Ben McCulloch stabbed his friend Stephen Quigley to death and dropped him six minutes from help to avoid being detected.
Ben McCulloch, 27, turned on Stephen Quigley, 26, at his home in Barrhead, East Renfrewshire, on March 23, 2021.
McCulloch used a knife to stab the victim, a resident of Neilston, East Renfrewshire.
The assailant, a driver with a suspended licence, took his victim six minutes from the accident and emergency department of the hospital to a closed area.
The victim, who was lost, attempted to walk to A&E for assistance but was discovered dead outside a daytime ward the following morning.
Later, McCulloch asserted that he was dropped off far from A&E because he did not want to reveal how Mr. Quigley’s injuries occurred.
Initially accused with murder, McCulloch pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of culpable homicide.
The two pals were reportedly drinking that day in McCulloch’s apartment, the court heard.
They were having fun while sharing videos on social media.
Later that day, McCulloch and Mr. Quigley got into a fight, according to prosecutor Angela Gray.
The long-incised wound on Mr. Quigley’s right side of the head was caused when McCulloch grabbed hold of the knife and hit him.
Never has the weapon been found.
At 5.25 p.m., McCulloch left the bleeding victim outside a Royal Alexandra Hospital mental health ward that was already closed.
The A&E is roughly a six-minute walk from where McCulloch left off Mr. Quigley, according to Miss Gray.
Mr. Quigley was seen on CCTV walking for assistance while “unsteady on his feet” due to a head injury.
The following morning at 7am, nursing staff discovered him dead outside the unit.
It was determined that a weapon with a sharp edge and moderate power were used to inflict the damage.
“This would have caused significant blood loss, and this traumatic injury, together with significant drug and alcohol intoxication, is considered to have been the cause of death,” Miss Gray continued.
If prompt medical care had been obtained, “his brain damage would have been treatable.”
On April 8, 2021, McCulloch was arrested after being located at an Airbnb in Newcastle.
Defense attorney Ian Duguid QC stated to the court: “His family will be greatly troubled by the fact that his friend passed away in such circumstances, so he wants to apologise.
“He decided to leave him at the medical facility close to the Scottish Ambulance headquarters.
His stance was that he didn’t want to visit the ER, participate in his admission, or provide the hospital with information concerning his injury.
Judge Lord Mulholland as to why McCulloch failed to deliver Mr. Quigley without more explanation
Right, whether the decision was made correctly or incorrectly, Mr. Duguid retorted, “He did not know his friend had died or had not received care until he was picked up.”
The sentence was postponed until the following month pending background checks.
“Be under no illusions, you were responsible for this man’s death and you accept that you inflicted this man with a major damage with a knife,” the judge warned McCulloch.
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