Weekend court roll – a £6.7 million fine and a 150mph speeder

Our reporters have been sitting in courtrooms across the north and north-east this week and covered a wide variety of cases.

Newtonhill man repeatedly assaulted police officer – with his stomach

A man faces court after repeatedly assaulting a police officer in Aberdeen – with his stomach.

Liam Ritchie twice struck an officer to the chest using his stomach during the bizarre incident in an Aberdeen street.

The 33-year-old also grabbed the officer’s wrists during his very physical protest about the police’s handling of an unrelated matter.

Fiscal depute Alan Townsend told Aberdeen Sheriff Court the incident happened during the afternoon of August 1 at Earns Heugh Circle in Aberdeen.

Aberdeen drug addict stabbed shop worker in the face

An Aberdeen drug addict who stabbed a hypodermic needle into the face of a female shop worker has avoided a prison sentence.

Susan Fletcher pulled needles from her bag and slashed and stabbed at staff and members of the public inside the city centre Londis store.

Aberdeen Sheriff Court heard how the 27-year-old plunged the needle into the face of one worker, narrowly missing her eye and causing blood to pour down her face.

Upon stabbing the woman, Fletcher announced: “I have stabbed you with a needle, I have hepatitis.”

Nazi-obsessed Aberdeen racist jailed over vile police assaults and threats

A drunken Nazi-enthusiast has been jailed after attacking and threatening to slash the throats of police who tried to help him.

David Patterson performed Nazi salutes and declared his allegiance to Hitler after police found him wandering around Holburn Street.

The 58-year-old, who the court was told also writes poetry, was less articulate when he spouted vile racial abuse at officers, threatening to slash their throats and stamp on their heads.

He also threatened their families.

Aberdeen’s infamous gecko thief jailed for attacking dad

Aberdeen’s infamous gecko thief has been sent back to prison after a drunken bust-up with his father.

Alistair Sorrie headbutted his father twice and rained down punches on the stricken 64-year-old as he lay on the ground.

The 44-year-old then turned on the man’s partner when she tried to separate them, punching her directly in the face.

Sorrie, who once made headlines locally and nationally for stealing a gecko, now finds himself back behind bars following the boozy incident.

Aberdeen piano teacher jailed over sexual offences against girls

An Aberdeen piano teacher has been jailed after being found guilty of sexual offences against two underage girls.

Paul Savage had denied the offences but was found guilty by a jury following a trial at Aberdeen Sheriff Court.

The 47-year-old had sexual intercourse with a girl on various occasions between 2013 and 2014 – when she was aged just 14 and 15.

Savage also sexually assaulted a different girl on another occasion between 2013 and 2015, when she was just 13 or 14.

Sugardaddy blackmailer in court no-show – AGAIN!

Police are again hunting sugardaddy blackmailer Tiffany Anderson after she failed to appear at court for sentencing a second time.

The notorious 25-year-old extortionist, who targets married men on dating apps and websites, had initially come to Aberdeen Sheriff Court as planned this morning.

But when the case called and the court bar officer shouted her name in the corridor there was no response.

Defence agent Iain McGregor told Sheriff Gerard Sinclair he had seen Anderson in the building with a social worker earlier and asked for the case to recall later so he could look for her.

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Uninsured biker hit speeds of up to 150mph fleeing from police

A motorcyclist hit speeds of up to 150mph as he sped away from police who tried to stop him for having no insurance.

Officers activated blue lights and sirens when a check of the police national computer revealed that the 600cc machine Ethan Schiller was riding was not covered.

But the biker accelerated away, twice losing police cars as he made his high-speed getaway.

Schiller, 20, appeared at Inverness Sheriff Court to admit dangerous driving and driving without insurance in relation to the incident at around 5pm on September 3 of last year.

Thug who punched man unconscious caught when he returned to bar

An Aberdeen man who hospitalised a reveller by punching him four times to the head was arrested by police when he came back to pick up his belongings.

Lee Ritchie, 47, appeared in the dock at Aberdeen Sheriff Court and admitted attacking the man and rendering him unconscious at the city’s Northern Bar.

As a result of the assault, the man was left with a skull fracture and a bleed on the brain.

But Ritchie was soon arrested by police when he called the bar and arranged to pick up some things he’d left behind.

DNA on airbag catches out man who crashed car then reported it stolen

A man who crashed his car and then claimed it had been stolen was snared when his DNA was found on the airbag.

Gavin Elphinstone collided with a parked vehicle on Fonthill Road, Aberdeen, before fleeing the scene.

But the 30-year-old’s story unravelled when forensics discovered his DNA on the airbag of the vehicle, meaning he had been driving when it crashed.

Elphinstone has now appeared in the dock before a sheriff and admitted two offences.

Aberdeen woman admits sending naked pictures to 15-year-old boy

A woman has been placed on the sex offenders register after she sent naked images of herself to a 15-year-old boy.

Galina Radkova appeared in the dock at Aberdeen Sheriff Court and admitted sending sexual messages to the teen over a four-month period, including pictures of her naked body.

It was stated that the 44-year-old then asked the teenager to send naked pictures of himself in exchange.

Texts, in which she told the youth she wanted to have sex with him, were also sent.

NHS dentist was three-times the limit after getting car stuck on flower bed

An NHS dentist who was three times the limit when she was breathalysed after getting her car stuck on a flower bed has avoided a driving ban.

Samantha Mackay admitted being drunk in charge of the vehicle but her solicitor told Inverness Sheriff Court she had drunk from a bottle of Baileys after realising she was stuck.

When her partner and his sister arrived they noted that Mackay, who has two previous drink-driving convictions, had slurred speech and her breath smelled of alcohol.

Mackay, 47, appeared at Inverness Sheriff Court to admit being in charge of a vehicle while over the legal alcohol limit.

Jail for man who cut off vulnerable victim’s finger

A man who severed a vulnerable man’s finger with a filleting knife and a hammer in a barbaric attack while drunk has been jailed.

John Johnson placed the 12.5cm knife over his victim’s pinkie and then struck it repeatedly with a claw hammer, Lerwick Sheriff Court heard.

Appearing for sentencing today, Johnson, of East Voe, Scalloway, was told by Sheriff Ian Cruickshank that his crime was at the highest end of offending that sheriff courts were expected to deal with.

Sentencing him to 32 months in prison, the sheriff said that there was no alternative to imposing a lengthy jail sentence and added that the offence would have justified a jail term of between four and a half and five years.

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Man in dock over £250,000 cannabis haul in Inverbervie

A man has appeared in court after police discovered a huge amount of cannabis – worth £250,000 – at a property in Inverbervie.

Police raided the home on West Park Avenue in the village yesterday as part of an intelligence-led operation.

During the operation on the residential street a large haul of cannabis with an estimated street value of £250,000 was found.

Now, Esmir Gjura has appeared in private at Aberdeen Sheriff Court in connection with the matter.

Woman ran terrified from home to escape ex

A man has been fined after his ex-partner was forced to flee her home in terror when he assaulted her and then tried to kiss her.

Dariusz Kaminski, 46, appeared in the dock at Aberdeen Sheriff Court and admitted assaulting the woman by shoving her off the edge of the sofa bed, pushing her onto her back and attempting to kiss her.

An angry Kaminski then dragged the woman into her kitchen before she ran terrified from from house to a neighbour’s home, where she called the police.

The court also heard Kaminiski had previously tried to re-enter the woman’s property after being thrown out following their break-up.

Police chase driver given jail warning after ignoring court order

A yob who led police on a 100mph police chase has been warned he’s on his “final chance” after failing to cooperate with a supervision order.

Scot Murray was also under the influence of a drug when he spotted police on the B993 Inverurie to Kemnay road.

Unsure whether or not he was insured to drive the car, which belonged to a friend, Murray sped off, hitting 100mph before police had to abandon the pursuit on safety grounds.

The 25-year-old previously pled guilty over the incident and was given a supervision order, but has now been dragged over the coals after not taking the order seriously.

Banff domestic abuser jailed after refusing to accept guilt

A Banff man has been jailed for five months after failing to acknowledge he had abused his wife over a two-year period.

George Reid, 58, had previously admitted attacking his wife and appeared at Banff Sheriff Court for sentencing.

However, defence counsel Stuart Beveridge told the court that Reid had “felt unable” to cooperate with a background report and said his marriage had been “clearly difficult over the years” and he did not fully accept the issues had been “one-sided”.

Reid admitted to – on more than one occasion – seizing his wife by the neck, threatening violence, repeatedly punching her and pushing her causing her to fall down some steps.

Man spent night in police custody with knife in his pocket

A man managed to spend the night in police custody with a knife in his pocket after police failed to find it, despite a search.

Grzegors Tronicki, who works in asbestos removal, was found by police in his car following a night in the pub and was arrested.

However, despite being searched by officers, the knife wasn’t discovered and was only found the following morning at Kittybrewster Police Station prior to the 43-year-old being taken to court.

His solicitor told Aberdeen Sheriff Court her client had the knife for a “legitimate purpose” but shouldn’t have had it with him after he’d finished work that day.

Man in dock after drunken struggle with Inverness door staff

A man has admitted a breach of the peace after struggling with door staff following a street fight in Inverness.

Jack Drummond did not start the fight on Union Street on the evening of November 19 last year, but when door staff from a nearby bar answered a call on the radio he was restrained anyway.

When he struggled with them, he was taken to the ground and continued to wrestle with them until police arrived on the scene.

Drummond, 20, appeared at Inverness Sheriff Court to plead guilty to the single charge.

Unprovoked Stonehaven nightclub attack left stranger unconscious

A violent thug battered a stranger and left him unconscious in an unprovoked attack at a Stonehaven nightclub.

Michael Allan’s victim was playing pool with a female friend in Zee’s Nightclub on Barclay Street when the incident took place.

Allan, 21, entered the nightspot and approached the woman, whom he knew, immediately stating he “disliked” her friend, whom he did not know.

Allan proceeded to push his victim, knocking him to the floor and causing him to hit his head, before raining punches down on the stricken man.

Man sucker punched innocent stranger in Aberdeen city centre

A man raced out of a city centre flat to sucker punch a stranger on Union Street in what he claimed was a misunderstanding.

David Ibazebo leapt into action upon hearing a disturbance outside a flat he was in on Adelphi in the early hours of the morning.

The 21-year-old ran outside and floored an innocent stranger, who had his back to him, with a punch to the side of the head.

Ibazebo claimed he “misunderstood” what was happening and believed the innocent man, who was left with five chipped teeth and cuts and bruises, had been attacking his friend.

Network Rail fined £6.7 million for failings that caused Stonehaven rail crash

Network Rail was today fined £6.7 million over failings that caused the Stonehaven rail tragedy.

Three people died and six others were injured in the August 2020 crash, which happened when the 6.54am train from Stonehaven struck a landslide on the track at Carmont.

At the High Court in Aberdeen yesterday the rail body admitted failing to conduct itself in a way that would prevent people from the risk of serious injury and death.

The court case follows two lengthy probes into the circumstances surrounding the tragedy, which killed the train’s driver Brett McCullough, conductor Donald Dinnie and passenger Christopher Stuchbury.

Callous hit-and-run driver left biker with life-changing injuries

A callous driver left a motorcyclist lying in the road with life-changing injuries after a hit-and-run in Aberdeen city centre.

Carla Stein, 22, struck the biker while trying to turn right from Guild Street onto Market Street but failed to stop.

The impact with Stein’s Audi A1 Sport sent the motorcyclist, a dad and husband, flying off his bike, breaking his leg in three places.

Aberdeen Sheriff Court was told Stein’s victim had to give up work as a result of the crash and still has mobility issues.

Elgin man groped police officer he mistook for a strip-a-gram

An Elgin man has been placed on the sex offenders register after drunkenly mistaking a police officer for a strip-a-gram.

William Coghill, 64, admitted sexually assaulting the female police officer whilst she was carrying out a routine check on Elgin’s Ionic Bar earlier this year.

Coghill appeared in Elgin’s Sheriff Court wearing a bright tartan waistcoat and seemed bemused by the sentence, shaking his head as he left the dock.

Defence counsel Grant Daglish said Coghill was “embarrassed and emotional” about the incident and was apologetic.

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