Police told not to stop car of Skye shooting suspect

Two police cars followed a shooting suspect off a Scottish island without stopping him before he went on to carry out another attack.

Police officers told a High Court trial they were ordered to tail but not stop Finlay MacDonald as he drove from Skye, where he had allegedly murdered his brother-in-law and attempted to stab his wife, to the village of Dornie in Ross-shire.

While there, MacDonald, 41, is accused of attempting to murder John and Fay MacKenzie in a shooting at their home.

MacDonald denies all charges and has lodged a special defence to the murder allegation, claiming he was suffering from abnormality of mind.

Sgt Christopher Tait, who was a police constable at the time, told the trial in Edinburgh he was initially told to respond to a stabbing on the island at Tarskavaig, but it was later revised to include a shooting.

Sgt Tait, 36, said he saw Mr MacDonald's Subaru vehicle drive past, at which point he performed a three-point turn and followed the vehicle.

He contacted the Police Scotland control room in Dundee and was joined by a police inspector in another car.

He said his blue-light sirens had been active but he had turned them off when he began following the Subaru.

Sgt Tait said Mr MacDonald appeared to be driving in a "normal" way as they passed over the Skye Bridge, but that he "sped up" when they approached the house in Dornie.

He recalled seeing the driver at the top of driveway holding a firearm before firing through the window.

The driver is then said to have run into the house, where Sgt Tait and his colleague followed before shouting at him to drop the weapon.

A taser was then discharged at the gunman and an injured man and woman were found at the home.

Sgt Tait confirmed when asked by advocate depute Liam Ewing KC that he had not taken "operational decisions" on that day.

Mr Ewing asked Sgt Tait: "Did you consider an attempt to stop the Subaru at any point?"

The police officer said: "It did enter my head to come up with a plan to try and stop him but at the time I was told specialist firearms officers were coming up to stop him."

Donald Findlay KC, defence counsel for MacDonald, asked him why and he said: "I was instructed by the control room."

Sgt Tait said he discharged his taser twice after running in to the house having heard "shouting and screaming" from inside.

He said he saw both occupants of the house with severe injuries.

Sgt Tait said he recalled the man had a serious injury to his abdomen, while the woman appeared to have suffered a facial injury.