The deaths of two pensioners who were killed by a mentally ill neighbour are to be probed on the orders of Scotland's top law officer.
Ex-SAS soldier Martyn Smith, 73, and John Whyte, 75, died after being brutally attacked by Oskars Rancevs in a row over rubbish bins. Rancevs, 37, pushed Smith to the ground before kicking and jumping on him while Whyte was booted in the stomach during the incident in Oban, Argyll.
The former Latvian reality TV dance star told police after the attacks: "This is the best day I've ever had." Rancevs was later cleared of murdering Smith and the culpable homicide of Whyte on mental health grounds and ordered to be held without limit of time.
The Lord Advocate, Dorothy Bain KC, has ordered a fatal accident inquiry after ruling the circumstances of the deaths in October 2018 give rise to 'serious public concern'. A preliminary hearing will be held on April 20 at Oban Sheriff Court while the full inquiry will get underway at a later date.
The High Court in Glasgow previously heard how Smith had died of blunt force trauma. Whyte managed to escape after being kicked in the stomach twice and dialled 999 from his flat but died of cardiac arrest caused by stress.
Police only discovered him still holding his phone in his hand almost 12 hours after he had phoned the emergency services. In 2020, Whyte's family had called for a probe to take place into the fatal attack.
His sister Joan Drummond said: "I want a fatal accident inquiry into his death so we can finally get the answers we have waited so long for.
"Something went wrong. We know that. There needs to be an investigation.
"We need to understand what happened, what went wrong and what could have been done differently?
"Why can't we find out why my brother was left lying there for all those hours?"
Medics ruled Rancevs was suffering from bipolar affective disorder when he attacked the pensioners. In the lead up to the killings, a number of people expressed concerns to the authorities about Rancevs who had behaved erratically in a church, a pub and at a cinema.
Judge Lady Rae said: "This is a very tragic case. You are a serious risk to the public. I have no option but to impose a compulsion and restriction order on you."
A notice announcing the inquiry said: "The Lord Advocate considers that the deaths occurred in circumstances giving rise to serious public concern and that it is in the public interest for an inquiry to be held into the circumstances of the deaths."
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