Woman appears in court accused of murdering Donegal grandmother in Scotland

A woman has appeared in court accused of murdering a Donegal grandmother in Scotland.

Claire Kilduff was before Glasgow Sheriff Court in connection with the murder of Ann Coll, a native of Gweedore.

Kilduff, a 37-year-old of East Kilbride, is alleged to have attacked Ms Coll at a flat in Rutherglen, South Lanarkshire on December 22, 2023.

The BBC reports that it is alleged in court papers that Kilduff repeatedly struck Ms Coll on the head with an unknown object.

It is also alleged that Kilduff repeatedly stabbed Ms Coll on the neck and body with an unknown sharp implement.

The accused woman is said to have made no plea during a private hearing and was remanded in custody to appear again before the court next week.

Kilduff was arrested on Friday and was later charged by detectives probing the violent death of 61-year-old Ms Coll, a mother-of-three and a grandmother, who hailed from Arduns in Gweedore.

The body of Ms Coll was found in a flat in the Newfield Place area of Rutherglen at around 12.45am on December 22. She was later pronounced dead at the scene.

Police Scotland launched a murder investigation after a postmortem examination confirmed her death as being suspicious.

CCTV footage obtained by media in Scotland showed Ms Coll visiting her local shop to buy cigarettes on December 19 at 8.46am.

Accompanied by her believed border collie, Ms Coll - who was said to visit the shop multiple times each day - then made the short walk to her home.

"We are fully committed to tracing the person or people responsible as soon as possible and our team are following a positive line of inquiry,” said Detective Chief Inspector Lynsey Watters, who is leading the investigation.

"We truly believe that the answer to this investigation lies within the community.”

A GoFundMe set up to aid the family of Ms Coll has raised over £7,000.