A WOMAN found dead at a house in the Scottish Borders on Boxing Day was murdered, police have confirmed.
The bodies of Kevin Armstrong, 53, and Pauline Cockburn, 48, were discovered at a property in Ladyrig View in the village of Heiton, near Kelso, at around 3pm on December 26.
Post-mortem examinations have now been carried out on both bodies.
Cockburn's death is being treated as murder while Armstrong's death is not being treated as suspicious, police said yesterday.
They are not looking for anyone else in connection with the murder of Cockburn, from Kelso, who has now been formally identified.
Detective Chief Inspector Keith Hardie, of the Major Investigation Team, who is leading the investigation, said: "Pauline was tragically taken from her family and friends at what should be a happy and joyous time of year.
"I can only imagine that the circumstances make this even more heartbreaking and my thoughts are with them as they try to come to terms with their loss.
"Our investigation into her death is ongoing and, whilst we are not looking for anyone else, there are still lines of inquiry to follow up to ensure we know as much as we can about what happened.
"This incident has put a small, quiet area of the Scottish Borders in the spotlight and I would respectfully request that the families and friends of those involved, and the local communities, can be given the time and the space to be able to grieve and remember."
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here