A Fort George chef who stole a charity bucket and its contents was ordered to make a £200 donation to the organisation he stole from.
Sentence had been deferred on 36-year-old Joseph Morrison, of Manse Road, Arderiser, after he admitted, last month, the theft from premises in Church Street on January 6 last year.
Fiscal depute Roderick Urquhart said it was believed that the bucket contained around £200.
Defence solicitor Neil Wilson said: “He had a drug addiction back then. He was on methadone and is not now.”
Morrison will re-appear for sentence on May 21.
“He tells me there was £70 in it.” Mr Wilson added.
But Sheriff Gordon Fleetwood decided to take Mr Urquhart’s word for the amount taken and gave Morrison four weeks to reimburse the charity or make a similar charitable donation. He must also produce a receipt.
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Morrison also admitted a breach of a community payback order by failing to complete unpaid hours of work.
Mr Wilson told Inverness Sheriff Court that his client wanted a further chance to comply.
He went on: “He failed to turn up for unpaid work but he turned up for his paid work. I explained to him bluntly the difference that a Sheriff can jail him for not turning up for work. But I am asking that he be given another chance.”
Sheriff Fleetwood referred to the background report and replied: “He should have been attending for unpaid work three days last week and didn’t.
“The report says it was because he slept in and also missed his bus. It doesn’t fill me full of confidence that he will do it.”
However, he agreed to give Morrison another chance to complete his hours and also deferred consideration of the breach for four weeks until the same date of June 20.