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BLOODY MANIAC
Dramatic pics show blood-soaked killer held by cops after knifing dad to death in street weeks after early release from jail
Daniel Devlin murdered Dom Brown, 31, after he was challenged for raking through families' bins
THIS is the moment a blood-soaked killer was held by cops after stabbing a dad to death in the street — just weeks after he was freed early from jail for carrying a blade.
Junkie Daniel Devlin — who has 68 previous convictions — admitted murdering joiner Dom Brown, 31, outside his home.
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The High Court in Glasgow heard the maniac, 47, had been trying to buy heroin when Dom and a pal “pulled him up” for loitering in the street and raking through bins in Clydebank, Scotland.
Crazed Devlin then plunged a knife into Dom, who managed to stagger back home following last August’s attack but never recovered.
He was pronounced dead in hospital that evening.
Our exclusive photos show the aftermath of the stabbing when Devlin and his wife Donna Marie Simpson, 39, were detained by police.
Simpson also faced a murder charge but her not guilty plea was accepted.
Caging Devlin for 17 years, judge Lord Mulholland told him his victim had suffered a “catastrophic injury with little chance of survival”.
He added: “This was a young man — a son, a father and a brother. He was loved by his family and his life was callously taken by you.
“Your record shows that you are no stranger to carrying a knife and have convictions for violence.”
Devlin had been freed early from jail having earlier flouted a supervision order for a previous blade crime.
Tory justice spokesman Liam Kerr said last night: “This individual should never have been free to wander the streets.”
Anti-knife campaigner John Muir insists the slain dad would still be alive if his killer had been made to serve the whole of his previous sentence.
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Muir blasted Scotland’s “soft touch” justice system as it emerged Devlin killed Dom just nine days before his prison term for an earlier crime should have ended on August 14 last year.
But instead the violent drug addict was allowed back on the streets on early release. Last night John, 79 — whose son Damian, 34, was also knifed to death — called for tougher jail terms for blade thugs.
John, of Inverkip, Renfrewshire, said: “Like Damian, Dom’s death could easily have been prevented. This man had been convicted of a knife crime.
“Dom would have been saved if Devlin hadn’t been let out early.
“The simple truth is tougher sentences are needed. That is the ultimate deterrent and the only thing that will stop people being killed.
“Knife crime is worse than ever. It’s worse than it was when we were campaigning against it ten years ago.”
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Serial brute Devlin had been jailed in 2016 over two charges of having a knife, and was ordered to be supervised for 12 months after being allowed out.
He was hauled back to prison for another eight months in December 2017 when he broke the conditions of his supervision order.
But Devlin was freed early in April 2018 — and went on to murder Dom in August that year.
The court heard how Devlin knifed the joiner — who had never been in trouble with cops — after he confronted him for hanging around the streets.
The addict and one of his associates had been trying to buy heroin while Dom was out with his pal Stephen Morgan, 34, at nearby Cleddans pub.
Prosecutor Margaret Barron told how dad-of-one Dom did not know his killer but his friend recognised him from the local area.
She said: “Mr Morgan had become aware of Devlin being nearby. He and Mr Brown began to ‘pull him up’ for hanging around the front of Mr Morgan’s house whilst under the influence.
“Mr Morgan was also annoyed with Devlin for going through bins.
Echoes of dad Craig slay horror
By BEN ARCHIBALD
DOM’S slaying echoes the brutal murder of Craig McClelland — who was stabbed to death by a monster freed early from prison.
Blade thug James Wright, 27, was locked up for 20 years for killing dad-of-three Craig, 31, in a Paisley street in July 2017.
He was on the run from cops at the time, having destroyed the electronic tag he’d been ordered to wear as a condition of his release.
We previously told how 16 victims were murdered from February 2015 to December 2017 by cons who dodged jail or got out early, according to the Care Inspectorate.
“At some point Devlin responded to the remarks by giving them some cheek.” The two friends challenged Devlin before Dom went home and the furious thug returned to his wife Donna Marie Simpson’s flat where he grabbed a knife. Dom then headed back to the pub — but was stabbed by Devlin just three minutes after leaving his house.
The murder was seen by a string of witnesses and Miss Barron revealed CCTV had captured the victim “clutching his right hand side”.
She told the court: “Mr Brown was backing away from Devlin when he was stabbed once to the torso.”
Injured Dom managed to stagger back to his home and collapsed in his kitchen in front of his mum.
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Devlin’s defence QC Donald Findlay said: “His whole life centred around satisfying his addiction. That is what he was doing on the day of these events. He was in the area trying to get heroin.
A spokesman for the Scottish Government said: “Our sympathies go out the family of Dominic Brown for such a tragic and horrific loss of a loved one.
"Courts have powers to take into account the full facts and circumstances when sentencing including when an offender is on early release.”
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