Glasgow man who stabbed friend 40 times jailed for murder
Gavin Riley ordered to serve at least 17 years for killing William Gibb in his Ibrox flat
A killer from Glasgow who brutally knifed a friend to death after inflicting at least 40 stab wounds on him has been jailed for life.
Gavin Riley was ordered to serve at least 17 years in prison for the murder of William Gibb in the victim's own home in Ibrox.
A judge told Riley at the High Court in Edinburgh: "Having listened to the account of this dreadful act it is clear you engaged in a prolonged and brutal assault on him."
Lord Boyd of Duncansby said the injuries inflicted on the victim were "truly horrific".
He said: "I note you claim to have no recollection of what you did because of the level of your intoxication. Clearly, you were under the influence of alcohol and drugs."
The judge pointed out that Riley had been assessed as posing "the maximum risk to the public".
Following the ferocious fatal attack Riley told another man to get a chainsaw so he could cut up the victim's body but he went to alert the emergency services.
28 year old Riley pulled a gun after he was chased but was overpowered and detained. It was later discovered to be a BB gun.
The murderer was taken to a police station and was seen to have blood on all his clothing, hands and head.
As he took off a pair of tracksuit bottoms a large, blood-stained knife with a broken tip was found in the trousers.
Riley told officers that they belonged to a relative and added: "I was cutting cheese."
The killer, who has a previous serious assault conviction for a bottle attack, had been friendly with 47 year old Mr Gibb who was five feet five inches tall and weighed just over seven stones. He had told his sister that he liked the man.
Riley had gone out and bought a three litre bottle of Frosty Jack cider on the day of the attack and invited an acquaintance Andrew McIntyre "to a pal's upstairs".
They made their way to Mr Gibb's home in Elizabeth Street, in the Ibrox area of Glasgow, and spent several hours chatting.
Riley and Mr Gibb ran out of drink and the killer told his victim to go and buy another bottle, which he did.
Shortly after his return Riley dragged the older man from a sofa onto the floor and repeatedly punched him on the face. Mr McIntrye said the victim's face was covered in blood.
Mr Gibb said: "What are you doing? I'm your friend." Riley then told the older man to punch him. He refused which appeared to anger Riley, the court heard.
He told Mr Gibb: "If you don't hit me I will hit you." When the victim continued to refuse to strike him he grabbed him again and threw him to the floor before hitting him in the face with an ashtray and striking him over the head with a table.
Mr McIntyre checked on the assault victim and put him in the recovery position after Riley briefly left the flat.
Riley returned again with a kitchen knife with a 10 inch blade.
He went to Mr Gibb and asked if he needed help to get up, but the older man said: "No, you've just done this to your pal."
The court heard that this seemed to anger Riley even more and he began repeatedly stabbing the victim in the back, legs and buttocks. He then knifed him on the left side of his body and slashed his neck.
Riley tried to wrap the victim in a rug, but had difficulty and started cutting his arm with the knife. He told Mr McIntyre to get a chainsaw, but he went to a nearby close to ask residents to call the police.
One witness saw what he believed was a body falling past a close landing window at the rear of the flats. Mr McIntyre returned and found Riley dragging the deceased's body, which had been stripped down to boxer shorts, and grabbed hold of a wrist in a bid to find a pulse.
When police arrived Riley tried to make a run for it but was chased and caught. After he was put in the rear of a police van he said: "I don't know what happened. I got pepper sprayed for nothing."
Riley, who had been living at his sister's flat in Elizabeth Street, earlier admitted murdering Mr Gibb on February 1 and 2 this year by seizing him, dragging him from a couch, repeatedly punching him on the face, striking him with an ashtray and table and repeatedly striking him with a knife.
Mr Gibb was found to have sustained at least 40 stab wounds and a similar number of incised wounds along with other injuries.
Defence counsel Gordon Jackson QC said: "It is a bizarre case. There is no proper explanation at all."
He said Riley had consistently maintained he had no memory of it.