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Jimmy Smith guilty of murdering brother-in-law Alex Cameron Jimmy Smith guilty of murdering brother-in-law Alex Cameron
(about 2 hours later)
A man who beat his brother-in-law to death with a mallet and an axe in West Lothian has been convicted of murder.A man who beat his brother-in-law to death with a mallet and an axe in West Lothian has been convicted of murder.
Jimmy Smith, 58, claimed he had acted in self-defence when Alex Cameron, 67, attacked him and threatened to shoot his wife Helen Smith on 19 January. Jimmy Smith, 58, said he acted in self-defence when Alexander Cameron, 67, attacked him and threatened to shoot his wife Helen Smith on 19 January.
He tried to cover up the crime by burying Mr Cameron's body under a pile of horse manure at West Cairns Farm, Kirknewton.He tried to cover up the crime by burying Mr Cameron's body under a pile of horse manure at West Cairns Farm, Kirknewton.
Smith was found guilty of murder by a jury at the High Court in Livingston.Smith was found guilty of murder by a jury at the High Court in Livingston.
They also convicted him of attempting to defeat the ends of justice by concealing the body and pretending to police he did not know where the missing man was.They also convicted him of attempting to defeat the ends of justice by concealing the body and pretending to police he did not know where the missing man was.
Smith had admitted killing Mr Cameron by repeatedly striking him on the head with a log-splitting axe and a six-kilo fencing hammer and burying the body in a shallow grave.Smith had admitted killing Mr Cameron by repeatedly striking him on the head with a log-splitting axe and a six-kilo fencing hammer and burying the body in a shallow grave.
But he had denied the crime was murder.But he had denied the crime was murder.
Judge Lord Matthews told Smith he would be sentenced at the High Court in Edinburgh on 4 August.Judge Lord Matthews told Smith he would be sentenced at the High Court in Edinburgh on 4 August.
Smith said he feared he was going to be killed when Mr Cameron ran at him swinging a bag at his head.
He said he fell over trying to avoid being struck, grabbed "two large hammers" and swung one of them around onto the back of Mr Cameron's head.
His typewritten confession read: "Pulling myself up I then went into a frenzied sort of numbness and was striking him several times on the head. All that I can remember thinking was: 'I can't let him shoot Helen."
Mr Cameron's body was later exhumed from the shallow grave where it had been concealed under paving slabs and a pile of horse manure.
His wrists and ankles had been bound together with electrical flex and blue polypropylene rope and his head and face were covered in blood from "blunt force trauma" caused by being hit with a sledgehammer and an axe.
Consultant pathologist Dr Robert Ainsworth said Mr Cameron had probably died very soon after suffering the principal injury, which crushed the top of his skull and may have caused his spine to snap.
Forensic scientist Juliet Riches said swabs from the handle of the weapon proved a match for the DNA of the accused Smith, and blood spots matching the DNA of Mr Cameron were found near the head of the axe and on the sledgehammer.
The court heard that Mr Cameron had links to various serious and organised crime groups in Scotland's Central Belt and connections "to do with Liverpool gangs".
He had been sentenced to six years in prison in 2011 for being concerned in the supply of controlled drugs after a cannabis cultivation was found at West Cairns.
The court heard evidence that animosity between Smith and the deceased was fuelled by the fact Smith's wife had helped the authorities convict Mr Cameron of drugs offences by keeping a log of vehicles and visitors to the farm.
During his evidence, Smith broke down in court as he talked about having to have his pet donkey put down three day after he killed Mr Cameron.
When defence counsel Murray Macara put to him: "It might seem you're a bit more upset by the donkey than about Mr. Cameron", Smith replied: "I loved that wee donkey."
'Callous and evil'
Following the hearing, Mr Cameron's family issued a statement thanking the jury for their time and deliberations in coming to "the true and lawful verdict".
Spokesman Ronnie Mill said: "Alex was a much-loved father, grandfather, brother, family member and friend to many. He is, and always will be, sorely missed by all who knew him.
"James Smith is a coward and a callous, evil, cunning and manipulative person who showed more compassion during evidence for a farmyard animal than he did for a human being.
"He struck a pensioner about the head and body with blunt instruments, bound his hands and feet and buried him in a shallow grave.
"He then tried to avoid detection by trying to remove DNA traces from the weapons he used and by phoning Alex after he had killed him to create an impression that he was concerned about his whereabouts."
Det Insp Stuart Wilson, of Police Scotland, said: "Alex Cameron was subjected to a violent assault on West Cairns Farm and sustained a number of serious injuries, which ultimately resulted in his death.
"James Smith then went to extraordinary lengths to conceal his victim's body before eventually confessing to his crime.
"As a result of today's conviction, Smith will now spend a considerable period of time in prison and I hope that the family of Alex Cameron can now begin to put their ordeal behind them."