The family of a charity cyclist killed by a hit-and- run drunk driver and buried in a shallow grave have won a six-figure compensation payout.
Alexander McKellar, 33, left Tony Parsons, 63, for dead after knocking him off his bike in rural Argyll following a drinking session at a nearby hotel.
McKellar then returned with twin Robert to remove the body and bury it in a bog on the farm estate where they worked.
Mr Parsons’ remains were found in 2021, four years after he vanished near Bridge of Orchy, after McKellar admitted killing him and hiding his body to his then fiancee Caroline Muirhead.
The compensation claim was against McKellar and was paid by the insurer of the car he was driving at the time of the cyclist’s death.
The case was settled out of court last week. The exact sum paid was not disclosed.
Gordon Dalyell, partner at Digby Brown Solicitors, said: ‘I can confirm the civil action for the Parsons family has concluded.
Tony Parsons was left for dead after Alexander McKellar knocked him off his bike in rural Argyll
Undated family handout photo issued by Police Scotland of Alexander McKellar
Alexander’s twin brother Robert helped him remove Tony’s body and bury it in a bog on the farm estate where they worked
Undated handout photo issued by the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service of a can of red bull found at the site where the body of charity cyclist Tony Parsons was left after he died in a collision on September 29 2017
‘The manner of Tony’s death was appalling and the pain of his loss understandably continues to cause huge distress to his loved ones.
‘While compensation does not in any way heal the pain, it does help protect the futures of his relatives.
‘I commend the strength of the Parsons family throughout this whole period as they try to move on with their lives.’
In August 2023, McKellar was jailed for 12 years after he pled guilty to the culpable homicide of Mr Parsons and attempting to pervert the course of justice by hiding his body.
His twin also admitted att- empting to pervert the course of justice and was jailed for five years at the same hearing at the High Court in Glasgow.
Undated handout photo issued by the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service of the car driven in the collision with charity cyclist Tony Parsons on September 29 2017
Mr Parsons went missing in September 2017 while taking part in a charity cycle, having battled prostate cancer.
He had planned to ride through the night to complete the 100-mile journey from Fort William back to his home in Tillicoultry, Clackmannanshire.
The court was told his body would likely never have been found if Ms Muirhead had not come forward.
