A man so confused that he mistook a flat in Larbert, Stirlingshire for his brother’s home 15 miles away in Perthshire has been jailed.
Drugged-up train passenger Alan Smeaton, 41, disembarked at Larbert railway station when he should have continued to Dunblane, Falkirk Sheriff Court was told.
He made his way to flats in nearby Ronald Crescent, where he tried to get into the home of a 56-year-old resident with multiple health problems by forcing the door.
Defence solicitor Ken Dalling said: “His position is that he had been taking what was branded as Xanax, had been in Falkirk, had got on a train, had thought he was heading back to his brother’s address in Dunblane but in fact, got off the train in Larbert, made his way to this location thinking it was his brother’s house, and behaved as described.
“It’s no excuse and as an explanation it’s barely acceptable.”
Sheriff William Gilchrist said: “It must be either not true or he must have been well out of it to confuse a property in Larbert with a house in Dunblane.”
Accused tried to force his way into flat
Prosecutor Michael Maguire said the householder was in the living room of his ground-floor flat about 4.30 pm on June 24 when his dog began barking, alerting him to someone at his front door.
“He saw his front door was open and was only secured now by the security chain.
“He observed a hand come through the gap, trying to unhook the chain.
“He was now close enough to see a man and fully describe his face.”
Smeaton, holding a jumper in his hand, forced his arm through the gap to “effectively barge the door”.
Mr Maguire said: “The householder grabbed the jumper and told him to leave.”
Smeaton said, “For f***s sake”, and made off through the garden.
The householder called police and 10 minutes later officers saw Smeaton, who matched the description given of the intruder, in nearby Main Street, Larbert.
On seeing the jumper officers now had with them, Smeaton said, “That’s my hoodie. I must have left it at the house.
“I just got mixed up with the doors.”
He was then arrested.
Killing himself with drugs
Appearing at Falkirk Sheriff Court by video link from Low Moss Prison, Smeaton, of Dunblane, pleaded guilty to statutory breach of the peace.
Defence solicitor Ken Dalling said prior to being remanded, Smeaton had a long-standing drug problem.
“He had been the subject of a drug treatment and testing order since November 2019.
“It had been a question of whether he would kill himself with drugs.
“He has a history of drug-related dishonesty.”
Imposing a 10-month jail sentence, the sheriff told Smeaton: “You have been before me on numerous occasions.”
