ABERDEEN KILLER ALLOWED OUT FOR SHOPPING TRIPS AFTER NINE YEARS
Neil Cumming, aged 52, is a man convicted of killing his wife Jane, who was 40 years old, in 2011.The murder occurred in their home in Longforgan, near Dundee, where he stabbed her 36 times.
Although he was initially charged with murder, he was acquitted on the grounds of insanity after his legal team argued he was not mentally sound at the time of the attack.
The presiding judge, Norman Ritchie QC, ordered that he be detained indefinitely in a mental health facility.
Recently, however, Cumming has been transferred from the high-security Carstairs hospital to a lower-security hospital in Aberdeen.
There, he now has increased freedom, including routine outings such as shopping.
Earlier this week, he was observed socializing with customers at a supermarket in Berryden retail park after spending around half an hour inside.
Cumming spent nine years at Carstairs before being moved to Royal Cornhill Hospital, where staff reportedly give him more autonomy to help him reintegrate gradually into society.
An informant stated that he is permitted to leave the hospital several times each week in preparation for possible full freedom, which is expected in the near future.
Cumming has a history of mental health challenges, substance abuse issues at the time of the killing, and multiple hospital admissions.
The community in Aberdeen remains largely unaware of his violent history, and he is not recognized locally as someone with such a past.
The case has sparked controversy over his early release and the fact that he has been out of custody for only nine years, despite the severity of his crime.
