Man who tried to kill stranger in train bottle attack jailed for 12 years

A man who tried to murder another passenger by stabbing him with a broken Buckfast bottle in a “wholly murderous” attack on a busy intercity train has been jailed for 12 years.

Thomas Craig, 48, attacked a stranger with a bottle on a Glasgow to Dundee service on February 16, 2024, pursuing him down the carriage and repeatedly striking him on the head with the bottle, causing it to break, and then the neck.

He then turned on the man’s friend who tried to help, stabbing him on the head and in the chest with the bottle.

The court heard that the second man suffered a wound near his heart and lost more than two litres of blood following the attack.

Craig was found guilty of assaulting the first man, Aaron Nelson, to the danger of his life and attempting to murder Glen Lennon, the second man, following a trial at the High Court in Glasgow in November.

Lord Arthurson handed him an extended sentence comprising 12 years behind bars and three years of supervision upon release when he returned to the court for sentencing on Monday.

CCTV footage released by British Transport Police (BTP) in December showed Craig charging down the carriage and raising his arm to smash the bottle down on one of the victims, before moving to a seat and changing from his blood-stained jumper into a clean hoodie.

Lord Arthurson said: “On a busy train you launched an appallingly violent attack on two men who were complete strangers to you.

“Members of the public have every right to be able to travel on public transport safely and without fear.”

Describing the incident, which happened near Larbert train station, he said: “You ran towards your first victim striking him on the neck with the bottle.

“The second man courageously came to the assistance of his friend.”

Lord Arthurson described the assault on the second man as “a wholly murderous attack.”

He also praised other passengers who came to the aid of Craig’s victims including a nurse who helped on board.

The court heard that the two victims were in their early twenties at the time of the incident.

Police and paramedics met the Glasgow Queen Street to Dundee train at Larbert railway station, where both victims were given urgent treatment and taken to hospital.

Craig had been drinking alcohol for several hours and had also taken cocaine before the attack, the court was told.

Tony Graham KC, representing Craig, said there was nothing he could say in mitigation but said he is a man who has struggled with drug and alcohol addiction and feels remorse over the incident.

He said: “He understands the damage he has done, he understands the suffering he has caused and he understands that those short moments on that train will live with and probably haunt forever his victims.”

He added: “This is a man who recognises he has done wrong. This is a man who recognises the potentially devastating consequences, averted in this case.”

BTP Detective Inspector Marc Francey said on Monday: “I am extremely pleased with the result the court has handed down today – Craig acted with mindless aggression that day, attacking his two victims over a minor disagreement.

“His indiscriminate and thuggish actions could have resulted in far more severe consequences, and he will now face the consequences and spend the next 12 years behind bars.

“It is thanks only to luck and to the lifesaving work of the paramedics that Craig hasn’t been found guilty of something far worse.

“I hope this sentence brings a measure of closure to the victims and their families after such a brutal attack.

“Violence on the railway is utterly unacceptable, and we will relentlessly pursue offenders like Craig to ensure they face justice.”