A BRUTAL thug who murdered his neighbour by smashing him on the head eight times with a machete was today jailed for life.

The High Court in Glasgow heard callous Adrian Atkinson, 48, left Stephen Wallace to die and later bragged he had “done him in”.

Mr Wallace, 46, lay for two weeks in his flat at Williamsburgh Court, Paisley, before being discovered by a concerned friend.

His head injuries were so bad he had to be identified by his fingerprints.

Atkinson pleaded guilty to murdering Mr Wallace on February 18 this year by repeatedly striking him on the head and body with the bladed weapon.

Judge Lord Matthews jailed him for a minimum of 16 years before he can apply for parole.

He said the post-mortem findings were “eloquent of a brutal and sustained attack” on his victim, who appeared to have been helpless.

On hearing the sentence, a man in the public gallery shouted “Yes” and “murdering b******” before he was taken away by police.

Atkinson's plea of not guilty to taking a picture of Mr Wallace after he was dead was accepted by prosecutors.

On the day of the fatal attack, Atkinson was captured on CCTV footage getting out of a lift on the 12th floor of Williamsburgh Court, where both he and Mr Wallace lived.

At 6.10pm, he was seen again, emerging from the stairs of the ground floor and going out via a fire exit, wearing a different jacket from when he was seen earlier.

The court heard he then went to the nearby home of his friend Stuart Lister.

Advocate depute Stewart Ronnie told the court: “The accused said 'I've done that Stephen in' or 'I've just killed Stephen'.

“Mr Lister asked the accused what he meant and he repeated that he had 'done Stephen in'.”

The court was told that, on February 28, Scott McTavish – a concerned friend and neighbour of Mr Wallace – went to his door with the concierge but got no reply.

On March 4, he contacted the police to report Mr Wallace as missing and explained that he was worried something might have happened.

Later, using a key Mr Wallace had given to him, Mr McTavish was able to gain entry to the flat, where he noticed there were no lights on, mail had piled up and there was a “strong smell”.

Mr McTavish then saw his friend sitting lifeless in an armchair and phoned the police.

The court was told Mr Wallace was found with significant head and facial wounds and was “covered in blood”.

A post-mortem examination revealed he had suffered “multiple blows to the head”, including eight main wounds, and had no defensive wounds.

Skull fractures had fragmented and were driven into the brain, which was the cause of death.

During the police investigation, Atkinson claimed he last saw Mr Wallace on February 17 – but a small bloodstain matching his victim was found on his jacket and on the handle of the door to his flat.

Defence counsel John Scullion QC said Atkinson had been drinking heavily at the time and has no recollection of his actions but accepts responsibility and has expressed remorse.