European judges have ruled Scottish prosecutors violated the human rights of two murderers.

Charles O'Neill, 54, and William Lauchlan, 40, are serving life for the murder of Allison McGarrigle, whose body was never found.

Both have a catalogue of sex crimes against children on their records and were found guilty of the murder in 2010.

Judges at the European Court of Human Rights have now ruled delays in the criminal process breached their right to a fair hearing.

They had claimed more than £350,000 in damages but the court refused to grant them compensation.

The pair were accused of murdering Ms McGarrigle to stop her reporting their abuse of a young boy.

She was 39 when she was last seen alive in 1997 and prosecutors said they had put her body in a bin before disposing of it at sea.

O'Neill and Lauchlan were in and out of prison for sex crimes while the mystery surrounding Ms McGarrigle's disappearance continued.

It was only in 2005 that her death was officially recognised and Scottish police launched Operation Aspen to investigate the pair's involvement.

After new evidence came to light, O'Neill and Lauchlan were finally charged with the murder in 2008.

They were convicted and jailed for a raft of sex crimes in May 2010 and their murder trial did not start until after that.

In June 2010, some 13 years after Ms McGarrigle went missing, they were finally convicted of her murder at Glasgow High Court.

O'Neill was ordered to serve at least 30 years behind bars and Lauchlan received a minimum of 26 years.

Their appeals were dismissed in 2014. Ruling on their compensation bids, the European Court ruled there had been no "outright dilatoriness" in prosecutors' pursuit of the pair.

The criminal process had taken nine years from start to finish, however, and that was ruled "excessive".

The seven-member court found the pair's right to a fair trial, within a reasonable time, had been breached by the UK Government.

That right is enshrined in Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights and, between them, O'Neill and Lachlan claimed more than £350,000 in damages.

Refusing to award compensation, the court ruled the two killers would have to be "satisfied" with a finding that their human rights were breached.

The UK government has been ordered to contribute €4500 (£3730) towards O'Neil's legal costs.

Last year, O'Neill and Lauchlan lost a legal bid to see each other in prison and receive damages over "hurt feelings".