12 hours ago
Where Michael Ross is now as Prime Video's The Orkney Assassin airs
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Prime Video's The Orkney Assassin is now available for viewing, but where is Michael Ross?
In 1994, the Orkney Islands were thrust into the international limelight when 26 year old Shamsuddin Mahmood was brutally murdered in Mumtaz restaurant, a bustling curry house in Kirkwall.
At approximately 7.10pm on June 2, a masked man donning a balaclava entered the restaurant and fatally shot the Bangladeshi waiter before calmly exiting the premises.
For 14 years, his murderer managed to evade capture until a breakthrough occurred in 2006 when a witness informed the Kirkwall police that they had seen 15 year old Michael Ross with a firearm on the night of the murder.
(Image: ORKNEY PHOTOGRAPHIC/PRIME VIDEO)
Before his arrest, Ross joined the renowned Scottish regiment Black Watch at the tender age of 17 where he ascended to the rank of sergeant of a sniper platoon and served in the first Gulf War.
It was then in 2008 that, after a trial at the High Court in Glasgow where he refrained from giving evidence, he was convicted for the murder of Shamsuddin Mahmood.
Where is Michael Ross now?
Ross is currently serving a life sentence for Mahmood's murder at one of Scotland's maximum-security prisons, HMP Shotts in Lanarkshire, as reported by the BBC.
To date, he has served nearly 17 years of his sentence and during this period, Ross has attempted to escape on multiple occasions, including in 2018 when he tried to scale a fence.
Ross had crafted a makeshift ladder and attempted to climb over the fence while other inmates were exercising in the yard.
Consequently, Ross was allegedly held in solitary confinement for weeks and barred from contacting his loved ones.
(Image: PA)
His lawyer Aamer Anwar asserted that Ross was aware the escape attempt would fail but aimed to draw attention to his appeal against conviction.
Despite being found guilty in 2008, Ross maintains his innocence, telling The Orcadian newspaper recently: "I'm doing a 25-year life sentence for something I didn't do."
Ross' earliest possible release date is reportedly set for 2035.
The upcoming Prime Video documentary, The Orkney Assassin: Murder In The Isles, will thoroughly examine the brutal murder, the prolonged investigation, and feature interviews with investigators from the time, Ross' lawyer, and his parents, who also claim he is innocent.
The Orkney Assassin: Murder In The Isles is available to watch on Prime Video.
