An Angus murder accused has denied making up a story that his best pal’s “jealous anger” led to the killing of Arbroath man Steven Donaldson.
Callum Davidson told Edinburgh High Court jurors that he had not fabricated a version of events that co-accused Steven Dickie’s reaction to trouble between Tasmin Glass and her oil worker ex Mr Donaldson was behind an attack on the 27-year-old at Kirriemuir’s Peter Pan playpark last June.
Davidson, Dickie and Glass all continue to deny murdering Mr Donaldson on June 6 or 7 2018 and setting fire to him and his car at Kinnordy Loch nature reserve on the outskirts of Kirriemuir.
On the trial’s 17th day, Davidson took to the stand for the second day of evidence in his own defence and was questioned by Dickie’s senior counsel, Ian Duguid QC, firstly about a baseball bat which he had collected from his cousin Michael Davidson’s home on the night of June 6.
Davidson has told the trial he had been asked by Dickie to get the “thingy”, adding that he knew he meant the bat because of previous requests by his co-accused to get “the thingy”.
Mr Duguid suggested to the accused his version of events that Dickie had walked up Kirrie Hill with the bat concealed down his back, then taken it to Kinnordy in Mr Donaldson’s BMW before striking him with it and breaking it made no sense.
The QC put it to Davidson: “The fact of the matter is he (Dickie) didn’t leave any of his DNA on the bat because he never touched the bat?”
“No,” replied Davidson.
Mr Duguid then put it to the accused that evidence he previously gave about the reason for the two men going to Kirrie Hill was because of Dickie’s “jealous anger” was fabricated, which Davidson replied was not the case.
Davidson added: “It’ll not be the first time things have led one thing to another in the case of Steven and love rivals.”
The trial, before Lord Pentland and a jury of eight women and seven men, continues.
