Murderer to appeal conviction for shooting spree

Finlay MacDonald was jailed for at least 28 years last week

A man jailed for murder after he carried out a series of shootings in the Scottish Highlands intends to appeal his conviction.

Finlay MacDonald, 41, was given at least 28 years in prison for murdering his brother-in-law and attempting to kill his wife and two other people in August 2022.

MacDonald repeatedly stabbed his wife Rowena at their home on the island of Skye before driving 17 minutes to another village, where he shot and killed his brother-in-law John MacKinnon.

The marine engineer then drove for another 40 minutes before shooting Fay MacKenzie and her husband John in their home on the Scottish mainland.

Despite their injuries, the MacKenzies fought back and wrestled the weapon from MacDonald before he was tackled by police.

Father-of-four MacDonald denied all the charges and claimed he was suffering from an abnormality of mind at the time.

But he was found guilty by a jury last week at the High Court in Edinburgh, which had deliberated for just over two hours.

Scottish Courts has now confirmed it had received an "intimation of intention to appeal" both conviction and sentence for MacDonald.

John MacKinnon was shot and killed during the attacks

The attacks took place over a period of about an hour, starting at before 09:00 on Wednesday 10 August 2022, in the final days of the school summer holidays.

The first incident was in the MacDonalds' family home in Tarskavaig on the Sleat peninsula, an area in the south of Skye which is home to about 750 people.

MacDonald had a volatile relationship with his wife and suspected she was having an affair.

The court heard he was upset by text messages he had seen exchanged between Mrs MacDonald, 34, and her boss.

The couple struggled over her phone, before MacDonald took a knife from his pocket and stabbed her while their children were nearby.

The court later heard that he had "enough ammunition to start a small war".

He then went to his sister Lyn Anne MacKinnon's home in nearby Teangue, where she was outside unpacking a car after a family trip.

MacDonald went into the house where he shot her husband John in the kitchen, walked out past his sister and back to his car, saying nothing.

Mrs MacKinnon ran into her home and found her husband standing at the kitchen sink. The 47-year-old distillery worker collapsed into her arms and died despite the efforts of emergency services.

MacDonald then headed for Dornie to the home of John MacKenzie - a retired osteopath who MacDonald blamed for making a back injury worse.

Police responding to the 999 call about the attack on Rowena MacDonald spotted his Subaru and followed him to the village, near Eilean Donan Castle in Wester Ross.

Officers were advised not to stop MacDonald and were told that armed officers were also responding to the incident.

When he arrived, he shot 65-year-old Fay MacKenzie through a window of the house. He then shot Mr MacKenzie in the back while trying to protect his wife.

The couple then tackled MacDonald just as police arrived. One officer struck him with a baton while his colleague used a Taser.

The court heard that at the time of the attacks, Mr MacDonald was affected by autism and post traumatic stress disorder with depression, anxiety and a personality disorder in the background.

He told a consultant forensic psychiatrist that he had difficulties dealing with people and situations and he saw himself as a victim.