminality or feuds.

They added they were keeping an “open mind” about a motive.

Friday March 1: Police watchdog confirms probe

The Police Investigations and Review Commissioner (PIRC) confirmed it would investigate the police handling of the Aberfeldy shooting.

A spokesperson said: “On March 1, PIRC was directed by the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) to investigate the circumstances surrounding the death of a 65 year-old man discovered near Aberfeldy on February 17 2024.

“Once the investigation is concluded, a report on our findings will be submitted to the COPFS.”

Thursday March 7: Police go door to door in hunt for clues

Officers were going door to door in Aberfeldy as the hunt for clues continued.

DCI Martin Macdougall said: “We currently have Major Investigation Team officers in Aberfeldy going round door to door speaking with local residents.

“It will obviously take us some time to get round everyone so in the meantime, if people can come to us, that would be much quicker.

“The public can contact us any way they choose.”

Police in Aberfeldy town centre. Image: Kim Cessford/DC Thomson

Tuesday March 12: Police speak to dozens of people

Police confirmed they had spoken to 145 people as the murder probe continued.

In a fresh appeal, the force said: “We are fully committed to tracing whoever is responsible as soon as possible.”

Friday March 22: Evidence ‘expected to be at murder scene’ recovered

Police told local councillors that evidence they expected to be at the murder scene had been recovered, despite the delays to the investigation.

The type of evidence found by officers was not confirmed.

Thursday March 28: Cause of death confirmed

The Courier revealed how Mr Low’s cause of death was a shotgun wound to the neck and chest, according to his death certificate.

It also emerged that he had died just three days before his 66th birthday.

Tuesday April 23: Police admit they have no suspect as scale of probe revealed

Police admitted they do not have a suspect in the murder case as they revealed the scale of the investigation so far.

Detective Superintendent Lorna Ferguson said: “I am aware of the rumours that are circulating (about who shot Mr Low).

“Our officers are hearing those same rumours but I have to keep an open mind.

“There is no suspect.

“No one has been interviewed under caution.”

DC Martin Ronald going door to door in Aberfeldy. Image: Marieke McBean

It was confirmed officers had been to 478 houses since the grandfather’s death, with 741 questionnaires completed by locals.

Officers had also reviewed more than 2,400 hours of CCTV footage from 56 cameras.

More than 30 officers were still dedicated to the investigation.

More on the Aberfeldy shooting: