I remember the shock of seeing the news reports about this case back in 2021 when the perpetrator was jailed for the disturbing crime that he had committed which involved a 15 year old girl by the name of Mhari O'Neill.
The perpetrator, Ewan Fulton (who was 18 at the time) had been a member of a social media site which was popular in Scotland at the time, Yubo. Yubo was described as a dating site for teenagers that was in the same vein as Tinder.
Ewan was a bit of a Jack the lad who messaged quite a few girls on the app and had a habit of targeting younger girls and trying to take advantage of them. He'd been on the wrong side of the law quite a few times because of this but his predatory behaviour was never taken as seriously as it should have been.
I know, speaking from personal experience, that it is quite common (at least, back home in certain parts of Scotland) for 15 year old girls to date 18 year olds. It sounds quite disturbing as I type this but I did date someone who was in their 20s when I was 15 and it wasn't seen as shocking (obviously my parents didn't know about this). As you can imagine, me at 15 with someone who was so much older was a complete and utter disaster and quite traumatic to be honest. In these circumstances these 18 year old boys (as well as some guys in their 20s) tend to go for girls of 15 because they are easy to manipulate and control as awful as it sounds.
So Ewan had a history of this behaviour and whilst talking to a few girls online he stumbled across a young girl called Mhari O'Neill. Mhari was a 15 year old pretty girl who probably thought the same as a lot of us girls did at that age, that having a boyfriend who was older than you was something to be impressed about and that false belief that older boys are more mature.
Ewan and Mhari chatted back and forth on the app and got on really well. On the surface of it, Ewan seemed like a nice lad and Mhari was just like any typical teenage girl, into makeup, pop music and placed importance on finding the perfect boyfriend. The pair got on so well that they decided to meet up for a drink.
Ewan was from Livingston in Scotland but agreed to meet up with Mhari in her home city of Edinburgh on the afternoon of Friday the 7th of December 2018. The pair didn't know each other that well and had only been messaging each other for a short while so Mhari was understandably nervous. When they both met, it was a very cold December day and Ewan noticed that she was wearing quite a thin fleece jacket. He commented on her lack of proper clothing for the winter weather and she just laughed it off.
With Mhari being so young and naive, Ewan knew that he wouldn't have to take her to a restaurant or treat her properly, instead he told her that he had no money, he made up a story that he had somehow lost the cash that he had. He made 15 year old Mhari pay for cigarettes and alcohol with her own pocket money before encouraging her to take a walk with him.
(Mhari O'Neill. Picture credit: Edinburgh Live)The pair ended up at a spot in Calton Hill which is a beautiful place with amazing views of the city. Edinburgh is a stunning city with amazing architecture and history, having a walk around the sites and hills can be romantic and one wonders if Mhari was feeling swept up on this occasion as the pair found a bench and sat down.
As they gazed out at the beautiful view they continued talking in between drinking alcohol and smoking cigarettes. With it being December, it didn't take long for darkness to fall but they were too busy chatting, laughing and getting drunk to notice the time.
A witness, who was a homeless man, later told investigators that he was walking around that area around 9:30pm and was surprised to see the two teenagers on the bench. He said that something seemed to be wrong with Mhari and that she wasn't wearing a jacket. He said that Ewan seemed to be trying to calm her down or maybe soothe her as she was feeling sick from the alcohol.
Fast forward to 11pm and CCTV cameras capture Ewan Fulton in Waverly train station, Mhari was nowhere to be seen. Whilst at the station he messaged a friend moaning that the date with Mhari had been a total disaster. He got on a train and missed his stop because he fell asleep, he eventually made it home safe and sound.
Mhari on the other hand did not make it home safe to her family like she should have done because the sick and twisted Ewan Fulton left this poor child to freeze to death on a bench after he had taken advantage of her.
It was around 6am when Mhari's body was found by a dog walker. She was face down and had various injuries which included bruising to her neck and jawline which indicated that she had been strangled. There was bite marks on her breast and her clothes were in disarray and her stockings had been ripped off. Her phone had also been smashed. Mhari was just wearing her underwear when she was found. It was clear that a violent attack had taken place. The perpetrator had clearly sexually assaulted Mhari, damaged her phone so she couldn't call for help, strangled her and left her there on her own like a piece of meat with no respect or dignity.
The fact that Ewan could just take off and have the nerve to contact his friend moaning that the date had been a disaster, just goes to show what and evil and twisted psychopath he truly was and is. He even went to work the next day as if nothing had happened but he did leave early as he claimed to be feeling sick, not sick because he was an evil, cold-hearted monster, but sick because he had a hangover.
At some point during the day he realised that his DNA would be on Mhari's body and the bottles of alcohol and cigarette butts, it was then that he began to panic and sent messages to a friend saying that he was feeling suicidal and that he accidentally left a girl alone on a bench who was very drunk. He claimed to also be very concerned that she was 15. He claimed to not know Mhari was just 15, he apparently assumed her to be the same age as him.
He tried to cover his tracks but he knew it was no good, all the paths led to him and he knew it. The police soon came knocking at his door and he gave a statement on the 9th of December (Sunday). He gave this ridiculous story that he and Mahri had been getting intimate and that she kept falling over as she was very drunk. He claimed the ripped stockings, bruises and smashed phone was due to Mahri falling over. He said that they were getting carried away being rough with each other. He realised in the middle of all of this (he claimed) that he needed to catch the last train home but didn't know what to do because Mhari was so drunk.
He claimed there was no way to contact her parents because Mhari was too drunk to remember their phone number and she couldn't speak either apparently. He decided it would be best for him to leave for his train. He told the police that he felt very emotional leaving Mhari on the bench and that he was crying. The whole story sounded ridiculous and even if he had not harmed Mhari, just leaving her there on that bench alone was bad enough.
Knowing the game was up and feeling sorry for himself when he was taken into custody, he did make an attempt on his own life. The court took into consideration is age at the time of Mhari's death and the fact that, although he'd tried to pursue younger girls in the past, he didn't have any actual convictions. They also took into account that he had been drinking alcohol at the time.
(The bench where Mhari was found. Picture credit: The Sun)The Judge and the court seemed to believe that he had shown a level of remorse for his actions even though he lied and callously left Mhari in the state that he did. With the excuses of her phone battery dying and not being able to remember phone numbers, he could have still called the police, emergency services. Even if he had left the scene and found a nearest shop, phone box or even at the train station....there was no attempt to get Mahri the help she needed and the fact that he texted his friend saying the date a had been a disaster whilst taking selfies in the toilets at the train station tells you all you need to know about Ewan Fulton in my opinion.
The Judge sentenced Ewan to just 38 months detention despite his previous history and after his sentence further details came out about his penchant for choking young girls and he bragged about liking the taste of blood. It was obvious that he had serious issues and that he was and is a ticking time bomb and it's scary to think that he will soon be back on our streets quicker than we know it.
I think about Mhari and her family. It must be utterly devastating for them, to not have seen justice done, for their beloved Mhari to have been disrespected in this way, not only by Ewan Fulton but by the so-called justice system. I've said it before and I'll say it again, the system we have in England and Scotland is a joke. I've seen people jailed for long periods of time for not paying a fine but someone who has murdered or sexually assaulted someone, ends up with a quick slap on the wrist and sent on their way.
(Mhari O'Neill & the bench where she was sadly found.Picture credit: The Sun)Mhari was just 15, a child. It's scary to think that Ewan Fulton caused all of this devastation at the age of 18, if that's what he was like at that age, what is he going to be like in years to come?
I hope and pray for Mhari's family to have some strength and I wish to say RIP to Mhari. It was a evil and calculated thing that should never have happened.
Further Reading & Sources:
- HMA v Ewan Fulton | Court Documents
- Ewan Fulton: Article | Edinburgh News
- Ewan Fulton: Article | Daily Record
- Ewan Fulton: Article | Herald Scotland
- Online Petition To Increase Sentence For Ewan Fulton: Please Sign!!!
- Ewan Fulton: News Report | BBC News
- Ewan Fulton: Article | Edinburgh Live
- Ewan Fulton: Article | The Scottish Sun
Thank you for taking the time to read my latest case. I wish there was some way that we could find some proper justice for Mhari and her family, please sign the online petition above, you never know what impact it could actually make.
Stay safe out there (and online) & I will see you in my next post x
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