Jail for teenager who murdered boy at Glasgow railway station

Justin was killed two days after his 14th birthday

An 18-year-old who murdered a schoolboy at a Glasgow railway station has been jailed for a minimum of 16 years

Justin McLaughlin, 14, died in October 2021 after being stabbed in the heart by Daniel Haig, who was 16 at the time, at High Street Station.

He was taken to hospital after the attack but never recovered.

Haig had admitted delivering the fatal blow but had denied murder. He was found guilty after a trial at the High Court in Glasgow.

Haig was jailed for life and will have to serve at least 16 years before he can apply for parole.

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The judge, Lord Clark, said the murder had "a devastating effect" on the victim's family.

"They are left with dreadful loss you have caused for the rest of their lives," he told Haig.

"Justin McLaughlin was only 14, a child, and he was getting back on his feet when you stabbed him. He was in a defenceless position."

The judge added it was "deeply disturbing" to see gang activity still happening in Glasgow.

CCTV footage showed Haig with a knife at the railway station

The court heard Haig had become involved in a scuffle with Justin and a group of his friends at the railway station on 16 October 2021.

The teenager pulled a knife out of his bag and was seen on CCTV chasing the group.

Justin tripped and fell before Haig caught up and stabbed him.

Haig told the trial that he had a knife in his rucksack for "protection" after claiming to have been attacked the day before.

He also said he had not intended to kill the 14-year-old.

Defence counsel John Scullion KC said that his client "bitterly regrets his actions and the tragic consequences for the deceased and his family".

Haig was found guilty of murder after a trial

The court had previously heard that Justin, from Coatbridge in North Lanarkshire, had begged for his mother after being attacked.

A post-mortem examination concluded that he died from a stab wound to the heart.

Justin's family said their lives would never be the same after his murder.

"He was the character of the family, his younger brothers miss him so much. He was their best friend as well as their brother," they said.

"He'll be forever our big handsome boy with a smile that lit up the room."

Prosecutor Moira Orr, head of homicide and major crime for the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service, said knives were blighting communities and destroying young lives.

"This case is tragic evidence of the destruction wreaked when young people carry bladed weapons," she said.