TWO thugs have been jailed for carrying out a violent knife attack on a tragic Barrhead man in Renfrew on Valentine’s Day.

Kyle McCrae and Jamie Anderson were locked up for nearly three years each at Paisley Sheriff Court.

And they were told they will be monitored for a year upon their release from custody for the slashing of tragic father Barri Mason, who was left scarred by the incident.

McCrae, 22, and Anderson, 21, pounced on Mason, who used to live in Barrhead’s Divernia Way, in a lane between Charles Avenue and High Street in Renfrew.

The attack, which left Mason with a permanent scar after he was slashed on the face, took place in broad daylight on February 14 this year.

Mason, who has since passed away, helped secure his attackers’ convictions from beyond the grave.

The words he said to police officers on the night he was attacked formed a key piece of evidence used to convict the thugs.

Anderson tripped Mason up as he tried to flee. Once on the ground they repeatedly kicked him on the head and body and knifed him on the face, leaving him covered in blood.

The attack was witnessed by a 14-year-old girl, who was able to tell the court she saw “a red-haired man” tripping Mason up and then both men hitting him on the face.

When officers arrived to investigate, Mason said he didn’t want to give a statement as he didn’t “want to be a grass.”  But he told them: “Jamie Anderson battered me, Kyle McCrae slashed me.”

The information Mason provided proved to be of great importance, as Procurator Fiscal Depute Alan Parfery was able to use it to prove Anderson was the “red-haired man” the teenager had seen - and McCrae was the other man she saw attacking Mason.

The pair denied they were responsible for the attack but a jury found both men guilty - McCrae by majority and Anderson unanimously.

McCrae was sentenced to 35 months behind bars, while Anderson was locked up for 34 months, and the sentences were backdated to July. They were also made the subject of Supervised Release Orders which will see them monitored for 12 months upon release.