This is the horrific moment a man enjoying a drink on a night out was slashed across the throat in a random knife attack .
Sadistic Shane O'Brien lacerated Josh Hanson's throat after the pair became involved in a brief discussion close to the bar they were in.
O'Brien is seen pulling out a blade from his pocket and holds it behind his back before inflicting a 15-inch wound which his victim never recovered from.
The harrowing CCTV footage from inside the Eastcote bar in London on October 11, 2015 can be seen above.
Police have released the footage at the request of Josh's family, reports the Daily Mirror .
In the video, it takes Josh a moment to register what has happened as he clutches his neck while O'Brien calmly walks away from the scene and towards the pun's exit
Hours later Hanson will be dead, despite the efforts of an off-duty nurse to administer CPR.
O'Brien fled the country in the days after the murder but today, almost four years on from the random killing, he was found guilty of murder.
Josh's family have given permission for the moment of the murder to be released by police after a three-year manhunt for O'Brien ended with a guilty verdict. He will be sentenced later this month.
It took incredible patience and a huge amount of police work to finally snare the killer, with the head of the investigation for the Met Police describing him as a "well-resourced and connected individual".
O'Brien was able to charter a private flight from Biggin Hill Airport, near London, on October 13, flying to the Netherlands near the border with Germany and Belgium.
He was placed on most wanted lists across the world.
Detective Chief Inspector Noel McHugh said: “The plan was to get O’Brien’s face recognised across the world and make him a liability to those so keen to support him.
“Tracey and Brooke formed an army of helpers to distribute reward posters across the world. We got O’Brien onto Europol and Interpol’s most wanted lists, a first as previously dual circulation was not permitted.
"He also had links to Spain, France and Ireland.
“In February 2017 he messed up – getting arrested and bailed in Prague for a minor scuffle in a club. It meant we were able to obtain up-to-date images of him, which revealed he’d had a distinctive tattoo on his back of his children’s name covered up by an owl holding a skull, had a full beard and had grown his hair.
"He was also using Italian aliases.
“The work that went into trying to track him around the world was exceptional and I have nothing but thanks and praise for colleagues in the Met, the NCA and all those involved, including media here and abroad who carried so many of our appeals.”
The breakthrough came in March 2019 when O'Brien's solicitor indicated he could be prepared to hand himself in.
On March 23 O'Brien was detained in Romania. He had a false Danish passport, false residence permit and driving licences, credit cards in various names and three mobile phones.
He was flown back to the UK on April 5 to face justice.
Tracey Hanson, Josh's mum, said: “On 11 October 2015 our lives changed forever when I received a phone call in the early hours of the morning to tell me that Josh had been stabbed in the neck.
"While Brooke and I were making our way to the RE Bar in Eastcote, we were told that Josh was dead. We were 10 minutes away so we never got the opportunity to say goodbye.
"I was denied my place as Josh’s mum as he lay on the cold floor alone, I could not hold him in my arms to comfort or reassure him, if only to give him hope that everything would be okay.
“The aftermath of Josh’s murder has left us broken beyond repair as Josh was taken from us in the most horrific way possible, suddenly, abruptly, viciously and violently, and nothing will ever erase the CCTV footage of Josh’s final moments from our minds as he was struck with a knife so horrifically and callously, along with his suffering as he tried to fight for his life."
“The last time I spoke to my son was on the phone at 10.30pm that evening and at the end of the phone call we said ‘I love you’ to one another the way we had always ended our conversations.
"Life for us will never be the same without Josh, it is very different from the one that was once familiar to us, and if you see a smile on my face know that there will always be sadness behind it.”
DCI McHugh said: “This is the day I, and certainly Josh’s family, almost feared would never come – O’Brien finally convicted of that unprovoked and vicious attack in a bar in Eastcote close to four years ago.
"And we still do not have a clear answer – why?
“Regardless, the evidence against O’Brien was strong from the start. However, he still denied his guilt and forced Josh’s family to undergo the trauma of a trial.
“O’Brien is an extremely dangerous individual who murdered a young man in the prime of his life in a packed bar for no reason whatsoever.
“At the centre of this tragic story are Josh’s mum Tracey and sister Brooke, who have remained focused and dignified throughout.
"It is a miracle they can get up each day and we can only imagine what they have endured, losing their beacon Josh, followed by years of uncertainty, fearing O’Brien may never be caught."
