A dad has avoided prison after he threatened to petrol bomb his ex-partner’s home under the false belief she was holding his kids “to ransom”.
Dylan Stewart, 24, carried out a series of threatening acts towards the mother of his children between April 16 and June 12 this year.
He turned up at her door, made threats and smashed her windows on three separate occasions.
He pleaded guilty at Aberdeen Sheriff Court to behaving in a threatening and abusive manner towards the woman, causing her fear or alarm and damaging her property.
He also admitted racially abusing a police officer.
Accused told ex-partner ‘you’re dead’
Fiscal depute Anne Macdonald told the court that on one occasion the woman was awoken during the night by furious knocking at her front door and discovered Stewart and another man outside.
She said: “She looked through the peephole. It was dark and both men were wearing dark clothing.
“Her doorbell was repeatedly rung and she could hear voices. The two men identified themselves as the accused and his brother. The accused then told her ‘you’re dead’.
“This made the complainer feel really scared.”
Stewart then turned up at a gathering days later and told the woman “it’s not over yet”.
She and her friends moved inside due to feeling “uncomfortable” and Stewart was letter spotted with a friend outside.
The pair then threw rocks at the woman’s window – breaking it – and she contacted the police.
Days later, Stewart turned up and verbally abused the woman at her front door.
He was later picked up by police and he told them during an interview that he wanted to “petrol bomb” the woman’s home.
‘You still have a lot of growing up to do’
Defence agent Laura Gracie told the court that Stewart had been drinking heavily during this period due to a death in the family and had “no recollection of any of this”.
She added: “He thought his children were being held to ransom. On one occasion the complainer was having a party and Mr Stewart had wanted to look after them and he was denied from doing so.”
Sheriff Philip Mann told Stewart: “You’re 24-years-old and you still have a lot of growing up to do.
“I hope this will be a lesson to you that you will learn from because if you don’t watch what you’re doing it will lead to a custodial sentence.
“Think about your children and the effect this behaviour will have on them.”
As an alternative to prison, Sheriff Mann sentenced Steward, of Newton Road, Aberdeen, to a community payback order with supervision for two years and a three-year non-harassment order.
He was also ordered to carry out 60 hours of unpaid work and take part in a programme for domestic offenders.
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