Police have made an arrest in connection with the death of Erskine woman Emma Caldwell - almost two decades after her body was found.
Officers swooped on a 49-year-old suspect in the Glasgow area today following what are described as "significant enquiries" carried out by detectives from Police Scotland's Major Investigation Team, the Scottish Police Authority and the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service.
It is a major development in the cold case of 27-year-old Emma, whose naked body was discovered in woods near Biggar, South Lanarkshire, in May 2005.
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The sex worker had been reported missing a month earlier, on April 5, after last being seen on London Road in Glasgow's East End, in the early hours.
Her father, Willie, died of cancer in 2011 without seeing anyone brought to justice for the death of his daughter.
Emma's mother, Margaret, has campaigned tirelessly to justice for Emma, resulting in the unsolved case being reopened by police in 2015.
Commenting on today's developments, Senior Investigating Officer, Detective Superintendent Graeme Mackie, said: "Police Scotland officers have undertaken a significant amount of work re-investigating all the circumstances surrounding Emma’s death following instruction from the Lord Advocate in 2015.
"This is a complex and challenging investigation and I would like to thank everyone involved for their efforts in getting us to this point of a man being arrested earlier today."
He added: "Emma’s family, in particular her mother Margaret, have shown incredible resilience and determination since her death in 2005 and I would like to pay tribute to that today.
"We have remained in close contact with them during this investigation and officers have updated Margaret on this significant development.
"The investigation into Emma’s death continues and I would urge anyone with information, no matter how small or insignificant they might think it is, to please come forward and speak to us.
"As legal proceedings are now live we are unable to comment further."
The man remains in custody.
Solicitor Aamer Anwar read out a statement on behalf of Emma's family at a media briefing earlier.
He said: "Margaret and her family are truly grateful to the detectives at Police Scotland and the Lord Advocate Dorothy Bain's team who have worked tirelessly in reinvestigating the murder of Emma since we met with the then Lord Advocate in 2015.
"I also wish to pay tribute to Margaret Caldwell, a mother who through the love of a child has never given up in her struggle for justice.
"The investigation into Emma's death continues and her family would urge anyone with information, no matter how insignificant they might think it is, to please come forward and speak to Police Scotland."
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