Self-defence ‘nonsense’ says victim’s mother

Corrine, seen here with grand-daughter Elsie-Mai and husband Jamie

The mother of one of the victims shot dead by ex-paratrooper Danny Fitzsimons has rubbished claims that he acted in self-defence.

Security guard Danny admitted manslaughter with diminished responsibility, but pleaded not guilty to murdering Paul McGuigan and Darren Hoare.

He could face the death penalty when the verdict is delivered on Sunday.

Mr McGuigan’s mother Corrine Boyd-Russell has branded the shootings “executions” and has criticised fund-raising efforts by the Fitzsimons family to fly Danny’s father Eric and brother Michael to Iraq.

She said: “They are raising money so that family members can go out to see him.

“There are ‘Bring Our Hero Home’ posters all over Middleton, where they live.

“Why not raise funds for Help the Heroes or cancer research?

“Why would you ask the British public to put their hands in their pockets for someone like this?

“I wish I could bring my Paul home.

“We have stayed so dignified since day one and have tried to stay out of the public eye, but we are now at the end of our tether.”

Mr McGuigan’s fiancee, Nicci Prestage, has also refuted Mr Fitzsimons version of events.

She was seven months’ pregnant when she learned of her husband-to-be’s death. Their baby Elsie-Mai was born five weeks premature.

An Iraqi medical panel has ruled Mr Fitzsimons is fit and psychologically responsible for his own actions, according to reports from a BBC correspondent in Baghdad.

The correspondent also said the trial was adjourned in January for judges to consider Mr Fitzsimon’s psychiatric report and to take advice of the effects of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

Mrs Boyd-Russell said as far as they were aware, Mr Fitzsimons has never been diagnosed with PTSD.

She said they can also prove Mr McGuigan was not drinking heavily, as Mr Fitzsimons has claimed.

She said: “I am fed-up listening to all these calls to ‘bring our hero home’ and words like ‘self-defence’ and ‘boozy brawl’.

“We’ve got the facts and we have evidence that Paul was on his webcam talking to Nicci all that night so he couldn’t have been drunk.

“He was only with Fitzsimons for an hour or so.

“Talk of self-defence is complete nonsense when the post-mortem clearly states there are no wounds on Paul to even suggest an altercation.”