SENTENCING STATEMENTS

A judge may decide to publish a statement after passing sentence on an offender in cases where there is particular public interest; where a case has legal significance; or where providing the reasons for the decision might assist public understanding.

Please note that statements may include graphic details of offences when it is necessary to fully explain the reasons behind a sentencing decision.

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Read more about victims of crime and sentencing.

HMA v Waldemar Jaronski

Jun 30, 2026

At the High Court in Glasgow, Lord Mulholland sentenced Waldemar Jaronski to life imprisonment after the offender pled guilty to the murder of Iain Gordon MacFarlane. He will serve a minimum of 19 years behind bars before being considered for parole.

Upon sentencing, Lord Mulholland made the following remarks:

“You pled guilty to murder. You murdered a man who had shown you an act of kindness by allowing you to stay at his flat, you having no place to stay. Whatever happened before you murdered the victim will never be definitively known. Your explanation is not corroborated and the only witness to the contrary is dead. You saw to that.

"Whatever the background you brandished a knife at him, and struck him on the head with a bottle causing him to fall to the floor where you grabbed his hands, pinned him to the floor, placed your knee on his neck restricting his breathing, forced a pair of boxer shorts into his mouth and forced his mouth closed, wrapped electrical cable and a knotted length of material around his neck, tightened the ligatures and strangled him to death.

"You clearly intended to kill your victim and you then executed your intention and murdered him.

"The man you murdered, Iain Gordon MacFarlane, was a talented musician loved by his family. The Victim Impact Statements handed to me from his parents and sister are heartbreaking. What struck me was how kind a person he was always helping other, particularly those in need. He was a magnificent musician and writer. His musicianship took him all over the world. He was able to master any stringed instrument. His parents describe the entire city of Inverness being in mourning when he passed. A local college created a patchwork blanket to honour his kindness. You robbed him of his future, taking such a gentle soul from his family and the wider world. You have visited a life sentence of profound grief and loss on his family. What you did was brutal and savage. You will pay a heavy price for that.

"There is only one sentence for murder which is life imprisonment which is the sentence I impose.

"I now require to fix the punishment part. The punishment part is the period of time you will serve in prison before being eligible to apply for parole. I say eligible as there is no guarantee you will ever be granted parole. Whether you are granted parole is a decision for the parole board alone to take and is determined by the risk that you pose to the public.

"You may never be released.

"In fixing the punishment part, I must reflect the need to punish you for the crime of murder and to deter you and others from committing murder. The law requires me to ignore any risk that you may pose to the public in the future. I must take account of the seriousness of the crime of murder of which you have been convicted which is, of course, very serious given what you did.

"I hereby fix the punishment part at 19 years’ imprisonment reduced from a headline sentence of 21 years’ imprisonment to take into account the timing of the plea of guilty.

"I will order that the sentence should run from 8 December 2025, the date you were first ordered into custody by the court for this matter.”