Erland Fraser who stabbed nephew to death in Orkney to be held at high security hospital

A man who stabbed his nephew to death has been ordered to be held at a high security psychiatric hospital under a compulsion order.

Erland Fraser, 50, left his victim with 20 stab wounds in the fatal attack at his home in St Margaret’s Hope, Orkney, on June 19 last year.

A judge heard that the killing of William Fraser, 21, had a devastating impact on family members of the deceased.

His uncle originally faced a charge of murder, but his guilty plea to the lesser charge of culpable homicide on the basis of diminished responsibility was accepted by the Crown.

He repeatedly struck his victim on the body with a knife and killed him in the attack at an address in Marengo Road, St Margaret’s Hope.

A court heard that Fraser has a mental disorder in the form of a learning disability.

A judge told Fraser that after reading reports prepared on him and hearing from a consultant forensic psychiatrist that imposing a compulsion order with restrictions on his discharge was appropriate.

Lord Matthews told him at the High Court in Edinburgh: “This is for your benefit rather than a punishment for what you did.”

The judge said he hoped that Fraser would comply with what was being offered to him at the State Hospital at Carstairs.

The court heard that treatment was available to him at Carstairs.The imposition of the order meant any decision to allow him access to the community in future would be under conditions set by a tribunal with oversight by the Scottish ministers.

Defence counsel Michael Meehan KC told the court that there was no opposition to the making of an order.

The court earlier heard that the victim had been with friends before ending up at his uncle’s door on the night of the killing.

A relative and her partner later arrived to find blood on sofas and the floor and the IT technician dead in the toilet. He suffered wounds to his neck, chest, back and left arm.