A MAN is facing a life sentence after being convicted of murdering a Celtic fan and attempting to murder another male on a busy city street.
Dylan Curran, 25, took 30-year-old Peter Mullen’s life by repeatedly stabbing him with a knife in Leith Street, Edinburgh, on June 2 2023.
The high court in the city also heard how Curran also tried to kill John McFarlane by repeatedly striking him with a blade on his head and body on the same date on the same street.
The news emerged at the end of a two week long trial before judge Lady Ross. Curran, also of Edinburgh, pleaded not guilty and claimed he had an “abnormality of mind” at the time of the incidents.
However, jurors rejected the diminished responsibility defence and found him guilty on charges of murder and attempted murder.
This prompted Lady Ross to tell Curran that he would be jailed for life. But before she could impose a minimum term on him, Lady Ross said she wanted to know more about his background.
She said: “By verdict of the jury, you have been convicted on the charges of murder and attempted murder.
“The sentence for these offences is fixed by law – it is life imprisonment. I must give consideration to the punishment part of the sentence.
“I will defer sentence in order to obtain a criminal justice social work report.”
The dad-of-three was rushed from the crime scene to the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh but passed away a short time after the attack.
He was a known Hoops fan. Dozens of floral tributes and online condolences were left for the Hoops fanatic at the time including from his fiancee, dad and the Leith Celtic Supporters Club.
On June 4 2023, the Leith Celtic Supporters Club made a touching online tribute to Peter.
They wrote: “It is with great sadness and a heavy heart but would like us to pay tribute to a former member and user of the Leith bus who has been tragically taken from us.
“Peter Mullen was a loving caring happy young man who loved the Celtic and frequented the bus many times with his dad and his sister.
“He will be deeply missed by all his loving family and friends.”
His distraught relatives also laid floral tributes and a Celtic scarf was tied to a barrier at the scene.
During proceedings, Mr Mullen’s brother Logan Sizer, 24, told jurors how his loved one told him he’d been stabbed following the “confrontation” with Curran.
Mr Sizer said he and his sibling had spent the evening of June 2 2023 drinking in nearby pubs.
The court heard how Mr Sizer has told the police of how a “ginger” haired male who was with other people made a comment to him and Mr Mullen as they walked past each other.
Mr Sizer told prosecutor David McLean that he told the male to “eff off” but that the group started to follow him and Mr Mullen. Mr Sizer said he and his brother turned to face the group.
The witness then said a woman in the group made a “beeline” towards him and she tried to “claw” his face.
Mr Sizer, who gave evidence via video link, said: “I remember punching the woman. I turned around and Peter was on the floor telling me he had been stabbed.
“He lifted his top and I saw the stab wound on his left side.
“I dropped to my knees, applied pressure to the wounds and rang 999.”
Mr Sizer told the court that he and Mr Mullen were half brothers and were working on a building site in Edinburgh. They were supposed to visit family in Leeds, Yorkshire, on June 2 2023 but couldn’t go due to train strikes.
Mr Sizer told the court that he and Mr Mullen had been drinking in a branch of Wetherspoon’s in the city’s Omni Centre in the hours before the attack.
During his evidence, Mr Sizer spoke of the impact that Mr Mullen had on his life.
He added: “He was basically like a dad to me. He brought me up and he looked out for me.
“He taught me so much.”
The court also heard evidence that he then attempted to murder Mr McFarlane. Police apprehended Curran soon after the attacks. They gathered enough evidence to bring him to court.
In his closing speech, prosecutor David McLean told jurors that there was enough evidence available to find Curran guilty of the crimes.
He added: “There is no dispute that the accused stabbed the deceased. There is also no dispute that the accused’s actions caused the death of the deceased.”
Curran stabbed him twice on the body with a knife with one of the wounds proving fatal.
The prosecutor told jurors: “I would suggest in this case you should have no hesitation in concluding the accused’s first instinct was to go for a knife.”
He said it was not in dispute that Curran suffers from complex PTSD but that what was seen on CCTV footage was that Curran was angry.
He said they had seen Curran run at an unknown male in an earlier incident and become involved in a scuffle. At that point Curran appeared to be “itching for a fight,” said Mr McLean.
He said it was pretty clear that the unknown male tried to wind up Curran and succeeded in that and added: “But unfortunately the consequences were visited on Mr Mullen.”
“Unbeknown to anyone else the accused had brought a knife into town and he used it and he used it twice to lethal effect,” he said.
On Friday, Curran’s advocate John Scullion KC told Lady Ross that he would reserve his mitigation until the sentencing hearing next month.
Lady Ross remanded Curran in custody. He will be sentenced at the High Court in Edinburgh.
