Woman Who Kept Two-year-old In A Cage And Tried To Sell Child For $1.2 Million Found Dead

Claire Boyle Who Kept Two-year-old In A Cage And Tried To Sell Child For $1.2 Million Found Dead

Claire Boyle, a woman with a notorious history of child neglect and abuse, was found dead at her home on Main Street in Ochiltree, East Ayrshire, on Thursday, April 4. Police discovered her body around 7 am, confirming there were no suspicious circumstances.

Boyle, in her late 30s, had multiple previous convictions for child neglect. In February 2021, Kilmarnock Sheriff Court heard that she neglected a four-year-old child so severely that doctors initially feared he had blood cancer or a clotting disorder. The child's mistreatment became evident when he escaped through a window, clad only in pyjamas, and was found wandering the streets.

Claire Boyle (left, with then-partner Timothy Johnstone outside Kilmarnock Sheriff Court in December 2020) with who kept a two-year-old child in a cage in her home and tried to sell a child in the street for £1million

Police investigating Boyle's home, shared with her partner Timothy Johnstone, 60, discovered a two-year-old child confined in a makeshift cage. The base of a cot was removed and secured to the top with belts, preventing the child from escaping. Both Boyle and Johnstone denied child neglect but were found guilty and spared jail, with Boyle sentenced to 250 hours of unpaid work.

The cot cage Boyle kept a two-old-child in, for which she was found guilty of child neglect at Kilmarnock Sheriff Court in February 2021

Despite her history, Boyle was allowed to care for children after avoiding prison for two previous child neglect cases. In 2014, she received Community Payback Orders for being found comatose with a distressed baby and for attempting to sell the same baby for £1 million on Ayr High Street. She also faced allegations of shaking the boy, shouting at him, and abandoning him in unsafe conditions.

Boyle had ongoing court cases and faced new charges, including assaulting a police officer and breaching bail conditions in 2023. She was given a Community Payback Order and supervised by social workers for 18 months after claiming her erratic behavior was due to fleeing an abusive relationship with Johnstone.

Claire Boyle, was found dead at a home on Main Street, Ochiltree, East Ayrshire, on April 4

A Police Scotland spokesperson stated, "Around 7 am on Thursday, April 4, 2024, police were called to a property in the Main Street area of Ochiltree, following the sudden death of a woman. There are not believed to be any suspicious circumstances and a report was submitted to the Procurator Fiscal."