TWO MEN were sentenced today to a minimum 35 years each for the murder of a 21-year-old Glasgow man, marking what is thought to be the longest-ever prison term handed out by a Scottish court.
A jury found James McDonald, 34, and Raymond Anderson, 46, guilty of the murder of Michael Lyons in Glasgow.
McDonald and Anderson were also convicted at Glasgow's High Court of the attempted murder of two other men and a number of firearms offenc
es.
The pair will each serve a minimum of 35 years in prison for what the judge described as a "cold-blooded, premeditated assassination".
McDonald and Andereson were convicted of murdering Lyons in the shooting at a garage in the Lambhill area of Glasgow in December 2006.
The Scottish Prison Service said the punishment part of their sentence was the longest ever handed out by a Scottish court.
In sentencing McDonald and Anderson, Lord Hardie said it was a matter of "extreme concern" for society at large that organised criminals should have access to firearms. Such activity cannot and will not be tolerated in our civilised society."
He added: "In fixing the punishment part I take into account the seriousness of the offence represented by the circumstances amounting to a cold-blooded, premeditated assassination. I also take into account the other offences of which you have been convicted on this indictment."
Detective Chief Superintendent Campbell Corrigan, of Strathclyde Police, said: "We are satisfied that we have been able to deal properly with this despicable incident where a young man was murdered in broad daylight and within yards of a local school.
"The consequences were horrific and indeed they could have been far worse," he said.
The full article contains 295 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
