Twice, he had knife in same street – the second time it was murder

Published on Monday 20 October 2008 22:23

A MAN who stabbed a father of four to death while awaiting sentence for carrying a knife in the very street where the killing took place was jailed for life yesterday.

John Anderson, 30, was ordered to serve at least 12 years and six months after a jury rejected his claim that he had acted in self-defence in striking out at Willie Reeve, 41.

The High Court in Edinburgh heard that trouble had flared between Anderson, of Beattie Avenue, Aberdeen, and Mr Reeve's wife Julie, 34, and son Hayden, 16, who suffers from a disability and has difficulty walking, on 21 February this year.

Anderson was with his brother George, 33, and Hayden was injured during a confrontation in the street. A knife was later found near the scene.

The jury was told Mr Reeve had been "really upset and angry" at learning of the incident. A friend, Jimmy Graham, 42, said: "He said they (the Anderson brothers] needed battered… needed a good kicking."

The next day, Mr Reeve phoned his friend to say the brothers were in Beattie Avenue, and Mr Graham went to join him, taking a meat cleaver "for protection".

The four men clashed, and Anderson ran to his home on seeing the cleaver. He returned with a knife in each hand and plunged one into Mr Reeve's chest, hitting the heart, and said: "That's what you f****** get."

Mr Reeve collapsed and called to his friend: "They got me, Jim."

A jury took only an hour to find Anderson guilty of murder by a unanimous verdict. It was then disclosed that Anderson had been on bail and awaiting sentence for having a knife in Beattie Avenue in June last year. He had another previous conviction, from 2001, for possessing an offensive weapon.

Edgar Prais, QC, defending, said "The accused's violence was very, very wrong, but was reactive. His brother was being attacked. He took the wrong route to rescue him.

He knows that, and bitterly regrets it."

The judge, Roger Craik, QC, said that on any view, it had been a "vicious murder".

He told Anderson: "You deprived a family of a husband and father in cruel circumstances," adding: "I take the point that the conduct of the victim and his friend was far from blameless."

Later, Mrs Reeve said she had expected a minimum term of about 12 years.

"It does not bring Willie back," she said. "It does not make any difference, how many years he got."