Man jailed second time for murder

Donnelly's original conviction was quashed

A man has been jailed for life for the second time for the murder of a prostitute.

Appeal judges had granted Brian Donnelly a retrial after he was convicted of the murder of Margo Lafferty in 1998.

However, at the High Court in Glasgow on Friday, Donnelly was once again found guilty

Donnelly, 21, was convicted of strangling Miss Lafferty after having intercourse with her in a Glasgow city centre lane on the night of his 19th birthday, on 28 February, 1998.

You were fuelled with anger and got out of control and banged her head off the wall before strangling her and finally dragging her body along the yard

Calum MacNeill, prosecuting

He had been allowed a retrial after the Court of Criminal Appeal ruled that the then judge, Lord Dawson, had misdirected the jury about CCTV video evidence which was crucial to the case.

After a two week trial Donnelly, of Garscadden Road, Old Drumchapel, was found guilty by a unanimous jury verdict.

Calum MacNeill who had also conducted the first prosecution, told the court that Donnelly picked up 27-year-old Miss Lafferty, of Oxford Street, Glasgow, after a works night out.

He had been celebrating his 19th birthday but went into a rage after being rejected by a female works colleague

He was captured on CCTV film with Miss Lafferty before the pair went to a disused builders yard in West Regent Street for sex.

Miss Lafferty's battered and naked body was found the next day and it was revealed that she had been strangled.

Margo Lafferty's body was found in a lane

A leather jacket which she had borrowed was missing from the scene and the jury saw a video which the Crown said was Donnelly, walking away wearing a leather jacket.

Miss Lafferty had fought for her life during the attack and scratched Donnelly on the face.

When he turned up for work the next day he told colleagues that he had been involved in a tussle with a woman whose boyfriend had tried to jump a taxi queue before him.

He told another colleague that he had been scratched by a cat.

One of his workmates, however, did not believe his story and gave his name to detectives investigating Miss Lafferty's murder.

During the trial, Donnelly alleged that the murder was committed by another man, a construction worker from Scarborough who was working in Glasgow at the time.

'Disgust or contempt'

DNA from used condoms found at the murder scene were linked to both men.

However, the other man was seen with Miss Lafferty on CCTV before she was seen with Donnelly.

The other man, who had convictions for violent sex crimes against women gave evidence at the first trial and denied being the murderer. But he could not be traced for the second case.

Mr MacNeill told Donnelly: "We will never know why you killed her, whether it was a disagreement over payment, or your anger which lacks self control, or out of shame or disgust or contempt that you had for the heroin addict prostitute you had just used.

"You punched and kicked her and she fought back scratching you. You were incensed, you 6ft 3in and her only 5ft tall. You were fuelled with anger and got out of control and banged her head off the wall before strangling her and finally dragging her body along the yard."

After the trial, Miss Lafferty's mother Madge, 62, said: "I always knew Donnelly was the monster who murdered my daughter.

"She might have been a prostitute but she was still a lovely lassie with a heart of gold."