A man has been jailed for more than a year after breaking into an Aberdeen court building.
Ian Gray forced open three secure doors at the Aberdeen Sheriff Court Annexe building, which is normally used to host high court and sheriff and jury trials.
The 39-year-old was seen on CCTV making his way around the building, looking behind the reception desk and even going through drawers of stationary in an office used by the Procurator Fiscal Service on Friday, August 21.
He walked around the city centre building for 20 minutes then left empty-handed.
He went on to target the Carmelite hotel nearby just days later and made off with Prosecco and a pair of headphones.
Yesterday, Gray appeared at Aberdeen Sheriff Court via video-link from HMP Grampian to face sentencing after already pleading guilty to housebreaking with intent to steal and theft by housebreaking.
And the court heard he had been “self-medicating” with crack cocaine and had made his way into the building to take more drugs.
A previous court hearing was told there was no court business on the day of the break-in.
When a maintenance engineer returned to the building a few days later he contacted security who searched the building.
Nobody was inside but various items were found out of place and a footprint was found on the door of a small office used by the Procurator Fiscal Service.
Police were able to identify Gray through CCTV with the footage showing him making his way into the building at Marischal Street at around 10.40pm and he left at 11pm.
At 3.10am on Monday August 24 Gray forced open a door at the Carmelite Hotel on Stirling Street.
Gray was traced by police the following day and arrested. He told officers he was unaware of his movements at the time of the offences due to his level of “intoxication”.
Defence agent Peter Keene told the court yesterday his client is a “lifelong offender” and in the days before the break-ins had discharged himself from hospital.
He said: “In the criminal justice social work report he makes a good account of himself and he is very apologetic for his behaviour.
“He is very easily lead by his friends. In any event, he accepts he saw the door ajar in the court building across the road.
“He was in the building to take crack cocaine. Mr Gray had been in Cornhill Hospital in the weeks before this but he discharged himself.
“Mr Gray was self-medicating with crack cocaine and found himself out of his mind and this leads to this strange break-in to the court annexe.
“I know custody will be in the forefront of your mind but this would be a backwards step for this man.”
Sheriff William Summers said: “In each case you overcame security of the building to force entry.
“You have a raft of previous convictions and there is no other option but to sentence you to custody.”
Sheriff Summers sentenced Gray, of HMP Grampian, Peterhead, to 13 months behind bars.
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