Our reporters have been sitting in courtrooms across the north and north-east this week and covered a wide variety of cases.
Tarland domestic abuser secretly tracked partner’s car for FIVE years
A domestic abuse survivor has spoken of her horror at discovering her violent cheating partner had been secretly tracking her every move for five years.
Neil Anderson, 40, appeared in the dock at Aberdeen Sheriff Court where he admitted brutally assaulting the woman after she discovered evidence of his “multiple” infidelities and confronted him.
After his double life was revealed, Anderson became enraged and attacked his partner, smashing her head into the front of an oven and shattering glass across the floor.
Fochabers ex-soldier who secretly photographed child under table placed on supervision
A former soldier had been placed on supervision after placing a camera under a table so he could photograph a young girl’s underwear.
James Milton had been previously convicted of possessing indecent images of children.
When Milton admitted the voyeurism offence the court heard it came to light at the same time as those he had previously been convicted of.
‘Besties’ attacked woman after getting drunk at cocktail-making class
Two best friends have avoided a prison sentence after they got drunk at a cocktail-making class before getting involved in a brawl outside an Aberdeen pub.
Abbie Donald, 24, and Kelsey Wyllie, 22, – who described each other as “besties” – appeared in the dock at Aberdeen Sheriff Court, where they admitted assaulting a 47-year-old woman in the car park of Murdos Bar in the Cornhill area of the city.
The assault – which took place at around 1am – saw Donald become involved in the disturbance, with Wyllie jumping in to help her friend.
The woman they attacked suffered a broken finger as a result of the incident.
Man jailed for ‘savage’ knife murder of Peterhead dad
A Peterhead man who murdered a dad-of-two after a drug robbery turned violent has been jailed for a minimum of 17 years at the High Court in Aberdeen.
The judge said it had been a “ferocious and sustained” knife attack that killed Andrew Ross outside a flat in the town in February last year.
Luke Allan, 29 and his younger brother Ethan Carlyle, 23, were both charged with murdering Mr Ross but a jury found only Allan guilty of the crime following a seven-day trial.
Carlyle was found guilty of the lesser charge of assault with a knife.
Aberdeen man collected weapons during Covid lockdown
An Aberdeen man has been jailed after collecting weapons – including two illegal stun guns – during the Covid lockdown.
David Tosh lived a “hermit-like existence” in 2020, leaving his bedroom only to get drugs.
His concerned parents alerted the police and turned in his collection – which included two working stun guns.
Man and woman facing attempted murder charges after Garthdee incident
A man and woman have appeared in court accused of attempting to murder a 24-year-old woman in Aberdeen’s Garthdee area.
Kelly Booth and Jamie Black appeared in private at Aberdeen Sheriff Court today in connection with Saturday night’s incident.
Police were called to the Craigievar Place area just before 9pm following reports of a serious assault on the woman.
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Oil worker messaged decoy, 14, from North Sea platform
An oil worker was caught messaging what he thought was a 14-year-old girl while working on a North Sea platform.
Vincent Gallagher appeared in the dock at Aberdeen Sheriff Court where he admitted repeatedly messaging the teenage decoy as he worked on the Paul B Loyd Junior oil platform.
The 49-year-old – who also tried to organise a night away with the ‘girl’ in a hotel for sex – only discovered he was communicating with a paedophile hunter group when police arrived at his home and arrested him.
Fraserburgh ex-soldier broke through victim’s door with axe then brutally attacked him
An Army veteran flouted bail conditions imposed on him by a sheriff to return to the home of an assault victim and carry out a terrifying axe attack on his target.
Stuart Forsyth used the weapon to break through the door of a bedroom where Thomas Gay had barricaded himself inside before hitting the victim on the head with the axe.
Forsyth – a former Highlander – first assaulted Mr Gay months earlier at his home in Boddam but was freed on bail at Peterhead Sheriff Court before returning to attack him again.
Sports car driver forced biker off the road on NC500
A sports car driver has been convicted of causing serious injury by careless driving after forcing a motorcyclist off the road on the NC500.
Harry Parkin claimed bikers used the popular tourist route “like a racetrack” during his trial at Inverness Sheriff Court.
But after hearing from witnesses and watching footage of the incident Sheriff David Harvie convicted Parkin and banned him from the roads for a year.
Sheriff jails Elgin predator snared by paedophile hunters online
An Elgin man snared by paedophile hunters posing as 13-year-old girls online is behind bars today.
A trial had previously heard how Ailean Kerr sent explicit images to the decoy profiles and asked one intimate questions about her development.
Jailing the paedophile for 15 months, Sheriff Ian Cruickshank told Kerr: “It is essential that children are protected from predators online.”
Construction firm admits failings that led to Tain man’s windfarm death
A construction company has admitted health and safety failings that led to the death of a 23-year-old Highland man on a Shetland wind farm.
Liam Macdonald, from Tain, was asphyxiated when an 80kg bale arm came loose and pinned him to the side of a concrete skip he was cleaning, Inverness Sheriff Court was told.
Site operators BAM Nuttall pleaded guilty to breaching health and safety law in relation to the tragedy, which happened on the construction site in the Upper Kergord area of the main island on June 5 2022.
Aberdeen raider jailed after terrifying armed robbery
An armed robber who left a lone woman shop worker traumatised after he threatened to stab her with a knife was jailed for three-and-a-half years today.
Balaclava-clad John Gallagher failed to get cash as his victim stood up to him during a raid on a store in Aberdeen but snatched packs of cigarettes before he ran into the arms of police as he tried to flee.
A judge told Gallagher at the High Court in Edinburgh that he had again viewed CCTV footage of the robbery before sentencing him.
Former Inverness footballer accused of chip shop attack on woman
A former Inverness Caley Thistle footballer appeared in court today accused of assaulting a woman in a chip shop.
Shaun Rooney, 28, allegedly attacked the woman at Blue Lagoon in Glasgow city centre on September 19 2024.
Court papers state the defender – who made 56 appearances for the Inverness side between 2018 and 2020 – repeatedly pushed her on the body and seized her on the body.
Cults flasher who exposed himself to woman ‘not sexually motivated’
A carer who exposed himself to two different women on a secluded Aberdeen footpath won’t be put on the sex offenders register – after prosecutors accepted his actions were not sexually motivated.
Enzo Rota – who has worked as a support worker for disabled people – intentionally exposed his penis to the women on the old Deeside railway line near Cults on two occasions 20 minutes apart.
The 22-year-old’s lawyer said “some people will be surprised” that the Crown did not treat his public indecency as a sexual offence.
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Huntly joiner jailed after brutal homophobic assault on couple
A joiner who downed a bottle of whisky before carrying out a homophobic assault on a couple has been jailed for more than two years.
Daniel Bowie appeared in the dock at Aberdeen Sheriff Court where he admitted viciously assaulting the women by punching and headbutting them while screaming homophobic obscenities.
The 36-year-old then turned on a neighbour who tried to calm things down by trying to gouge his eye out.
Aberdeen woman scammed family of boy with learning difficulties out of nearly £4,000
An Aberdeen woman who scammed the family of a boy with learning difficulties out of nearly £4,000 has been ordered to pay them compensation.
Donna Stewart, 46, appeared in the dock at Aberdeen Sheriff Court where she admitted claiming payment for work she never carried out as a care assistant for the child.
Stewart continued to submit timecards for the role despite quitting the job after only three weeks.
Aberdeen man torched former brother-in-law’s home in bitter family feud
A bitter family feud ended in a man’s home being doused in petrol and set on fire.
Blair Anderson, from Aberdeen, admitted targeting his former brother-in-law’s property on Dundee’s Strathern Road while he was inside the address.
Dundee Sheriff Court was told how Anderson set fire to the front door and vestibule, years after threatening the man with violence in a dispute over a separation agreement.
Romanian man jailed for attack on escort six years ago in Aberdeen
A Romanian man has been jailed and told he will be deported after assaulting an escort and robbing her of her valuables, including a gold bar.
Lulian Dediu was attacked the woman at an address in Aberdeen six years ago, but fled the country after being released on bail.
The 43-year-old was eventually tracked down by authorities and extradited back to Scotland in January this year.
Fine for Highland farmer who ploughed active badger sett in breeding season
A farmer who accidentally ploughed over an active badger sett during breeding season has been fined £1,575.
Ecologists had been monitoring the site in a field near Tornagrain as part of a survey but it was destroyed following a decision by farm manager Duncan Hepburn.
Inverness Sheriff Court heard it could not be ruled out that a mother and her infant cubs were in the sett at the time it was ploughed.
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