Arlene jury is sent out

Arlene Fraser has been missing since April 1998

The jury in the Arlene Fraser murder trial has been sent out to consider its verdict.

Before retiring on Wednesday at 1136 GMT, the seven men and seven women were told by the judge, Lord Mackay of Drumadoon, that before they could convict Nat Fraser they must be satisfied he had arranged the killing of his wife.

He also told them that they could return the verdict of guilty even if they rejected the evidence of the key witness, Elgin farmer Hector Dick, 46.

Nat Fraser has denied killing his wife

The trial at the High Court in Edinburgh was told that Mr Fraser had hired a hitman to strangle his wife before disposing of her body by burning it, grinding up the remains and scattering them.

Mr Dick had faced a charge of murdering 33-year-old Arlene, but that was dropped and he was called as a prosecution witness.

Lord Mackay told the jury it had to decide whether it should accept all, some or none of Mr Dick's evidence as being credible and reliable, but went on to say that other evidence in the case would or could still be enough to convict Fraser of murder.

The judge then said that the cornerstone of the Crown's evidence was whether or not it was accepted that Mr Fraser was responsible for putting his wife's wedding, engagement and eternity rings back in the bathroom of the family home a week after she went missing.

Special defence

The jury was also told that the case was unusual in that Mrs Fraser's body had never been found and it had not been explicitly accepted by the defence that she was dead.

Lord McKay said: "Before you can convict the accused, Nat Fraser, you will require to be satisfied - and it may not take you very long to reach this view - that the Crown have proved on the basis of corroborative evidence first of all that Arlene Fraser is dead and then you will have to consider the related issue of whether the Crown has proved that she was murdered."

Mr Fraser, 44, denies murdering his estranged wife who was last seen in April 1998.

He has lodged a special defence of alibi, claiming he was carrying out deliveries for his fruit and vegetable business on the day his wife vanished.