The funeral of a woman, who was brutally murdered in an Aberdeen block of flats, will be held next week.
Mother-of-four Tracy Gabriel and Keith Taylor were killed last month by alcoholic Hugh Gallacher, who committed the crimes because of his jealousy of the pair’s friendship.
Gallacher subsequently killed himself by jumping from the 12th-floor balcony at Tillydrone’s Donside Court shortly after launching his murderous attack.
Police were present at the time of his suicide on July 20, prompting an investigation to be launched by the Police Investigations and Review Commissioner.
Shocked neighbours told the Press and Journal in the wake of the double murder that Mr Gallacher had lain in wait for the pair and held “a grudge” against them.
One friend of the pair, who did not want to be named, said: “We knew Tracy and Keith and they said that Hugh had been after them for a while.
“When I first met Hugh, there was something about him that I didn’t like.
“I heard a few weeks ago he had gone out looking for them and he used to sometimes wait outside the block to fight with them.
“Tracy was a really nice girl. She had her problems, but I think she was a very genuine person.”
It later emerged that Mr Gallacher had threatened to petrol bomb his own house years before the murders.
He also said he was going to kill another resident at his former home in Aberdeen’s Aulton Court in 2008.
Tributes flooded in for 43-year-old Mr Taylor and 40-year-old Miss Gabriel in the aftermath of the tragedy.
The latter’s daughter Samantha said: “She was a heartwarming person who welcomed anyone with open arms, and she would put anyone before herself.”
Her father, Alex Gabriel, who lives in the Seaton area of Aberdeen, said: “Tracy was such a decent person, she was too decent.”
Last night, Pirc confirmed that investigations were continuing into the incident.
A spokesman said: “The investigation is ongoing and a report will be submitted to the Crown Office in due course.”
Miss Gabriel’s funeral will be held at Aberdeen Crematorium on Wednesday at 10.30am.
