A MACHETE murderer who beheaded his pal and previously killed his own father will today appeal against his life sentence.
David Collins, 47, will plead with Court of Appeal judges in Edinburgh to slash his 26-year prison sentence for the brutal slaying of 32-year-old Kevin Bishop.
Kevin’s torso was later discovered dumped in a bin outside his Paisley flat and Collins was sentenced in May this year for his heinous crime.
Collins told jurors he had been acting in self-defence at the time of the attack on father-of-two Kevin but was found guilty of murder following a trial at the High Court in Glasgow.
READ MORE: Crazed killer found guilty of murdering Kevin Bishop and chopping up his body
It emerged during the trial that he was previously caged for five years after killing his father, also named David, with a sword in 2002.
Speaking after Collins’ conviction, Detective Chief Inspector Martin Fergus, from Police Scotland’s Major Investigations Team, branded him “a very dangerous and callous individual.”
DCI Fergus said: “It is a relief that he has been taken out of our community and will no longer be free to harm others.”
A murder probe was launched last summer after Kevin had initially been reported missing by worried relatives.
Police found his torso dumped in a wheelie bin in the town’s Schaw Road but his head, arms and legs were never recovered.
It emerged during Collins’ trial he had effectively confessed to his ex-partner Anne Melville, telling her there had been a confrontation and that “Kevin died.”
Miss Melville went on to ask him: “What are you going to do? Fire him in a wheelie bin?”
But callous Collins insisted his victim’s body parts were “already away.”
After police found the torso, Collins later branded Miss Melville “a grass.”
READ MORE: Cops relieved as 'brutal killer' caged for life
The trial was told the cause of Kevin’s death could not be confirmed.
While giving evidence in his own defence, Collins claimed Kevin had come at him first with a knife.
He insisted he only swung the machete to “scare” Kevin off.
Collins told the court it took just five minutes to hack off Kevin’s head and around an hour to remove his limbs.
Collins’ appeal hearing will be held from 10.30am today in Edinburgh.
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