Man On Trial Accused of Kevin 'Gerbil' Carroll Murder

A MAN has gone on trial accused of gunning down Kevin 'Gerbil' Carroll in a supermarket car park then fleeing to Spain 10 days later.

William Paterson, 35, denies murdering Mr Carroll by repeatedly shooting him on the head on body on January 13 at Asda in Robroyston, Glasgow. An excerpt from a telephone call made from prison in October last year of Paterson telling his girlfriend Sarah Maguire that he had been served with his indictment was played to the court. The court heard him tell her there were 350 witnesses on this list, including her dad. Detective sergeant Grant Durie searched the house of Paterson's girlfriend Sarah Maguire at Linn Gardens, Cumbernauld where she stayed with her dad. He told the High Court in Glasgow he found a bulletproof vest under the bed and that it was "unusual". Miss Maguire's dad Kevin Maguire, 70, also gave evidence that Paterson was in a relationship with his daughter and before going to Spain in January 2010 sometimes stayed at their house. It is claimed - while masked and acting with others - Paterson repeatedly discharged loaded handguns at 29 year-old Carroll shooting him on the head and body. Paterson is also accused of attempting to defeat the ends of justice. The indictment claims that on January 23 2010 he boarded a flight from Glasgow to Malaga "to avoid arrest, prosecution and conviction". Paterson further faces a number of firearms charges as well as another accusation of attempting to defeat the ends of justice. He is also said to have been involved in the reset of a car or an alternative accusation of being in the vehicle knowing it had been taken without consent. The jury were played an excerpt from a call made from Paterson to Miss Maguire in October 2014 from him in prison. During the call the jury heard him he got a copy of his indictment. Miss Maguire asked how many witnesses there was and he said "350". Miss Maguire is heard saying "sweet jesus". Paterson told her her dad is included on the witness list and said "they will need him to confirm he bought my phone for me". Mr Maguire told advocate depute Iain McSporran, prosecuting, that as of January 2010 Paterson and his daughter had been in a relationship for "a few years". Asked how frequently Paterson stayed at the house he and his daughter lived in, in Cumbernauld he said: "I don't think there's a definitive answer to that, I suspect a couple of times a week or on other occasions couple of times a fortnight." Detective sergeant Grant Durie told the court he was the crime scene manager and conducted a search of a property at Linn Gardens, Cumbernauld. He said his colleague spoke to the householder Mr Maguire and they then searched Miss Maguire's room. DS Durie told the court that during the search they found a bulletproof vest under the bed. The item was shown to the court and he said: "That's what it looks like to me, looks like a bulletproof, stab proof vest." Mr McSporran asked if it was if it was "unusual" to find it and he said it was. The prosecutor asked how many times he had come across a bulletproof vest before during searches and he replied: "That was the first time, sir." The officer told the court that Kevin Carroll had the nickname "Gerbil". He confirmed that a man called Ross Monaghan had been arrested and charged with Mr Carroll's murder. Paterson - who denies the charges - has incriminated six other people including Ross Monaghan and lodged a special defence of alibi claiming he was at his girlfriend's house in Cumbernauld on the day of the murder. The trial before judge Lord Armstrong continues.