Two men who killed a man during a disturbance in East Lothian last year have been jailed.
At the High Court in Edinburgh today, Michael Sutherland and Steven Archibald were sentenced to over 11-years in prison following a fatal attack on John Auld in Tranent on Sunday March 4th 2012.
Sutherland (31) and Archibald (37) got into a dispute with the owner of a takeaway in the High Street and began assaulting the man before Mr Auld intervened.
Both men then assaulted the 59-year-old, who sustained serious injuries to his head and body, which ultimately resulted in his death.
Michael Sutherland was jailed for six years, while Steven Archibald received a prison sentence of five years and three months after both previously pled guilty to culpable homicide.
Detective Inspector Gary Boyd, who led the investigation said:- “Michael Sutherland and Steven Archibald became involved in a heated disturbance with a takeaway owner over a minor issue and immediately began to use violence.
“When Mr Auld came to the man’s aid, the pair turned their attack on him to such an extent that the injuries he sustained proved fatal.
“Both have shown themselves to be cold and callous individuals who were only too happy to resort to violence, which on this occasion had tragic consequences.
“Their guilty pleas for culpable homicide reflect the overwhelming evidence against them for this attack and it is my sincere hope that Mr Auld’s family can now draw a line under this horrific ordeal.”
Founding Editor of The Edinburgh Reporter.
Edinburgh-born multimedia journalist and iPhoneographer.
Where’s the justice? They beat a decent person to death and they’ll be back on the streets in two years.
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