Pensioner, 68, denies murdering mother-of-one in Scottish park in 1994 and will stand trial in 2028

Fraser Kilpatrick, who faces 16 charges in total, is accused of killing Shona Stevens, 31, by striking her on the head with a hammer or similar weapon in Bourtreehill Park, Irvine. Stevens died in a Glasgow hospital three days after the attack. Among the remaining 15 charges are alleged rapes involving a woman and a young girl. Donald Findlay KC entered not guilty pleas to all charges at the High Court in Glasgow.

Shona's daughter Candice was just seven when her mother was killed.

Kilpatrick is also accused of pouring boiling water on a child in the 1990s.

Prosecutor Alex Prentice KC said: 'It is a case of some age.'