Bradley Welsh killer received £20,000 from taxpayers to fund his defence

The gangland hitman who was paid to murder T2 Trainspotting actor Bradley Welsh has cost taxpayers almost £20,000 in Legal Aid.
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Sean Orman, 30, blasted Welsh, 48, in the head from close range with a shotgun outside his Edinburgh West End flat.

A jury was told Orman gunned down the former boxer after being paid £10,000 by a gangland figure to carry out the murderous attack.

Jailed for at least 28 years: Sean OrmanJailed for at least 28 years: Sean Orman
Jailed for at least 28 years: Sean Orman
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He denied murder and claimed at the time of the contract killing in April 2019 he was riding a bike alone in West Lothian.

Orman was convicted following a 12-day trial at the High Court in Edinburgh and sentenced to life with a minimum of 28 years behind bars.

The thug was also found guilty of attempting to murder David McMillan, 50, at his house in the city’s Oxgangs the month before the shooting.

It has now emerged he racked up a £19,233 legal aid bill to cover costs for a defence team lead by advocate Ian Duguid.

Shooting victim Bradley WelshShooting victim Bradley Welsh
Shooting victim Bradley Welsh
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The bill could yet rise further once final costs are calculated.

A witness told the jury that three weeks before the murder Orman told him he was going to shoot Welsh and showed him the weapon he was going to use which was a shotgun thought to have been made in the 1890s.

The court heard Orman was also paid to attack McMillan at his home on March13, 2019.

Ford Kuga was the suspected getaway carFord Kuga was the suspected getaway car
Ford Kuga was the suspected getaway car

Orman went to the house masked with other men and struck McMillan on his head and body with a machete.

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Welsh ran a boxing gym and appeared in Danny Boyle's 2017 sequel to Trainspotting.

He was shot whilst his partner and young child were inside the property.

CCTV footage showed Orman walking past a surveillance camera and captured him seconds later running the opposite way while still carrying the shotgun.

The ancient shotgun believe to have been used by OrmanThe ancient shotgun believe to have been used by Orman
The ancient shotgun believe to have been used by Orman

The firearm was later discovered during a Police Scotiand operation in Lanarkshire and a photograph of it was discovered on a mobile phone taken from Orman in maximum security Shotts Prison.

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Jailing Orman, judge Lord Beckett said: "The degree of planning which went into this might have seen you get away with this if it weren't for the courage of the citizens of Edinburgh coming forward to speak up about what you did.

"To shoot an unarmed man as he approached his own house was a cowardly as as a wicked thing to do.

"I have read the impact of all this on his partner who describes the traumatic impact that what you did and have lost their home and no longer feel safe."

"The court must do all it can to deter contract killings by imposing severe punishment."

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The Scottish Legal Aid Board (SLAB) said: "An important part of the Scottish justice system is that people accused of crimes, even those of an abhorrent nature, have legal representation in court.

“When they cannot afford this themselves, legal aid is available for them to be represented by solicitors and counsel to ensure the criminal justice system operates properly.”

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