Paisley shopkeeper Javaid Ali dies two weeks after being stabbed

A shopkeeper has died in hospital two weeks after being attacked in his Paisley grocer.

Javaid Ali, who was married and had three sons, was stabbed by an unknown assailant in his Sunshine Grocers shop in Green Road on 15 June.

Strathclyde Police said he died at the Royal Alexandra Hospital on Friday.

Detectives said they had now launched a murder inquiry as a result of Mr Ali's death. They appealed for anyone with information to contact them.

Officers are continuing to review CCTV footage and conduct door-to-door inquiries, and are also assessing information gathered during a stop and interview operation carried out exactly a week after Mr Ali was attacked.

Detectives are keen to speak to anyone who was in the vicinity of the incident on the day Mr Ali was attacked, particularly the area between Fulbar Road and Lounsdale Road on the Elderslie to Paisley cycle path.

Det Ch Insp Duncan Sloan said: "Unfortunately, Mr Ali's injuries were such that he was unable to recover from them.

"Mr Ali was a family man, married with three sons and our thoughts are with his family at this time. We have still to establish a motive for this mindless attack but our focus remains on finding whoever is responsible. All lines of inquiry will be pursued.

"Mr Ali has had his shop for more than four years and he was very well known in the area. I feel sure that the answer to this violent crime lies within the community and I would stress that we cannot investigate in isolation - I would therefore appeal to local people to get in touch with us."

He said officers had previously made appeals for specific people who were seen in the area around the time of the attack to contact them.

But DCI Sloan said these people had yet to get in touch.

Renewing his appeal for the people in question to come forward, he said detectives would like to speak to a driver of a car that stopped outside the shop shortly after the incident.

The driver was female, in her thirties with short brown hair.

They are also looking to trace a man, who was seen walking from the direction of the Sunshine Grocers at about 15:00. At the time, he was carrying a loaf of bread and he may have stopped to speak to another man who was standing near a public phone box.

Finally, officers are still looking to trace a young woman, aged around 18 years of age, wearing an apron and carrying Aldi shopping bags. This young woman was walking in the direction of the cycle track towards Green Road.