Rambo knives, designed for hunting and killing, are illegal in Scotland but continue to be sold online for as little as £44, a Record investigation has found. The blades have been used in multiple horrific attacks, including the murder of 22-year-old John McNab in Edinburgh on September 2, 2025.
Mother's Plea for Crackdown
John's mother, Lisa Petrie, 45, called for an urgent crackdown on unregulated sales of the lethal weapons. She told the Record: "These knives are dangerous and deadly. They aren't something you can just walk into a shop and buy or nick from your mum and dad's kitchen drawers. Yet kids are getting their hands on them far too easily. The fact you can get them delivered right to your door for as little as £44 sends chills right through my body."
Despite being banned from possession and ownership, the knives are flogged on UK websites. One site, Swords Kingdom, lists the blades for £44. Another, Collectible Blades, has prices starting at £67, and KBS Knives shows a listing for £108.
John McNab's Murder
John died at the scene after being struck by a Rambo knife on Edinburgh's Great Junction Street. In the moments before his death, he was heard pleading: "Please, please don't. I haven't done anything." The fatal stabbing came just four months after his teenage killer was released on bail for a separate knife attack on a 16-year-old boy on Portobello Beach.
The male youth admitted murdering John by repeatedly striking him with a knife and assaulting the teenager in the Portobello attack. John suffered multiple stab wounds. Prosecutors released pictures of the 20-inch knife with the words "kombat tactical" engraved on the blade and several indents on a black handle. John's killer will only be released if the parole board decides it is safe to do so.
Other Horrific Attacks
In July 2016, Steven Kirkwood plunged a Rambo blade into champion bodybuilder Michael O'Hanlon. Kirkwood was found guilty of culpable homicide at the High Court in Glasgow in May 2017. A witness told the trial: "It was a large Bowie type knife with a six to eight inch blade with a bright coloured handle. A Rambo serrated on one side." Kirkwood was jailed for over 14 years, later reduced to 12 years on appeal.
Det Supt Allan Burton from Police Scotland said: "This was a senseless death which was the consequence of a long running dispute between the two men. In July 2016, Steven Kirkwood armed himself with a knife in anticipation of a confrontation and used it to deadly effect on Michael O'Hanlon."
Murder of Danielle Davidson
In May 2023, a 16-year-old boy murdered mum Danielle Davidson, 33, with a Rambo-style knife on Constitution Street in Leith, Edinburgh. The attacker, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was detained for a minimum of 18 years after pleading guilty to murder at the High Court in Glasgow in December 2024. He had previously been charged with possession of a knife aged just 11. His sentence was cut by four years after an appeal.
In a written ruling, Lord Matthews said: "This was a shocking offence and the sentencing judge was quite correct to have regard to its nature. Nonetheless, we are satisfied that the punishment part he imposed was excessive and that he placed insufficient weight on the appellant's age, his adverse childhood experiences, including years of criminal exploitation, and his prospects for rehabilitation." Home Office documentation showed he was later 'the victim of modern slavery within the UK', involved in drug dealing and other crime.
Wishaw Stabbing
In February 2020, a 17-year-old boy stabbed his dad with a Rambo knife on a street in Wishaw, North Lanarkshire. He avoided jail when sentenced at Hamilton Sheriff Court that year, admitting stabbing his dad and acting in a threatening or abusive manner on Caledonian Road. He was placed under supervision for 18 months.
