The mother of a north-east man who disappeared in mysterious circumstances more than two years ago has denied wasting the time of officers searching for her son.
Prosecutors allege Shaun Ritchie’s mum, Carol Roy, sent a number of threatening messages to her friends and family posing as someone else after his disappearance on Halloween 2014.
They also claim she lied about being sexually assaulted.
Roy’s case first called at Peterhead Sheriff Court last month but was continued without plea to give the 39-year-old time to find legal representation.
The case went before Sheriff Andrew Miller for a second time yesterday and local solicitor Leonard Burkinshaw confirmed he is now representing Roy.
Mr Burkinshaw tendered pleas of not guilty to all eight charges faced by his client. Roy was not present in court.
He said: “I have had a chat with Miss Roy with regards to matters. She is tendering a plea of not guilty today.”
Roy is now due to appear in court later this year for trial.
The 39-year-old, whose address was given as Fraserburgh’s Dennyduff Road, is facing a raft of charges stretching back to June 2015.
Court papers state she made false accusations to two officers alleging she had been the subject of abusive letters and calls.
Prosecutors also claim that as a result of Roy’s actions she “temporarily deprived the public” of vital police resources while officers pursued the false threats.
Seven of the charges date back to a week in mid-August last year when it is alleged Roy’s sister, brother and two friends received menacing text messages threatening violence against her.
However it is claimed Roy sent the messages herself.
Shaun Ritchie vanished from woodlands near Strichen after a Halloween night out with friends in 2014. Roy has always insisted “foul play” was the reason for his disappearance and has repeatedly called for detectives to investigate if he was murdered.
Despite one of the largest searches in the history of Police Scotland he remains missing, presumed dead. Police say no evidence of criminality has ever emerged.
