Two men stole a TV and a PlayStation from student halls in Aberdeen after celebrating a 40th birthday.
Daniel Murray, of Urquhart Road, reached the milestone on June 6 last year and marked the occasion with associate Scott Beattie, of Grampian Road, Torry.
Both appeared at Aberdeen Sheriff Court yesterday after admitting stealing electrical equipment worth hundreds of pounds from Homes For Students on Powis Place.
They pleaded guilty to separate offences, with Beattie admitting taking a PlayStation worth £245 and Murray admitting stealing a TV worth £500.
Beattie’s solicitor, Kevin Longino, said that his client’s long-term partner had died last year, prompting a “flurry” of court appearances.
The court was told that he had managed to go “a number of years drugs-free” before her death.
Representing Murray, lawyer Graeme Murray said that his client had been marking his birthday on the day in question and struggled to recall what led to the theft.
Mr Murray said: “It was only when he saw the CCTV that he accepted he was guilty of the offence, despite not remembering it.
“His stabilising influence was his mother, who died earlier this year.”
Sheriff David Clapham ordered both men, who are both now 41, to pay £200 fines.