DNA evidence was taken from legal executive as he lay on operating table

Swabs had been taken from Leslie Cumming’s fingernails just before he was about to undergo surgery for multiple stabbing and slashing injuries.

Analysis of the swabs revealed DNA which matched Robert Graham’s profile, a scientist told the High Court in Edinburgh.

Amanda Pirie said it had been a “full” match, which, in relation to DNA evidence, was “as good as it gets”. She added that a similar match had been made with DNA found on a jacket worn by Mr Cumming at the time of the attack.

Graham, 46, denies attempting to murder Mr Cumming, 68, then deputy chief executive of the Law Society of Scotland, on 23 January, 2006, in a lane at the rear of his home in the Murrayfield area of Edinburgh. It is alleged he slashed and stabbed him repeatedly on the face and body with a knife to the danger of his life, causing permanent disfigurement.

In a special defence, Graham stated that the offence was not committed by him but by a third party, whose name he did not know.

The jury has heard that Mr Cumming was taken to Edinburgh Royal Infirmary, where doctors decided he needed an operation to explore the extent of the injuries to his body and to repair damage to his face. He was anaesthetised, but before the surgery began, which would include cleaning and treating wounds to his hands, a forensic medical examiner took swabs from his fingernails.

Ms Pirie, 39, told the court that she had been provided with mouth swabs from Mr Cumming and Graham which yielded DNA profiles to use as references.

She and a colleague had analysed the swabs from Mr Cumming’s nails, and those from the right hand produced inconclusive results. However, those from the left contained DNA which matched Graham’s profile.

Ms Pirie said it was estimated the probability was one in a billion of obtaining the match if the DNA had originated from a person unrelated to Graham.

She added that a Barbour jacket worn by Mr Cumming had been extensively bloodstained and damaged. Multiple areas of the jacket had been swabbed and DNA with a partial match to Graham’s profile was found at a number of locations.

Also, a full match had been found in a swab taken from the left sleeve. Here, there was again a one in a billion probability.

Ms Pirie explained that a full DNA profile consisted of 20 DNA types and when they were all found in a sample it was called a full match, as had been discovered in the swabs from nails and the sleeve of the jacket.

“In our opinion, the scientific findings from examination of the jacket and the left hand swabs are consistent with Robert Graham having assaulted Leslie Cumming as alleged.”

Ms Pirie said she and her colleague had considered the possibility that Graham’s DNA had transferred to Mr Cumming through “social contact”. However, they had concluded it was more likely to have resulted from an assault.

“The matches we found were full DNA profiles and suggested a good source of DNA from that person. You do not expect to find that from social or everyday contact. It is unusual just through social contact to get high order profiles to the extent we have,” she added.

The trial will resume on Monday.