Our reporters have been sitting in courtrooms across the north and north-east this week and covered a wide variety of cases.
Electronic tag for man who sexually assaulted council worker
A man who cupped a council worker’s breasts and then told her “they needed lifted up” has been ordered to wear an electronic tag for six months.
David Woodcock appeared for sentence at Inverness Sheriff Court after the 56-year-old was found guilty of the sexual assault after a trial.
The court heard he was “intoxicated” and claimed he had unintentionally made contact with her while gesturing at a property in Strathspey.
Cannabis farmer jailed
A man who tended to a £350,000 cannabis farm in Aberdeen has been jailed for more than two years.
Arunas Dirgela, 52, admitted being the keyholder of a five-bedroom home in the Grandholm area of the city where police found evidence of large-scale cannabis cultivation in June last year.
The court heard drug officers found cannabis growing in nearly all the bedrooms and more than 100 pots related to cannabis cultivation.
Man who harassed woman walked into home uninvited
A man must report all future relationships he has with women after he ignored a court order to stay away from his female victim.
Patryk Kiedrowicz had been banned from contacting the woman but brazenly walked into a property she was in uninvited.
Inverness Sheriff Court was told the 35-year-old was “simply not taking no for an answer”.
Man had £1,400 of cocaine in bedroom drawer
A man who had £1,400 of cocaine in a bedroom drawer was “holding it for someone”, a court has heard.
Jules Allan told officers who raided his home that he had “white” in his bedroom drawer.
A search of the property also recovered working scales, zip seal bags and grinders from an outbuilding and shed.
Attacker avoids jail after slashing man’s face
An Aberdeen man has been electronically tagged after he slashed his victim across the face with a kitchen knife.
Father-of-one Clay Craig admitted to carrying out the “unprovoked” and “alcohol-fuelled” attack on his father’s neighbour.
Aberdeen Sheriff Court heard how the 26-year-old grabbed a long pink-handled knife and slashed the man across the face before walking away.
Drunk man staggered into road and threatened motorists
A drunk man staggered into the road, then targeted concerned motorists and damaged a vehicle, a court has heard.
Richard Thomson appeared drunk as he walked along the A95 towards Grantown on Spey.
He staggered into the road, disrupting traffic, before confronting drivers and targeting their vehicles.
‘Expensive’ mistake as mechanic
A mechanic has been banned from driving following an “expensive” mistake in getting behind the wheel after taking cannabis.
Cade Bell was pulled over on Great Northern Road as part of a routine traffic stop before officers noticed a smell of cannabis coming from him.
A saliva test then showed the 22-year-old was over the legal driving limit for the drug and he was arrested.
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Dundee men went on Highland car thieving spree
Two Dundee men who embarked on a four-week crime spree in the Highlands and stole five cars worth more than £100,000 have been jailed.
Andrew Craigie, 30, and Andrew Gardiner, 38, appeared from custody at Inverness Sheriff Court and admitted five charges between them.
The court heard how the stolen vehicles were eventually recovered at various addresses in Dundee.
The first thefts occurred on June 29 2019 at Culloden Car Sales on Barn Church Road, Inverness.
Five-times-the-limit delivery driver banned from roads
A five-times-the-limit delivery driver who swerved into oncoming traffic has been banned from the roads.
Courier Andrej Bartko was seen “staggering” from his van following the incident and was so unsteady on his feet he had to be helped into a police car.
Bartko, 46, appeared for sentencing at Inverness Sheriff Court having previously admitted charges of dangerous driving and drink-driving relating to the incident on November 11 of last year.
Man beat up friend and stole his PlayStation
A man has been jailed after he barged into a friend’s home and attacked him before taking his PlayStation.
Lee Jarvie burst into the man’s flat and attacked him as he lay defenceless on the floor before dragging him into his living room and continuing the vicious assault.
Aberdeen Sheriff Court heard that the 29-year-old grabbed the man’s games console before telling him: “That’s it. Your debt’s cleared.”
Jarvie also stole the man’s bike from the hallway as he left the property.
NHS Highland fined £180,000 over death of pensioner
NHS Highland has been fined £180,000 after a pensioner died of multiple falls while being treated at Raigmore Hospital.
Colin Lloyd, 78, had been identified as being at high risk of falling and in need of one-to-one care when he was admitted to Raigmore following a fall at home.
However, despite repeated requests for additional nursing staff none were made available and Mr Lloyd died of head injuries following a series of falls on the ward.
Masked gunman ‘like something out of Black Hawk Down’
A “loner” who sparked an armed police response after neighbours spotted him roaming the streets with two guns and wearing a helmet, mask and stab vest has been given unpaid work.
Ian Jolly was pacing back and forth clutching what looked like a handgun and rifle when concerned members of the public spotted him outside their homes near Pittodrie Stadium.
Aberdeen Sheriff Court was told the scene was like something out of the 2001 war film Black Hawk Down.
Woman threw phone at man’s head
A woman has been fined after throwing a phone off the head of a man after he made an “inappropriate” proposition.
Isla Schooler got into an argument with the man, who had not previously been known to her, after he made a suggestive comment at an address on Skene Street in Aberdeen.
Schooler, 25, shouted and swore at the older male after he invited her to join him in bed following a comment about her not liking younger men.
Man threw Pot Noodle at group of Ukrainians
An Aberdeen man has been jailed after he threw a Pot Noodle at Ukrainians as they were celebrating their war-torn country’s independence day.
Andrew Wallace was standing within a group of people who were goading and chanting at the crowd outside Marks and Spencer in Aberdeen on August 24 last year.
The city’s sheriff court was told the 48-year-old then turned and threw a Pot Noodle at the peaceful gathering, which included a large number of children.
It landed in amongst the crowd but thankfully didn’t hit anyone, the court heard.
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Court date set for north-east man accused of killing colleague
A north-east man accused of murdering a colleague on a Qatari oil rig is to appear in court next week – and could face the death penalty.
Scott Forrest, 43, of Maud, was taken into custody in Doha after a violent incident offshore in which Robert Robson died and another colleague, Christopher Begley, was injured.
Mr Robson, 38, from Tyne and Wear, was “a loving partner, dad, son, brother and uncle who was tragically taken too soon,” his family said in a statement after the incident on December 12 last year.
Man in court after pushing partner out of bed for hogging the duvet
A man found himself in the dock on Valentine’s day after pushing his partner out of bed because she hogged the duvet.
Kenneth Mackinnon’s actions caused the woman to fall from the bed, hitting her face on a bedside cabinet and leaving her with a bloody nose and split lip.
The woman fled to a neighbour’s home following the incident and told police she did not wish to have any further contact with Mackinnon, 62.
Man could lose job after being caught double the cocaine limit
A young dad-to-be has lost his licence – and possibly his job – after he was caught driving under the influence of cocaine.
Dylan Baillie was pulled over by police after they received a tip-off that he was driving after smoking cannabis.
But a saliva test found him to be actually double the limit for cocaine instead.
The 20-year-old scaffolder – who is due to become a father in five weeks – admitted drug-driving.
Man held knives to mum’s throat
A man held two knives to the throat of his mother and told police he was going to stab her to death.
Zeke McKnight’s terrifying behaviour happened after he demanded entry to her Inverness home and he began to berate her.
The 29-year-old went to attack one of the police officers who had been sent to the scene.
Man threatened to slash pregnant partner
A man has appeared in court after threatening to slash his five-month-pregnant girlfriend when he caught her going through his phone.
Dean Smart flew into a rage, striking her in the face with a flailing arm before making chilling threats to cut her.
Fiscal depute Tom Procter told Aberdeen Sheriff Court the incident happened in the early hours of Monday morning while the pair were together at an address in Aberdeen.
An argument broke out and the woman stated she was phoning the police.
Man crashed car after overdosing on painkiller patches
A disabled man who mistakenly overdosed on pain medication was so confused when he crashed his car that he didn’t even realise it was the middle of the night.
Disorientated driver Thomas Quinn was wearing seven painkiller patches instead of just one and was on his way to collect a prescription from the chemist – despite it only being 3.50am.
The 52-year-old drove his vehicle 60 metres along the wrong side of Fife Street in Keith before crashing into a parked car, Elgin Sheriff Court was told.
Sheriff’s ruling into quad bike death
A “well-liked and hardworking” gamekeeper was crushed to death after his quad bike flipped and trapped him underneath, a sheriff has ruled.
David Taylor, 27, was riding the vehicle while working on the Muckrach Estate in Dulnain Bridge, Speyside.
As the dad-of-one approached a river ford the Honda TRX vehicle struck the embankment and toppled over.
Man guzzled pills from underpants
A man has escaped punishment after guzzling a tub of pills he pulled from his underpants as police tried to search him.
Keith Milne was approached by police patrolling the market area in Aberdeen who suspected he may be under the influence of something.
But, on being detained for a search, the 42-year-old whipped out a white tub from his underpants and swallowed a number of pills from inside.
Injured window cleaner caught drink-driving
A former window cleaner was caught drink-driving on his way home from his uncle’s funeral.
Keith Will appeared in court on crutches and may have to have his leg amputated after falling from his ladder – and has now also been banned from driving.
The 41-year-old was more than three-and-a-half times the alcohol limit when police spotted him driving through Aberdeen in his Vauxhall Meriva.
Serial seagull shooter ordered to surrender weapons
A man who shot at seagulls with a catapult and ball bearings has been ordered to surrender his weapons, but will face no further punishment.
Bryan MacLennan, 35, was admonished by Sheriff Gary Aitken at Tain Sheriff Court after he admitted targeting the wild birds for a second time.
MacLennan appeared at Tain Sheriff Court for sentencing having pled guilty at an earlier hearing to a charge of intentionally or recklessly injuring and taking a seagull at Kirkside, Alness on July 24 of this year.
Man hurled homophobic and anti-religious abuse
A man with a self-confessed “drunken tongue” hurled homophobic and anti-religious abuse at police officers as he violently resisted arrest.
When police first encountered Mark Hall in Aberdeen’s Stoneyton Terrace he was red-faced and missing a tooth, the city’s sheriff court was told.
He’d been injured by another man, who police officers also found with wounds.
Babysitter showed pornography to children
A north-east babysitter has been placed on the sex offender’s register after showing pornography to children as young as four.
Kirsty Sutherland also used controversial website Omegle to make a sexually explicit video call with an unknown male while in the presence of two other children she was supposed to be looking after.
Aberdeen Sheriff Court was told Sutherland, 20, went into the bathroom before returning and telling the youngsters she had urinated for the man and exposed her breasts.
Unpaid work for thief who walked into family’s home
A thief who walked into family’s home and disturbed a mother putting her child to bed has been ordered to complete unpaid work.
Adam McQuarrie told the mum that the vehicle he was travelling in had broken down outside and needed fuel.
But when he left the couple discovered that £630 of garden tools had been taken.
Man attacked his partner because she refused to play card game
A man who violently assaulted his partner during a weekend away in Aberdeen after she refused to take part in a card game has been ordered to take part in a domestic abuse programme.
Stuart Goodwin appeared in the dock from custody at Aberdeen Sheriff Court last month and admitted turning on his female partner when she didn’t want to play a drinking game.
The court heard that the 58-year-old punched and slapped the woman across the face a number of times during the altercation at the Station Hotel in Aberdeen.
When police arrived to arrest Goodwin he told officers: “Aye, I slapped her.”
Pair raided Inverness hotel
A man and a woman who broke into an Inverness hotel made multiple trips to escape with their haul of alcohol and cash.
Philip Arnold and Stephanie Norman targeted the city’s Crown Court Hotel when no one was staying there in October 2020.
Cash was taken from the till and the pair lined up bottles of prosecco and spirits on the bar before making multiple trips to remove them from the building.
Victim of sex assault OAP tells of ‘devastating impact’
A hairdresser who was sexually assaulted by an 85-year-old has told a court of the “devastating impact” the incident has had on her life.
James MacDonald, 85, grabbed the woman’s breasts in the middle of the salon, leaving her feeling “violated and physically sick”, Elgin Sheriff Court was told.
The woman has been left needing counselling after the bizarre incident where she was presented with a bag of tomatoes before the OAP groped her breasts.
Man tried to post £800 cannabis parcel to Shetland
A man was caught attempting to send cannabis worth £800 through the post, a court had heard
Keith Walton told Post Office staff that the package, destined for an address in Shetland, contained toys for his son.
But staff became suspicious and alerted police, who recovered 135 grams of the class B drug.
Ex-partner used Apple AirTag to secretly track woman’s movements
A man secretly hid an Apple AirTag on his ex-partner’s car after discovering she was in a new relationship.
Robert Sherriffs used the tracking device to map her movements and also turned up at the woman’s Banchory home in the middle of the night.
Aberdeen Sheriff Court was told the pair’s 14-year relationship came to an end in 2016 and for three years they got on amicably.
Woman led police on ‘disgraceful’ high-speed chase
A woman led police on a high-speed chase across pavements and through red lights and only stopped when she crashed the car into a power box.
Elle Binnie came to the attention of police after going the wrong way down a one-way street and took off at high speed when they tried to speak to her.
After the dangerous pursuit ended with a crash near Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, the 27-year-old hurled abuse and threats of violence at police officers.
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