Knife thug had "large" blade in Alexandria main street

Barry McKenzie was clipped by a car while in possession of the knife in broad daylight.

A man with five previous convictions for knife offences was spotted walking down a street in broad daylight with a large blade.

At the time of the offence Barry McKenzie was upset over the death of his partner, a court was told.

His arrest meant he was on remand on the day of her funeral.

The 33-year-old, whose address was given as Low Moss jail, was injured after being clipped by a car during the incident on Alexandria’s Main Street.

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He appeared from custody last week at Dumbarton Sheriff Court, where he admitted having the large kitchen knife on October 2.

Procurator fiscal depute Kevin Docherty said McKenzie and a woman were in the area at around 3.30pm.

He said: “It seems McKenzie became involved in an altercation with a man who was sitting in a van. McKenzie or his companion accidentally bumped into the van as it was stationary. An argument followed.

“McKenzie was seen by a number of members of the public and also clearly shown on CCTV to be in possession of a large knife.

“At one point McKenzie moved on to the roadway into the path of a moving vehicle which struck him.

“He was clearly injured but continued on his way. The man he had been in the scuffle with didn’t appear to have seen the knife. Another man did see the knife and warned him McKenzie was in possession of it.”

Mr Docherty said police later traced McKenzie, who needed medical treatment for a leg injury from when he was struck by the car.

The fiscal said the knife was not recovered but could be seen on CCTV saying: “I would describe it as a large kitchen knife with a fairly wide blade, perhaps nine inches long.”

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Sheriff Maxwell Hendry expressed concern that McKenzie had five other knife charges against him and had served a 30-month jail term for knife possession.

The sheriff added: “You have got a man not in full control of himself walking down the street with a blade of five to nine inches.”

But the solicitor said: “The blade is up against the inside of his forearm. It wasn’t being brandished or waved about.”

The lawyer went on: “Ten days or so prior to it his long-term partner died suddenly and tragically. He was struggling coming to terms with it and said he had made an attempt on his life.

“He said he may have picked the knife up perhaps with the view of doing himself some harm but he’s not very clear about that. He had been drinking.

“The vehicle passing by made McKenzie’s own situation worse.

“While on remand it does appear that he’s not had the opportunity to grieve properly for the loss of his partner. He was in custody at the time of her funeral and wasn’t able to attend.

“He recognises the record he has is one which will concern you.”

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Sentencing was deferred until next month for background reports.

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