Mum of 'murdered' West Lothian girl 'wasn't aware of any danger' to daughter
A West Lothian mum is at her 'lowest point' after her six-year-old daughter was 'murdered' and is struggling to come to terms with the heartbreaking loss.
Hope and her dad Mark Gordon, 36, were both discovered dead in a property on West Calder's Harburn Road on Monday, January 20, after concerns were raised when the youngster failed to attend school.
Emergency services swarmed the area and gained access to the property before the devastating discovery was made. Police believe Hope's death to be murder and are treating Mark's as unexplained.
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As the Record reports, mum Margaret Cairns, from Livingston, says she would never have let Hope stay with her dad if she knew she was in any danger.
The 40-year-old is being consoled by good friend Melanie Wheeldon, 44, who has also started a fundraiser to help contribute towards Hope's funeral when the time comes.
Melanie said: "There was nothing that happened in the lead up to this that could have sparked anything in Mark and there were no hints at all that he was a violent man.
"They had shared custody of Hope but if Margaret had any idea that her daughter was in any sort of danger then she would not have been allowed to go there to stay with Mark. Nobody can believe Hope is dead.
"We had no idea Mark was capable of anything like this. I have known Margaret a very long time but have never known her to be so upset, she is really struggling to cope with all of this and is at her lowest point.
"How do get over your daughter being murdered? Margaret is being as strong as possible but having to see Mark's face plastered all over the news is so upsetting for her.
"She just wants to think of Hope just by her first name now so she doesn't have to associate her with Mark in any way. Margaret and Hope had a really special relationship and she wants to focus on that."
The fundraiser for Hope has surpassed £6,500 in just a few days as Melanie didn't want Margaret to have to worry about paying for her daughter's funeral.
Hope was an animal lover and, at the house she shared with her mum, had a pet cat called Roblox and a dog Milo. She was also described as extremely clever and very popular among pals at Toronto Primary School, with her loss felt by the wider community in Livingston.
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Melanie continued: "Hope was just an amazing little girl. She was so intelligent and had even been learning French at the age of six.
"She was a beautiful little girl and had the most gorgeous smile. Everyone who met her loved her and she was such a popular wee girl in school. It's hard to believe anyone could harm her in any way so now we just want to give her the best send off we possibly can.
"The fundraiser is just to cover the funeral costs. I wanted to make sure Margaret didn't have that to worry about while she is grieving for her little daughter.
"We have just been blown away by the support and are completely overwhlemed by everyone's generosity. I didn't expect to raise as much money this quickly so I am really grateful."
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After announcing Hope's death was being treated as murder, Police Scotland urged anyone with information to come forward. Detective Superintendent Grant Hendry, of the Major Investigation Team, said: "Our thoughts remain with Hope's family and friends, along with everyone affected by this tragedy.
"The families are understandably devastated and we are providing them with support through specialist officers at this extremely difficult time.
"Our team of officers continue to carry out enquiries to get answers for the families and at this time, we have no information to suggest anyone else is involved.
"I would ask that anyone with any information, no matter how small or insignificant you think it is, gets in touch with the police."
Cops probing the murder have also referred themselves to the police watchdog.
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: "The circumstances in this case have been referred to the Police Investigations and Review Commissioner. It would be inappropriate to comment further."
To donate to Melanie's fundraiser, click here.