Woman found dead with body ‘partially eaten by fox or badger’ after car broke down

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The body of a woman who went missing after her car broke down was discovered partially eaten by wild animals.

The 55-year-old woman, who has not been identified, had walked away from her Citroen car when it broke down near Monkton, Ayrshire in Scotland, less than a week before Christmas.

A missing persons inquiry was launched after the woman’s car was found on a country road.

It is understood that that the woman, from the Airdrie area, began walking through fields near the Ayrshire village on 18 December, after phoning for a car recovery service.

Her body was found the following day about a mile from her car with help from a sniffer dog.

Police confirmed on Monday that her death is not being treated as suspicious.

Officers who discovered the body said it had been partially eaten by wildlife. It is believed that badgers or foxes may have been responsible for the mauling.

A source told the Daily Record: “She had phoned the AA to try to get them to come and help.

“But rather than waiting with the vehicle, she got out and walked away, cutting through the fields.

“She’s then died while she’s been going through the fields.”

A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “Around 11.20pm on Saturday, December 18, police were called to a report of a possible abandoned Citroen car found on an unclassified road near to Monkton.

“Officers attended and the initial investigations failed to trace the registered keeper and officers started a missing person enquiry.

“Around 4.55pm on Sunday, December 19, officers searching for the missing 55-year-old woman found a body in a field approximately one mile from where the car was discovered.

“The death is not being treated as suspicious and a report was submitted to the procurator fiscal.”