Family's plea to catch murderer

James Toner said that his brother Martin was a caring, family man

The family of a murder victim whose body was found in a field have appealed for help to catch his killer.

Martin Toner's body was found near Langbank in Renfrewshire a week ago. He had been reported missing by his wife, Michelle, a fortnight earlier.

The 34-year-old's body was found the day before he was due to appear in court charged with drug smuggling.

His brother James told a media conference that nobody deserved to be killed in the way that Mr Toner was.

Mr Toner's wife fought back tears as his brother described him as a loving and caring father.

He said: "Martin was a kind and caring son, a loyal and loving husband and a good father to both his children.

"He was also my wee brother. He always looked out for me and never once let me down."

He added: "I'm here today to appeal on behalf of the family he left behind. I would urge anyone with any information regarding Martin's disappearance and subsequent brutal murder to contact the police."

Smuggle cocaine

Martin Toner was reported missing on 29 June.

He was last seen at about 1500 BST in the town of Langbank.

His body was discovered by farmer John Baxter, 47, a fortnight later on 13 July.

Police have been trying to discover why Mr Toner, who lived in the Pollokshields area of Glasgow, was in Langbank.

It later emerged that the father-of-two had been due to appear at the High Court in Edinburgh last Wednesday for a pre-trial hearing.

He and three other men were accused of being part of an operation to smuggle cocaine into the country between September 2000 and 2002.

Above all else, Martin was a human being, no human being deserves to be killed the way he was James Toner

The hearing was continued for three weeks for inquiries into whether his death was connected to the drugs charges.

James Toner told a media conference on Tuesday that speculation into the circumstances surrounding his brother's death had been upsetting for the family.

He said: "Much has been said and written about Martin over the past week.

"About his impending court case, about how he lived his life and how he died.

"Above all else, Martin was a human being, no human being deserves to be killed the way he was and no one deserves their body to be left in a field for nature and the elements to destroy."

'Very violent death'

He said his brother had never expressed any fears for his safety or well-being.

He also said the family plans to visit the site where Martin's body was found, some time in the future.

Police said Mr Toner, who ran a cleaning firm, had suffered a "very violent death".

They confirmed that he had not been killed at the site where his body was found.

It was also revealed he could have been dead for up to eight days before his body was found.