A man has been jailed after he terrified Aberdeenshire residents by strutting round Inverurie town centre with a bow and arrow.
Graham Milne was locked up for six months yesterday after he admitted acting in a threatening or abusive manner on November 11 last year.
Aberdeen Sheriff Court heard the 41-year-old had been drinking heavily during the day and had his bow and arrow with him as he used it to go hunting.
After leaving a local pub Milne walked around the town’s West High Street shouting and swearing in an aggressive manner with the weapon strapped to his back.
Fiscal depute Karen Dow said witnesses in the Sweet Boutique – a sweet shop – saw Milne approach the premises in an aggressive manner around 7.30pm.
Ms Dow said the shopkeeper locked the door to protect those inside as Milne approached the window and slammed down hard on the glass several times while continuing to shout and swear.
He walked off, but police officers later found him a short distance away still in possession of the bow and arrow.
Representing Milne, of 32 Jamaica Street, Aberdeen, solicitor Laura Maitland said her client was not “brandishing” the weapon and had no intention of using it, and only acted the way he did because of the amount he had drunk.
Sheriff Kenneth Stewart said the incident must have been “terrifying” for everyone who witnessed it, and he had no alternative but to send him to jail.
Last night David Wylie, owner of the Sweet Boutique, said: “We’re just glad that it has been dealt with.
“I was dreading my son having to go to court.
“He was only 13 at the time it happened, so it was more frightening for him than me. I can deal with it, but it’s a frightening experience to see a man standing outside the shop with a bow and arrow, especially when it’s dark and later in the day.