Man accused of murdering actor 'said it’s all going to kick off’

A man accused of murdering a T2 Trainspotting actor said in a message to a childhood friend “it was all going to kick off” in the days before the fatal shooting, a court has heard.

Bradley Welsh, 48, was fatally shot at his flat in the west end of Edinburgh on April 17, 2019.

Sean Orman, 30, has pleaded not guilty to all 15 charges against him, including murder, attempted murder, firearms and drugs offences, and is on trial at the High Court in Edinburgh.

Giving evidence on Wednesday, Levi Begg said she started to be in regular contact with Orman again in February 2019, although they had known each other from school.

The 30-year-old dental nurse gave police a statement on April 25, 2019 in which she told officers about a WhatsApp message she received from Orman on April 14 that year.

Richard Goddard QC, advocate depute, said: “In the message, he said he was sick of being taken for a mug and it was all going to kick off.”

Ms Begg said she did not “recall those messages from two years ago” but agreed she would have said that to officers.

The witness also said she was called by Orman at around 8.45pm on April 17, 2019 and he asked if she could collect him from the Kirknewton area of West Lothian.

He was said to have a small black bag with him at the time.

She told the court the pair talked about what they had been doing that day but could not remember the details.

Ms Begg said Orman asked to use her phone to make a call despite having his own available, but she did not know who he contacted.

It was heard Ms Begg took a wrong turn and ended up in a car park in the Balerno area of Edinburgh, where Orman “chucked” away another phone which she assumed was not working.

The trial, before judge Lord Beckett, continues.