Leith Murder Sentence
Leith Teen Jailed for Life with 17-Year Minimum for Unprovoked Knife Murder of John McNab
Anonymous
A 17-year-old in Edinburgh has been sentenced to life in prison with a minimum term of 17 years for the murder of 22-year-old John McNab in Leith on September 2. The court heard the teenager chased and stabbed McNab repeatedly after hiding before the attack, in an incident that was described as unprovoked, with McNab pleading for his life. Prosecutors said the killing came just months after the teenager was released on bail for a separate knife attack on a 16-year-old boy at Portobello Beach, where he had also seriously injured his victim. Evidence presented included an earlier stabbing case in which the youth attended a meeting connected to buying cannabis wearing a balaclava and then the situation escalated into violence. During sentencing, the prosecutor urged young people to consider the real-life consequences of carrying bladed weapons, saying the conviction reflects both the lasting harm to families and communities and the long-term impact on the offender.
Key Points
1
Court heard the murder weapon was a 20-inch knife with the words “kombat tactical” engraved on the blade, and “several indents” on a black handle (described in court/prosecutor evidence).
2
After the killing, the 17-year-old allegedly messaged a friend: “Ran after him on the middle of Junction Street wi a big Rambo, he fell to the groon and I started stabbing f*** oot o him.”
3
The earlier Portobello Beach knife attack happened on March 21, 2025, and the teenager was released on bail at Edinburgh Sheriff Court on April 25—about four months before McNab was killed.
4
Enhanced CCTV of the stabbing was played to the High Court, leading some of McNab’s friends and family to leave the courtroom; several were wearing T-shirts in memory of McNab.
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