Shot fired at man cleared over hit-run
Attack was murder bid, say detectives
A MAN cleared of a hitand-run was shot at and violently beaten in a gangland-style attack.
William Barclay, 26, was the victim of a “violent and sustained” assault, police said yesterday.
They are treating the attack as attempted murder.
Two attackers approached Barclay just after he got out of a car in Springburn, Glasgow, on Thursday afternoon.
One of them shot at him but missed and the pair then pursued him along Dykemuir Street.
When they caught him, they attacked him with weapons, leaving him with serious injuries.
The two suspects, both of medium height and wearing dark clothing, fled in a blue 4x4 vehicle. Their victim was rushed to hospital, where staff describe his condition as “stable”.
Detective Superintendent Kenny Graham said: “This was a violent and sustained attack which was carried out in the middle of a residential street in broad daylight.
“I’m convinced there will have been plenty of people who witnessed this incident and it is absolutely vital that they come forward.
“I would also ask anyone who noticed two men hanging around prior to the incident, or anything at all out of the ordinary, to get in touch.
“Violence and people who would brandish a firearm in a busy residential street have absolutely no place in our communities.”
Nine months ago, Barclay walked free when a jury at the High Court in Edinburgh returned a not proven verdict on an attempted murder charge against him.
Mark Bristow, then 32, was hit by a stolen 4x4 and then blasted by a shotgun, leaving him paralysed.
Barclay denied any involvement and was convicted of reset of a stolen vehicle.