Update: Police believe the victim to be Dean Morrison, a 40-year-old police officer in Scotland’s Tayside Division. He is believed to have been walking home from a Christmas party near his office; Morrison’s home is just a mile away from where he was found.
One local told The Scottish Sun that the burn wouldn’t typically pose a threat. But Saturday’s conditions were different. “The weather was just horrible on Saturday and it was raining for hours non-stop. The wind could easily blow you off your feet.
“The burn was much, much higher than I’d ever seen it. If you ended up in there, you wouldn’t stand much of a chance.”
Chief Superintendent Andrew Todd, Divisional Commander for Tayside Division, spoke about Morrison.
“Dean was a highly respected officer, who was extremely well liked and popular with his colleagues. He was thoroughly professional in his work,” he said. “His death is a great tragedy and he will be sadly missed by all who knew him and we will do all we can to support them during this distressing time.”
Morrison leaves his wife Emily, a doctor, and a 10-year-old son.
The original story can be found below.
The body of an unidentified man washed up in Carnoustie’s Barry Burn on Sunday afternoon. Police believe the man, who remains unidentified, was dropped off in Carnoustie on Saturday night. While there are no suspicious circumstances surrounding the death, it is “unexplained” and the taxi driver who dropped the man off on Saturday was encouraged to come forward.
The body was discovered at 12:40 p.m. on Sunday near the Carnoustie Golf Hotel. A “major investigation” ensued, according to the Courier, which included the presence of a number of police officers.
Detective Inspector Ray Birnie made an appeal to the driver. “We need to confirm the last movements of the man and we need to speak to a taxi driver who we believe picked the man up at 11:13pm on Saturday, December 15th in Fort Street/Brook Street in Broughty Ferry and dropped him off in Carnoustie.
“If this was you, or you know the identity of the taxi driver, then we need to speak to you urgently.”
The body was found close to the beach in the Barry Burn. Golf fans know the burn well; it snakes through Carnoustie Golf Links, the site of this year’s British Open, which was won by Francesco Molinari. The winding stream, which is banked with bricks, has played host to some of the Open’s most memorable moments, including Jean van de Velde’s 1999 collapse.
One passerby told the Courier that the body could have come in from the ocean. “The tides here seem to bring things on to the beach. About 50 years ago a boat called the Fendyke was washed ashore. It’s a rough part of the sea and that can bring things in.”
Another passerby lamented the grim news. “Carnoustie is normally such a quiet place so it’s shocking to see something like this happening.”
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