Mum demands answers over son found dead with stab wounds in a Home Office flat

Mum demands answers over son found dead with stab wounds in a Home Office flat

Mikhail Ackrim’s body was discovered more than a year ago in a Glasgow flat, where he was found semi-naked and face down on a bedroom floor. Although he had been dead for several hours, the circumstances surrounding his death remain unclear. At 37 years old, Mikhail had drugs in his system at the time of death, alongside bruises on various parts of his body. Pathologists also noted small stab wounds on his shin, some severe enough to fracture the bone, which appeared to have been inflicted after he had died. Despite a year-long criminal investigation, the exact cause of his death has not been determined.

The flat where Mikhail was found is temporary accommodation managed by Mears Group, a company contracted by the Home Office to house asylum seekers. Police had initially attended the scene after receiving reports that another man had been robbed and assaulted with a knife inside the property. Mikhail was visiting the flat following a night out in Glasgow. Though the case initially made headlines, Mikhail’s identity was not publicized until his mother, Sheena Millar, spoke about it for the first time more than a year later. She expressed deep frustration that she still has no answers regarding the circumstances around her son’s death.

In her account, Sheena Millar described the toll the situation has taken on her and her family, saying, “It’s awful, you can’t even imagine what it’s like. My family are not getting any answers.” She went on to recount how the stress and grief caused her physical health to decline, including losing sleep and hair. Mikhail, who was born Michael Murray, had been studying nursing but left the course months before he died on 14 August 2024. On the night in question, he went out with a female friend. After leaving a bar late at night, they took a taxi to a man’s flat on Springfield Road in Parkhead, where they were later joined by three others and continued drinking.

Police arrived at the flat around 22:13 on 15 August, roughly 19 hours after Mikhail’s arrival, responding to reports of an assault on another man. The injured individual claimed he had been attacked with a knife and robbed by James Carter, a 42-year-old occupant of the flat who was arrested and charged with assault and robbery. Upon entering one of the bedrooms, officers discovered Mikhail’s body. The condition of his corpse indicated he had been dead for several hours. Sheena did not learn of her son’s death until two days later, describing her shock at the extent of his injuries: broken bones including a fractured fibula, bruises all over his body, and stab wounds. These factors, combined with the length of time Mikhail remained undiscovered, added to her distress.

The investigation involved three men who were initially arrested but later released pending further inquiries. The post-mortem report, completed in November 2024, noted the presence of alcohol and bromazolam—a potent and dangerous synthetic form of Valium popular on the streets of Scotland—in Mikhail’s system. The report suggested that Mikhail was not a habitual user of bromazolam. While alcohol combined with this drug increased the risk of fatal intoxication, the detected amounts in his body were relatively low compared to typical drug-related deaths, and his tolerance was unknown. Additionally, the report highlighted the injuries that Mikhail suffered both before and after his death, including multiple bruises and abrasions. Despite these findings, police have stated that the circumstances of Mikhail’s death remain unexplained

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