Addict is stabbed to death ‘in drugs row’

[email protected] (Islington Gazette)
23 July 2009

A FRAIL man who had been addicted to heroin since his teens was stabbed to death in what is thought to have been an argument over a £20 bag of drugs.

John Duncan MacRae, 55, died after a 20cm knife was plunged into his chest, cutting the main artery to his heart.

The row happened in the hallway of his shared house in Caledonian Road, Holloway, shortly before 6.25pm on Wednesday, July 13

Mr MacRae could not be saved and died at the scene. A post mortem gave the cause of death as a single stab wound to the chest.

The killer, thought to be a local dealer in his 20s who was squatting in the four-storey house, fled the scene. The knife is also missing.

Detective Inspector Mark Lawson, the investigating officer, said: “The circumstances behind the killing were very tragic. It would appear that

Mr MacRae’s death was as a result of an argument over a small amount of drugs.

“The amount of drugs involved did not warrant the excessive use of violence that caused his death.

“Mr MacRae was a defenceless frail man who did not pose a threat to anyone. He didn’t deserve the manner in which he died.”

Detectives are trying to piece together Mr MacRae’s life and trace his next of kin – thought to be two estranged brothers living in Scotland and Holland.

Mr MacRae originated from the Isle of Lewis area of Scotland but had been living in the Caledonian Road house for seven or eight years.

It is a property for vulnerable old people who have had problems with drugs or mental health, but in the last few months a couple of youths in their 20s started living there.

Mr MacRae had been a heroin user for years – but had never received any criminal convictions.

He was usually spotted going to the nearby Caledonian Café, where he would buy burgers and chips for several of the house’s residents.

A café worker said: “The victim used to come in three or four times a week. He wasn’t talkative and, to me, he looked mentally ill. But he was harmless.”

Neighbours have been shocked by the killing, just metres from where 16-year-old Ben Kinsella was stabbed in North Road last June.

Tufajjal Choudhury, owner of N7 Pound Plus in Caledonian Road, said: “After the killing, everybody was scared. Nobody would come out.”

Paola Oddone, 38, a store manager living in Caledonian Road, added: “We are scared because we don’t know what happened. We want to know what led to the killing.”

Police are asking for anyone who knew MacRae to come forward, as well as anyone who has information about the stabbing.

A 55-year-old man was arrested after the incident but he is not thought to be the killer. He is on police bail. Anyone who can help should call the incident room on 020 8348 0200 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.