A CELEBRITY chef has spoken out in defence of Asperger's Syndrome sufferers after his brother's killer used the condition in a sick attempt to get away with murder.

Ferrier Richardson, who is personal chef to the President and First Lady of Gabon, insisted twisted Luke Quinn's shock claims could have had "severe repercussions" for genuine sufferers.

Martial arts fan and tele sales worker Quinn, 33, denied murdering complete stranger Simon Richardson and said he was suffering from diminished respons-ibility due to Asperger's, a form of autism.

In yesterday's Evening Times, Ferrier spoke exclusively about his grief and anger at the loss of his 45-year-old brother who was stamped on and kicked to death in an unprovoked attack in Glasgow city centre in November last year.

Quinn, from Busby, East Renfrewshire, was convic-ted of murder at the High Court in Glasgow on Tuesday and will be sentenced next month.

Ferrier is calling for a "very long jail sentence" to make our streets safer and prevent any other family suffering they way they have over the past year.

The chef, who was the first chairman of Glasgow's Restaurateur Association, and creator of prestigious restaurants in the city including Yes and Eurasia, plans to move back to Glasgow's East End in a few years' time.

He said: "We are grateful to people within the court system who brought us to this verdict and most of all to the jury for coming to this conclusion because people who genuinely have Asperger's Syndrome have not been tarnished.

"It would have had severe repercussions for those who do suffer genuinely from this condition if this person had got away with this. It would have sent out the message that anyone who is suffering from Asperger's should not be allowed to have any form of alcohol in any social context and maybe should not be allowed to walk the streets and that for me is a big thing."

Ferrier also thanked witnesses who have been left, "scarred mentally for life," after giving evidence, as well as police, family and friends for their support.

He said: "We are grateful to all of the people who have helped us through this past year.

"We are grateful for the support we have had from the police especially when we initially found out about Simon's death and how they helped us through that and for the way they conducted their inquiry and how they found him so quickly.

"Witnesses have said that this event will live with them for the rest of their lives, so it is just not my family and Simon's friends who have been scarred mentally for life."

Ferrier said that his brother's unblemished reputation remained intact, despite attempts by Quinn's defence QC Donald Findlay during the trial.

He added: "I am relieved that Simon has been proven not to be involved in any way in what happened to him. I am relieved because this person is now off the streets and I hope he gets put away for a long, long time.

"The bottom line is that Simon cannot be returned to us. All we can hope is that Glasgow, Scotland and the world is a safer place with this man behind bars.

"We will never forget what happened to him and we will miss him until the day we die.

"During the five day trial, we had an average of 20 people at court every day for Simon and that says something about how much people loved him.

"It was painful having to sit through that whole thing while Donald Findlay ripped my brother's character apart and insinuated things that were not true."

janice.burns@eveningtimes.co.uk