An Inverness man has been jailed for three years for raiding a 90-year-old widow’s home and stealing jewellery which belonged to her late husband.
Ryan McWilliams admitted breaking in to the woman’s house just months after he was released early from prison for a similar crime.
The pensioner was so traumatised by the theft that she was unable to complete the victim impact statement that is referred to in the sentencing of a case like this.
Yesterday Sheriff Margaret Neilson branded the 30-year-old’s offence against the old lady, who was also his neighbour, “despicable.”
She added: “You were well aware she lived there on her own and would be in the property at the time, yet you continued to break in to her house in the early hours of the morning to steal items of great sentimental value which belonged to her late husband.
“The victim is understandably too upset to provide an actual victim impact statement to the court. It will be obvious to any right-thinking person the effect on her has been catastrophic and affected her ability to continue to feel safe in her own home.
“You have shown no remorse whatsoever and you blame other people for you being here, including your girlfriend. You were on licence for another theft by housebreaking at the time and your record of previous convictions is appalling.
“The only factor in your favour is that you pleaded guilty at the first opportunity.”
Inverness Sheriff Court previously heard that McWilliams entered the woman’s home through a small bathroom window on November 5 last year.
She had secured all but one of her windows and doors of the Lochalsh Road property before going to bed.
But when she got up and and went downstairs at about 10am she noticed the drawers and cupboards were lying open and various items had been disturbed.
She then contacted police who found an indentation on the bin lid outside which suggested it had been stood on to allow entry and exit from the house through the window.
McWilliams, who was known to the police as a thief, had been filmed on the city CCTV in the area and they went to speak to him at the guest house where he was staying.
Fiscal depute Roderick Urquhart previously told the court that he was found wearing a watch with a brown leather strap which matched the description the victim had given of her late husband’s watch that had been stolen.
McWilliams also had a locket containing a photograph of the couple’s wedding and two necklaces which had also been stolen.
Yesterday Sheriff Neilson jailed McWilliams for three years and backdated the sentence to November 7, when he was first remanded in custody.
Sheriff Neilson also ordered supervision upon his release for a period of one year – and said that any breach would mean a return to jail.
McWilliams pleaded guilty to theft by houebreaking when he appeared at the court last month.
McWilliams has had a number of convictions for theft by housebreaking since 2011 and was jailed for two years in April 2015 – but was released early in March 2016.
Yesterday McWilliam’s solicitor, Michael Chapman, said that his client had told told him he was “fully remorseful” for his behaviour and had written a letter of apology to the woman and asked her to try and forgive him.
But Sheriff Neilson said that this was not reflected in the social worker’s report which said he showed “no remorse or regret and has no empathy for the impact of his behaviour.”