Police Scotland is re-investigating the murder of Marion Hodge after she disappeared from Lockerbie in July 1984.
Detectives from the Unresolved Homicide Investigation Team are appealing for information as they visit the local area, speak to original witnesses and encourage new witnesses to contact them.
Marion is understood to have been dropped off in the Whitesands area of Dumfries around 7.30am on Friday, 6 July, 1984. She was reported to be carrying a blue canvas suitcase and brown handbag, wearing a cream high collared blouse, grey skirt and black sandals. Three days later she was reported missing to Dumfries and Galloway Constabulary.
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The mother-of-two lived in Balgray, Lockerbie, and worked in the town’s Clydesdale Bank. She was described as 5ft 4in tall, slim build with dark brown collar length hair. She was 34-years-old at the time of her disappearance.
Following her disappearance with no further sightings or contact, Marion was declared legally dead by the Court of Session, Edinburgh, in 1992. Her body has never been found.
Police Scotland’s Homicide Governance and Review Team keep unresolved inquiries under review, including those from legacy Scottish police forces, and meet with the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service. If appropriate, the case is passed to the Unresolved Homicide Investigation Team.
Detective Inspector Stephen McGrath, senior investigating officer, said: “We understand how devastating it is for loved ones to never know what happened.
“We are trying to get answers for Marion’s family and friends and we’re asking the public for help.
“We’re appealing to anyone who remembers anything unusual leading up to Marion’s disappearance, any sightings in the Whitesands area or any other relevant information that might help our inquiry.”
One of Marion’s four siblings, Frances, reflects on memories of her sister and is asking anyone with information to contact the police.
Marion did well at school and liked sports and singing. She was voted Gala Queen at Lockerbie when she was 15. She could have gone on to further education but got engaged at 18, then married and became a mother at 19. She took to motherhood, running a house and was devoted to her children. She started working in the local Clydesdale Bank again after her children were at school and was at the bank during a notorious armed robbery in 1984.
When we were told that she had “gone away” we believed this was uncharacteristic of Marion as she wouldn’t have left in that manner. She would never have turned her back on her children. The day Marion disappeared was her son’s 15th birthday. She thought too much of her children and would never have run out on them like that.
I would appeal to anyone who has any information from that time, or has since remembered anything that might prove to be crucial, to please contact the police.
Anyone with information can contact the dedicated inquiry team on 0141 305 4551 or Police Scotland on 101.
