Caught red handed
Gangland thug snared by taxi camera after bloody knife attack in street
A THUG linked to the Daniel crime family was caught on a taxi dashcam trying to kill a man hours after an Old Firm match.
Violent Kyle Beard, 27, stabbed Francis McCann in the neck following a disturbance in Glasgow’s Merchant City.
The 48-year-old slumped to the ground before being hit by associates of Beard, who sprinted off but was eventually held by police.
He went on trial at the High Court in Glasgow. But after two days of CCTV evidence, Beard – via his lawyer Thomas Ross QC – yesterday pled guilty to attempting to murder McCann.
Not guilty pleas to assaulting three other men that day were accepted by prosecutor Bill McVicar. Lord Harrower remanded him in custody and adjourned the case until a later date when further details of the incident and McCann’s injuries will be heard.
The murder bid occurred at the junction of the city’s Albion Street and Blackfriars Street.
The area was busy that Sunday afternoon after an Old Firm match earlier that day at Celtic Park.
McCann had been at the Strathduie Bar on March 31, 2019 before the attack.
A number of people were seen on CCTV running out of the pub as chaotic scenes broke out in the street.
A taxi driver passed, intending to drop passengers off. It was footage from the cab’s dashcams which played a vital role in the case.
One camera caught Beard plunging a knife into McCann outside the windows of a flat.
As the tattooed thug ran off, others with him punched and then stamped on the victim. Cider was also chucked towards him. One of the shocked taxi passengers could be heard stating: “His whole face is caved in.” Jurors were also shown photographs of large pools and trails of blood in the street after the attack.
McCann had been due to give evidence yesterday before Beard suddenly entered his guilty plea.
Eight others had also been accused of attempting to murder McCann. James Quinn, 22, William Barclay, 29, Jack Docherty, 29, Jamie
Kinnaird, 27, and James Gemmell, 25, instead pled guilty to lesser assaults on McCann before the trial began.
Andrew Quinn, 28, and Kahl Cullen, 25, had not guilty pleas accepted and instead each admitted assaults on other men that day. They will also return to court with Beard to be sentenced. Gemma Martin, 27, had not guilty pleas accepted for all accusations she faced. Martin is the sister of crime boss Steven “Bonzo” Daniel.
Her partner, Barclay, is a key figure within the Daniel crime family. Brothers Andrew and James Quinn are also associated with the notorious group.
However, sources say the siblings have fallen out with the clan since the attack on McCann.
Andrew Quinn was suspected of being involved in an attack on Bonzo’s mother-in-law Janette Connell in January 2020.