A 17-year-old male youth has been convicted of the murder of John McNab that happened in Leith in September, 2025, and a further serious assault in Portobello in March, 2025.
The youth, who cannot be named for legal reasons, pleaded guilty at the High Court in Edinburgh yesterday (Wednesday, 6 May, 2026). He will be sentenced at a later date.
John McNab, aged, 22 was found injured on Great Junction Street at the corner of Bonnington Road in the Leith area around 2.10am on Tuesday, 2 September, 2025. He died at the scene.
A 17-year-old male youth was stabbed around 8.45pm on Friday, 21 March, 2025 at The Promenade in the Portobello area. He was taken to hospital with serious injuries.
Detective Inspector Kevin Tait, senior investigating officer, said: “Our thoughts are with the family and friends of John McNab at what is a very difficult time for them. And also with the victim seriously injured in the separate incident.
“An extreme level of violence was used in these incidents. This kind of behaviour is never acceptable and will not be tolerated. This conviction sends a message to anyone carrying knives that they will be apprehended and dealt with robustly.
“I would like to personally thank the officers who worked on these harrowing investigations and the public who significantly assisted my investigation team.”
Superintendent Neil Wilson said that proactive work is being carried out across Edinburgh to educate young people and tackle knife crime and violence.
“I can’t stress enough the devastating impact weapon carrying and use has on our communities and our thoughts go out to all who have been affected by this type of crime.
“Officers regularly carry out patrols in areas where knife crime is reported and we urge the public to support us and get in touch with any information or concerns that they have.
“While bringing offenders to justice is vital in keeping communities safe, education to prevent offending happening in the first place is key, along with promoting positive life choices.
“We have a number of new initiatives on violence prevention in Edinburgh involving partners and young people and details will be unveiled in the coming months. These will focus on raising awareness of the dangers of carrying weapons and the impact of violence.
“Edinburgh is a safe place to live, work and visit but we will not be complacent. We know that violence remains a concern in our communities and we’re determined to do everything we can to reduce harm and keep people safe.”
Since her son’s murder Lisa Petrie has tirelessly campaigned to address knife crime and has embarked on a mission to increase access to blood kits across the city:
My name is Lisa Petrie. On 2nd September 2025 my son, John McNab, was fatally stabbed on a street in Leith, Edinburgh. He was 22.
We were best pals, we were inseparable at times, and now it feels like I’ve lost my right arm and my left leg.
No family should ever get that phone call.
I’m determined that John’s death will not be in vain, and one simple change could help stop other families going through this.
Right now in the UK you often need ID and staff checks to buy alcohol, razors or even energy drinks. But in many supermarkets, kitchen knives sit openly on shelves, easy to steal or buy with minimal challenge.
We’re calling on major supermarkets and retailers – including Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Asda, Morrisons, Aldi, Lidl and others – to:
- Put all kitchen knives in locked cabinets or behind customer service counters
- Fit security tags to knife packaging so alarms trigger if someone walks out with them
- Only allow knives to be brought to the till by staff, with strict over-18 ID checks
We’re also asking the UK Government and Scottish Government to work with retailers and Trading Standards so secure storage and display of knives becomes the norm, building on existing laws that already restrict knife sales to under-18s.
This won’t end knife crime on its own and it won’t stop online sales. But letting lethal weapons sit unsecured on supermarket shelves is an obvious weak point we can fix now – just as we already do for alcohol and razors. It’s a basic safety measure, not a ban.
Please add your name. I will deliver this petition, and John’s story, to the CEOs of the major supermarkets, the Scottish Government and the Home Office.
The more signatures we have, the harder it is for them to ignore us. I don’t want any other family to live with the pain we do.
Please consider signing Lisa’s petition (below):
