Wife of ‘evil’ man guilty of shooting and stabbing ‘glad jury saw through his lies’

A woman who was stabbed by her “evil” abusive husband during a knife-and-gun rampage on a Scottish island has admitted she is “glad a jury saw through his lies”.

Rowena MacDonald was stabbed to death by Finlay MacDonald in a frenzied attack in front of their four children after he flew into a rage over false accusations of an affair.

Macdonald, who was jailed for 28 years on Friday After being found guilty of murdering his brother-in-law and attempting to kill three others, he tried to claim his autism diagnosis was justification for his murderous violence against Skye and Lochalsh in 2022.

“She let me down,” he later told a consultant forensic psychiatrist, trying to blame his wife for the violent outburst.

The court heard heartbreaking evidence of how their two-year-old girl held her mother close to her as they waited for emergency services who would later fight to successfully save her life.

As the children screamed and called for help, their father, oblivious to their grief, grabbed a newly purchased pistol and hundreds of rounds of ammunition.

He loaded up the car and sped off, beginning a series of attacks that August morning.

Reacting to his conviction and prison sentence at the High Court in Edinburgh, Ms McDonald said: “I am glad the jury saw his life and found him guilty.

“28 years to life is the maximum we could ask for. But it will never be enough to repair the damage he caused.”

Jurors were told there was enough ammunition in the house to “start a small war”.

Dashcam and CCTV footage on the Isle of Skye showed him driving along winding country roads on his way to his next victim.

His son-in-law, 47-year-old John McKinnon, was executed in cold blood in his kitchen. Shot to death while preparing breakfast for his six children.

MacDonald harbored a decade-long grudge for apparently losing the fight between the pair.

In his final act of cruelty, the killer continued driving the car, attempting to kill another couple with whom he had a grudge.

The court heard he threatened to kill a local osteopath he became fixated on over claims his life was “ruined”.

He suggested that John Mackenzie had aggravated his back injury after receiving prescriptions to correct the problem.

MacDonald shot him and his wife Faye. The bullets are still stuck in his face.

Passing sentence on Friday, Judge Lady Drummond told MacDonald he was guilty of a “series of brutal and senseless violent attacks” and that the statements from Mr McKinnon’s family were “heartbreaking to read”.

She said: “The last two years have been incredibly difficult for them all. They miss him and mourn him every day.”