Thief was so drunk she dropped stolen jewellery outside shop

A thief stole hundreds of pounds worth of jewellery from an Aberdeen shop – but was so drunk she dropped the stolen loot outside.

Kirsten Murison smashed her way into McCalls Clock and Watch Repair on King Street and grabbed pocket watches worth hundreds of pounds.

The 36-year-old also stole spirits from behind the bar in O’Neill’s and broke a woman’s window when she refused to give her any money or alcohol.

Murison, of Seamount Court, Gallowgate, appeared in Aberdeen Sheriff Court and pled guilty to two charges of vandalism, theft by housebreaking, theft and breaching a bail curfew.

Fiscal depute Lydia Ross said at around 8.50am on August 1 2022, Murison was walking along Powis Terrace when she pulled the fuel cap off a vehicle and threw it on the ground.

‘Significant substance misuse problem’

She was then seen ringing the doorbell of a property nearby and asking for money and alcohol.

Ms Ross said: “The occupant advised she did not have any alcohol or money in the house and closed the door.”

The woman then heard the loud sound of glass shattering and found her front window had been smashed. She contacted the police.

The cost of repairing the window was given in court as £3,000, while the car fuel cap cost £50 to replace.

Clock shop break-in

In a separate incident, on February 7 2023, police received a call advising of a break-in at McCalls Clock and Watch Repair on King Street.

When officers arrived they found a glass panel in the door smashed and a rock lying nearby.

Jewellery stolen included pocket watches, Albert chains with T-bars and display boxes.

But the haul, worth £376, was found lying on the pavement outside the shop after the intoxicated thief dropped it.

‘She remembers very little’

On March 17 2023, Murison chanced her luck by nipping into O’Neill’s Bar on Back Wynd and swiping bottles of spirits.

No precise value was available for the drink, as some of it had been consumed by customers, but had the bottles been full they would have been worth £130.

She was immediately caught and the alcohol was recovered.

Defence agent Kevin Longino said Murison had a “significant substance misuse problem in relation primarily to alcohol but also street medication such as Xanax and Diazepam”.

The solicitor said Murison had sought help and was now receiving assistance from Royal Cornhill Hospital.

‘You have considerable problems but you are accessing support’

He said: “All of these offences were committed while she was heavily intoxicated which is reflected in the lack of success.

“In all of the matters, she was caught in the middle of committing the offences.

“She remembers very little.”

Regarding the jewellery theft, Mr Longino said: “Having taken the items, she was so drunk she dropped them on leaving the property and just walked off.”

Sheriff Margaret Hodge said: “It does seem to me you have quite considerable problems but you are accessing support.”

She imposed a structured deferred sentence with a review hearing in July.

‘There are no Rolexes’

Brian McCall, 70, who has run the business since 1983 when his father passed it on to him, said he learned of the break-in when he was woken up by a phone call from the police.

Brian said: “With some force, she had managed to pull the grill off the window and there was a big stone lying inside the shop which she had thrown through the window.

“The window, being old-style glass, smashed. It’s been replaced now, you could hit it with a hammer all day and it will never break.”

Brian said the shop had been broken into once before in 2014, but he struggled to understand why.

“She must a couple of watches at £250-£300 a piece, but that’s about the dearest watches I’ve got,” he said.

“There are no Rolexes.

“I think thieves would look at my jewellery window and go ‘let’s not bother’.”

The former merchant navy officer said he hopes Murison gets the support she needs to turn her life around.

Asked what he’d say to her if their paths crossed again, he said: “I’d give her a chance to apologise.

“I’d say come on, wise up. If you’re in such a state that you’ve got to do that I think you should go and get some help.

“It depends on her record, there are only so many chances you can give people.”

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