A 42 year old man appealing his conviction for the killing and dismemberment of a gay Scottish teen has been denied release while the appeal is being heard.

William Beggs was sentenced to serve at least 20 years in prison for the killing of Barry Wallace. His lawyers have cited nine grounds for appeal, including sensational news coverage of the murder that the attorney's say tainted the trial.

But at the High Court in Edinburgh on Tuesday, Lord Eassie refused to release Beggs on bail.

The murder of Wallace was the third time Beggs had been convicted of killing another gay man.

He killed Barry Oldham in 1987 by slashing his throat. In court the prosecutor said Beggs had tried to cut off Oldham's head and legs before dumping his body on the North Yorkshire Moors.

Beggs was given a life sentence for the murder but he served less than two years.

In 1992, after his release from the Oldham conviction he killed another gay man he met in a Glasgow bar.

But his most notorious killing was the rape and murder of Wallace, 18, in 1999.

After the killing he cut up the body and dumped the limbs in Loch Lomond and his head in the sea.

The killing earned him the nickname 'Limbs in the Loch killer'.

Beggs escaped to the Netherlands after the murder and had to be extradited to stand trial.

In January, Beggs made the news again. This time when he was given the right to have a civil partnership with his prison boyfriend in what is believed to be the first gay union behind bars anywhere in the world.

But prison officials drew the line in allowing them to share a cell.  A spokesperson for the Scottish Prison Service said that officials were powerless to stop the partnership going ahead but under no conciliation would the couple be allowed to live together..

Since his incarceration Beggs has been studying law books and said to be actively involved in his appeal.

Gay serial killer William Beggs will have a civil partnership with his prison boyfriend in what is believed to be the first gay union behind bars anywhere in the world.

But prison officials have drawn the line in allowing them to share a cell. A spokesperson for the Scottish Prison Service tells the Sunday Mail that officials are powerless to stop the partnership going ahead but under no conciliation will the couple be allowed to live together..

Beggs killed a gay homeless man in 1987 by slashing his throat. In 1992 he killed another gay man he met in a Glasgow bar. But his most notorious killing was the rape and murder of a store clerk in 1999. After the killing he cut up the body and dumped the limbs in Loch Lomond and his head in the sea.

The killing earned him the nickname 'Limbs in the Loch killer'.

Since his incarceration Beggs, now 42, has been studying law books. He is currently working on an appeal of his sentence.

When he announced to friends he was going to have a civil partnership he said that if authorities try to stop him he'd go to court.

He has intimated he may still seek court action to have his partner moved into his cell. The partner is described by authorities as a 43 year old jailed on charges of having sex with minors.

Civil partnerships provide most of the rights and benefits of marriage but without the name. They became legal in the UK last month.