Goa murder probe 'falling apart'

The mother of a British teenager murdered in Goa fears the case against her killer is falling apart.

Scarlett Keeling, 15, was found dead on a beach in the Indian coastal state on February 18 this year.

Police originally said Keeling had drowned after taking drugs but changed their story after Scarlett's mother complained, and a second autopsy concluded she had been raped and murdered.

Goa police now say forensic experts did not find any traces of semen in a swab they had collected for examination.

Scarlett's mother Fiona MacKeown has repeatedly complained about the police handling of the case.

Her lawyer Vikram Varma said: "She sounded very stunned when she heard the latest news and said the case seemed to be falling apart. I think the case is falling apart with all evidence being tampered by the police."

Mr Varma said body organs were not preserved properly and the police did not ask for tests soon enough.

"It will be extremely difficult in court to get justice for Scarlett Keeling now," Mr Varma said.

Police officer Bosco Jorge said: "We will have to bank on other evidence like witness accounts and police statements to back our case."

A bartender, Samson D'Souza, has been arrested and charged with raping and drugging Scarlett, before leaving her to die in shallow sea water.

Ms MacKeown's lawyer said the shack where Scarlett was drugged before being raped has been pulled down.

"Whatever evidence that was left in that shack is gone and there is only sand in its place now," Mr Varma said.

Goa police denied any role in pulling down the shack. "Maybe the owner dismantled the shack as it is his property," Mr Jorge said.

Scarlett's body is still in a mortuary in Britain and her mother wants more tests to be done before she is buried, Mr Varma said.

© Independent Television News Limited 2008. All rights reserved.