The Glasgow Crime Story of the murder of Euan Johnston

The driver of the Audi RS4 Euan Johnston, 26, was on the phone to his partner 33-year-old Danielle Carruthers to let her know he was on his way.

Johnston was waiting for the lights to change to green when an Audi Q5 drew up alongside his car at the junction of Shields Road and Scotland Street in Kinning Park.

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A man stepped out and opened fire with three shots before jumping back in the vehicle which then sped off.

As he was blasted, Johnston's foot floored the accelerator and his car lurched forward into a barrier, crumpling the front end.

Two bullets hit him in the head. One went through his brain causing a fatal injury. A third bullet hit the rubber seal round the driver's door.

The driver's window of his mangled Audi RS4 was also blown out and shattered glass littering the footwell.

The front seat passenger, former Scots guard Brian McMahon, 31, phoned the emergency service to say that his pal had been shot.

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Johnston would die a few hours later at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow after his life support machine was switched off with the permission of his family.

Meanwhile the blue Q5 had escaped onto the M8 over the Kingston Bridge towards the north side of the city. It had been a well planned execution, professionally carried out.

Detectives quickly established a timeline for the murder and a possible suspect David Scott, above, a 33-year-old with history of carrying weapons and violence.

CCTV showed the victim being tailed for up to an hour, before the shooting by the Audi getaway car.

Scott tails Mr Johnston (Crown Office)

In some of the footage the occupants could be seen repeatedly driving past the Red Pepper kebab house in St Andrews Road, Pollokshields, where Johnston and his friend had been eating.

The Audi Q5 was also seen seen tailing Johnston's motor when he emerged with his pal from the late-night restaurant.

As they made their getaway on November 15, 2016 the culprits may have been congratulating themselves on a job well done.

However they hadn't accounted for the fact that an off duty cop had been passing at the time of the shooting.

He had been so concerned by the erratic driving, not realising that a murder had just been committed, that he noted the registration number and immediately reported it to colleagues.

The PC couldn't see the occupants of the Audi getaway as the windows were tinted and it was travelling at speed.

Once across the Kingston Bridge they headed up Springburn Road past McDonalds, where their getaway was caught on a speed camera.

It then turned off into a residential street Leehill Road in Colston before speeding off again.

Detectives suspected that the murder weapon and a mobile phone may have been dropped off at a house there.

Officers later spent almost a week interviewing neighbours and searching gardens often at night under arc lights.

However there was no sign of the gun or the phone.

The car used by the gunman and accomplices was lated found burnt out in Balmore Road, Milton about two miles away.

A detailed forensic examination of the car however revealed two vital pieces of evidence - a hooded top which had Scott's DNA and a bullet casing that matched one found at the murder scene.

CCTV images showed one of the gun gang, Scott, wearing the same the Nike top and the zip being pulled up.

He was latest arrested and charged with murder.

Euan Johnston's funeral took place at St Columba Church in Glasgow's Maryhill in March 2017, around four months after his murder A horse and carriage delivered the coffin to the chapel.

Floral tributes included messages from his two young children.

One read: "To the best daddy in the world. I love you so much. I hope you are looking over me."

Officers escorted the family cortege from their home while colleagues kept watch at the service, burial and funeral reception.

A force helicopter also patrolled the skies amid fears of further violence following the execution.

The victim's father Euan snr, 44, was let out of jail for the day to join Johnston's mother Anne McChord for their son's send-off.

Johnston snr was serving a six year sentence imposed in 2014 after he was caught with heroin worth more than £2million in a car park He was on a home visit from open prison Castle Huntly near Dundee when his son was shot.

Scott stood trial at the High Court in Glasgow in April, 2018 almost 18 months later.

In evidence, Danielle, who has a child with Johnston, said she phoned him to see what time he would be home at the time the shooting took place.

She told the court: "He said he was on the way to drop his friend Brian McMahon off and would be home soon.

"Immediately after he said that, there was a revving of the car and a loud bang.

"I was shouting, 'Euan, are you all right?'

"I didn't know what had happened. It wasn't until I heard Brian screaming 'Euan, Euan, Euan' over and over again I knew something was wrong."

The court was told that when Danielle got to the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, Euan was on a life support machine where the decision was made to switch it off.

In her evidence Euan's mother told how she reacted when told that he had been shot.

Initially Anne McChord wasn't going to answer the late-night call from Brian McMahon which gave her the tragic news.

But after learning what happened, the 47-year-old raced to the hospital in a taxi.

Anne said she last spoke to Euan on the day he was shot.

She remembered him giving her money to get glasses at the opticians.

When Anne got to hospital, Euan's girlfriend and his father were already there.

Anne said:"They just told me that my son was dead.

"I could feel his heart beating, but the surgeon said it would be cruel to keep him alive."

During the trial it wasn't clear what the motive was for the murder.

At the time of the shooting Euan Johnston was awaiting trial on charges of dealing heroin worth £640,000.

It was the latest in a spate of shooting incidents in the city said to be linked to a feud between two ribs prime factions.

Though he appeared to be involved in organised crime it was said that the victim was well liked and did not have any obvious enemies.

In May 2018, David Scott however was found guilty of murder and sentenced to life imprisonment and told he must serve at least 22 years before he could be considered for parole He showed no emotion as he was led away to begin his sentence.

A second man Anthony Ruthven, 33, was cleared of murdering Johnston earlier in the trial after prosecutors dropped the charges.

At the time Police Scotland said were determined to find others who were involved in the killing, particularly the getaway driver.

Detective Superintendent Jim Kerr said: "This was a pre-planned, cold-blooded murder of a young man in the middle of a busy area.

"And despite being targeted, it was an act which was cowardly and without regard for any innocent bystanders who may have been in the vicinity.

"Our extensive investigation revealed to us that there was more than just one person at the scene of the shooting.

"We would ask anyone who has information that may be useful to contact police."

After the trial Johnston's mum thanked the police adding "This is justice for Euan. It's closure but my life will never be the same again.

"I have to try and move on. It's like it's not real —like I have had a nightmare."

Following his conviction in 2018 Scott launched an appeal against the jury's verdict last year.

Lawyers acting for him argued that the trial judge, Lady Stacey, erred in rejecting a "no case to answer" submission at his trial.

They also claimed that he suffered defective representation in relation to agreed evidence in the case.

But in March the Lord Justice Clerk, Lady Dorrian, sitting with Lord Pentland and Lord Matthews, rejected the appeal.

The murder of Euan Johnston stands out as one of the most brutal in recent years with Scott showing a callous disregard for his victim.

Lady Stacey appeared to agree telling him:"You coldly and deliberately cut a man's life short, leaving a grieving family.

"You carried this out in a public street and showed no regard to not only your victim but also to members of the public.

"The attack was a premeditated murderous assault which involved a lethal weapon. It has correctly been called an execution."