This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/mar/02/bailey-gwynne-witness-accused-knife-school
The article has changed 2 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
Previous version
1
Next version
Version 0 | Version 1 |
---|---|
Bailey Gwynne killing: accused 'brought knife to school regularly' | |
(35 minutes later) | |
A friend of the boy accused of murdering Aberdeen schoolboy Bailey Gwynne has claimed that he brought a knife to school as many as 25 times before the day of the fatal stabbing. | A friend of the boy accused of murdering Aberdeen schoolboy Bailey Gwynne has claimed that he brought a knife to school as many as 25 times before the day of the fatal stabbing. |
Bailey, 16, was stabbed at the end of the lunch-hour at Cults academy, one of Scotland’s highest-performing state schools, on 28 October 2015. He was rushed to hospital but died of his injuries at Aberdeen Royal infirmary several hours later. | |
The accused – who cannot be named for legal reasons – admits killing Bailey but denies the charge of murder. | The accused – who cannot be named for legal reasons – admits killing Bailey but denies the charge of murder. |
On the second day of the trial at the high court in Aberdeen, the 16-year-old witness alleged that his friend, the accused, who is also 16, brought a knife into school regularly, as well as a pair of solid-silver knuckle dusters he bought on eBay. | On the second day of the trial at the high court in Aberdeen, the 16-year-old witness alleged that his friend, the accused, who is also 16, brought a knife into school regularly, as well as a pair of solid-silver knuckle dusters he bought on eBay. |
“I said ‘you shouldn’t have that kind of stuff in school, you’re too young for that, you might get into trouble’, but he thought it was cool so he didn’t listen,” he said. | |
Describing the exchange of insults that soon escalated into a physical fight and the fatal injury, the witness said: “Bailey called [the accused] a fat cunt first and then [the accused] said to Bailey ‘your mum’s a fat bitch’, which really upset him.” He added that people insulted Bailey’s mother “all the time” because they knew how much it distressed him. | |
On this occasion, said the witness, Bailey reacted by physically confronting the accused. “I found it really shocking because he’s really quiet and he’s known not to fight back. People thought he didn’t have the guts, to be honest.” | On this occasion, said the witness, Bailey reacted by physically confronting the accused. “I found it really shocking because he’s really quiet and he’s known not to fight back. People thought he didn’t have the guts, to be honest.” |
“[The accused] pushed him back and they both started fighting. Bailey had [the accused] in a headlock and [the accused] was trying to get out of it and Bailey just kept hitting him against the wall.” | “[The accused] pushed him back and they both started fighting. Bailey had [the accused] in a headlock and [the accused] was trying to get out of it and Bailey just kept hitting him against the wall.” |
The witness said that this was the moment when he saw the accused reach into his blazer pocket and take out a knife, which he “thrust into” Bailey. On Tuesday, the jury of seven men and eight women heard that Bailey died as a result of a “penetrating stab wound to the heart”. | |
The boy explained that both Bailey and the accused were already “annoyed” before the confrontation. Bailey had been “ditched” by a group of boys who had told him they were heading to one shop to buy lunch and then went to another. The witness then said he himself had had an argument with the accused earlier in the lunch-hour. | |
Bailey’s mother and father wept as they heard the witness describe how Bailey had staggered 50 metres along the school corridor before anyone realised he had been seriously injured. | |
The trial continues. | The trial continues. |
Previous version
1
Next version