TRIBUTES have been paid to a young couple who were found dead in their East Renfrewshire home.
Derek Hurles and Nicole McGeachin were discovered by emergency services in their flat on Stoneside Square, Thornliebank, at around 10am on Monday.
Police said the deaths are being treated as “unexplained.”
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Derek, who grew up in Erskine, and Nicole, a former pupil at Shawlands Academy, are thought to have been together for more than three years.
Residents in Thornliebank described the double tragedy as “devastating.”
Derek had worked as a bricklayer for construction firm CCG since 2013, with colleagues paying tribute to him yesterday.
Alastair Wylie, chairman and chief executive of CCG, told the Barrhead News: “We were all extremely saddened to hear of the death of Derek and his girlfriend Nicole.
“Derek was well liked by colleagues and a very hard working bricklayer, who joined CCG as an apprentice.
“Our thoughts are with his family, friends and colleagues at this sad time.”
Friends who went to Park Mains High, in Erskine, with Derek also posted tributes on social media.
Paige Tweedie wrote: “Can’t believe this.
“We all went to school with Derek and he was such a lovely boy. Tragic.”
Neighbours in Stoneside Square said the couple hadn’t been seen for several days before their bodies were discovered.
One resident, who has lived in the area for 10 years but who wished to be anonymous, said: “It was a man and a woman who lived there.
“They’ve been there for about a year but I hadn’t seen them in about three days.
“The woman struggled with her health.
Police remained at the house on Monday
“The guy was a bricklayer and a good worker.”
Post-mortem examinations to establish how the couple died have yet to be carried out.
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A spokeswoman added: “At 10.10am on Monday, police were called to reports of concern for a person in Stoneside Square, Thornliebank.
“Emergency services attended and, on arrival, officers discovered two bodies within a property. They remain at the scene to establish the circumstances.”
A spokesman for the fire service said: “Crews left the scene after ensuring the area was made safe.”
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