A police officer recalled finding the dead body of a woman allegedly murdered by her sister and daughter before being told she was "just asleep".

Constable Ryan McIntyre made the discovery after calling at the home of Sharon Greenop in Troon, South Ayrshire, in November 2016.

The constable remembered the "smell of death".

Mr McIntyre and a colleague went on to speak with Sharon's sister Lynnette Greenop.

A jury heard she appeared "perfectly calm" at one stage and seemed "refusing to accept" the death.

The evidence was heard at the High Court in Glasgow.

Lynnette, 40, and Sharon's daughter Shayla Greenop, 20, are accused of murdering the mum at their home in Troon.

It is claimed the 46 year-old was assaulted on various occasions between September 8 and November 10, 2016.

The court earlier heard how the next door neighbour of Sharon had gone to police after finding a pungent smell in his own house.

Mr McIntyre was one officers who turned up at Sharon's home on November 10, 2016.

It was Lynnette who allowed them inside.

Mr McIntyre said he initially spotted candles burning.

He opened a bedroom door and first found a "fresh white bread sandwich" near a bed.

But the constable went on to discover a dead body "covered neck to toe in a white bed sheet".

Mr McIntyre said: "There was a strong odour which I can only describe as the smell of death."

The officer, who had only been in the job ten months, remembered his colleague patting him on the shoulder before they went to speak to Lynnette.

She was initially said to be "perfectly calm" and "not expressing any concern".

Mr McIntyre went on: "My colleague asked what had happened up there.

"Lynnette replied: 'What do you mean?'. She appeared genuinely inquisitive.

"My colleague said: 'Your sister is dead'. She replied: 'She is not dead. She is just sleeping'.

"My colleague stated she had been dead a long time.

"Lynnette then began crying, entered a state of disbelief and was almost refusing to accept what we had saw."

Lynnette was taken into a police van while moves were made to make the house a crime scene.

She claimed she had last spoken to Sharon two days earlier and had "heard her moving about".

But Mr McIntyre said: "I thought at the time this could not be true and Lynnette was disassociating herself from her sister's death."

The officer added Lynnette went on to become "significantly calmer".

This included her chatting about her niece Shayla and what bands they liked.

Her QC Frances McMenamin later asked Mr McIntyre: "Given what you found in the room and Lynnette's reaction, the whole scenario was utterly bizarre?"

He replied: "That is fair to say."

The murder charge alleges Sharon was repeatedly struck with "object or objects" and had her neck compressed.

It is said injuries were also inflicted "by means unknown" and that there was a failure to obtain medical help.

Sharon is stated to have been so severely hurt that she died.

The two accused, who both live in Ayr, South Ayrshire, deny all charges.

The trial, before Lady Carmichael, continues.