THE loved ones of tragic Renfrew man Paul Mathieson had waited 14 long months for justice.
Every day, they lived with the anguish of knowing the popular dad-of-one had been cruelly taken from them.
Now they are finally able to hope for a less painful future after his brutal killer, Jamie Anderson, was handed a nine-year prison sentence.
READ MORE: Sister of Paul Mathieson fights to change the law on post-mortems
Anderson, 36, admitted battering 37-year-old Paul and leaving him for dead when he appeared in the dock at the High Court in Glasgow last week.
Amanda Digby, Paul’s younger sister, has welcomed the sentence – but she knows it won’t bring him back.
While vicious thug Anderson is expected to be able to walk the streets again after completing his jail term, Paul’s 13-year-old son Jack will have to grow up without his father.
“It’s been a horror story for us,” Amanda told The Gazette. “The last year has really been horrific for all the family.
“No sentence would ever have been enough as it would never have brought Paul back to us.
“I can’t really describe what it was like to hear him plead guilty to killing Paul. It’s difficult to describe what that feels like.
“It’s been a long journey but we finally have some sort of closure.”
Justice caught up with Anderson after a painstaking police investigation which included a heartbreaking appeal for information from Paul’s family.
Detectives examined hours of CCTV footage to piece together Paul’s last movements and interviewed everyone who was in contact with him.
This produced a list of 22 suspects, including Anderson, who has a string of previous convictions and has served a number of prison terms.
When officers searched Anderson’s home and examined the clothes and shoes he was wearing that night, DNA was found on the stitching and welt of a trainer captured on grainy CCTV footage of the killing.
In court on Thursday, Anderson admitted killing Paul by punching him, causing him to fall to the ground, and then kicking and battering him on the head and neck in Houston Street, Renfrew, on January 14 last year.
Paul, who lived just yards away and had been enjoying a night out in local pubs, was found by a passer-by.
He was taken to the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, in Glasgow, but died from his injuries six days later.
Anderson was originally charged with murder but prosecutor Jane Farquharson QC accepted his guilty plea to a reduced charge of culpable homicide.
READ MORE: Closure for Paul Mathieson's family after six month ordeal
Footage from CCTV that was played in court showed Paul, who was carrying a pizza box after visiting a takeaway shop on the way home, and his killer embracing before going their separate ways on the night in question.
Seconds later, Paul placed his pizza box on the roof of a parked car, with the court being told Anderson thought this was a sign he was going to attack him.
Anderson then knocked Paul to the ground and, as he lay there helpless, kicked and punched him before walking off.
Paul’s cause of death was listed as blunt force trauma to the head and neck.
Judge Lord Armstrong told Anderson he had committed “the extremely grave crime” of culpable homicide and criticised him for leaving Paul for dead.
He told him: “The loss to Mr Mathieson’s family will be severe and long-lasting.”
Amanda, 36, said her family has “mixed emotions” over the nine-year prison term handed down to Anderson.
“The sentence was on the tougher end of the spectrum, so I am pleased about that,” she added.
“It’s been a tough year but it has brought us closer together as a family.
“Everyone has showed support and we are so grateful for everything the police and prosecutors have done for us.”
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Amanda believes her brother was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time and is convinced the streets of Renfrewshire are safer now that Anderson faces a lengthy spell behind bars.
“Hopefully this means he won’t be able to hurt anyone else,” she said.
“I just want Paul to be remembered for who he was – a cheeky chappy.
“We called him Peter Pan because he never really grew up and we loved that about him.”
Anderson, of Bank Street, Paisley, showed no emotion as he was led away to begin his sentence.
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