A dad-to-be has told how his hand was chopped off by a gangland thug with a machete, despite him having no part in a drugs war. Ryan Brown was set upon by a lone hitman wearing a balaclava and wielding a 2ft blade moments after stepping outside his front door.
The terrified labourer put up his arms to defend himself from a series of swings aimed at his head, leaving his right hand hanging off. The assailant rained savage blows on both the 28-year-old’s legs in an attempt to hack them off at the knees.
Ryan’s hand was severed in the ambush which was interrupted and his attacker fled. He underwent a 12-hour operation at Edinburgh Royal Infirmary, where surgeons battled to re-attach his hand.
