Programme appeal on brutal murder

Last night Hugh Cameron was seen will be reconstructed

The brutal murder of a County Antrim man has featured on the BBC's Crimewatch programme on Wednesday night.

Hugh Cameron, 36, disappeared after a night out with friends in Carrickfergus on 19 October 2001.

His body was not found for another month.

He had been stabbed and beaten and his body dumped in the Skeagh river near Glenarm, in the popular tourist area, the Glens of Antrim.

Hugh Cameron went missing after night out

A number of people were questioned by the police in Carrickfergus but no-one was charged in relation to Mr Cameron's death.

Crimewatch broadcast a detailed reconstruction of his last night out in Carrickfergus and his last known sightings at the Joymount Arms in the early hours of Saturday 20 October.

The programme also talked to his brother about the loss the family has felt since his the killing.

Hugh Cameron was the youngest son in the family and was devoted to his elderly father.

The police officer heading the murder inquiry, Detective Chief Inspector Pat Steele made an appeal for anyone with any new information to come forward and help find the killer.

DCI Pat Steele: Leading the investigation into Hugh Cameron's murder

"We have paint retrieved from the rear of Hugh Cameron's jumper which we believe is inextricably linked to the manner in which he met his death," said DCI Steele.

"It is a lilac-coloured paint, a vinyl silk emulsion and it has been applied with some force.

"In other words, something with that paint on it has hit Hugh Cameron hard or Hugh has hit something painted that colour pretty hard, such as a wall, a radiator or a shelf.

"There is clear evidence that he fought back and the people who killed him may well have been carrying injuries about the 20 October last year.

"Hugh was recovered from convenient to the Skeagh bridge but we believe his body went into the water at Kavanagh bridge which is some seven miles north-west of Larne and is very remote.

"We believe that whoever dumped his body there must have had a connection with that area."