A Montrose man has been jailed for 18 months after trying to knife a police officer after barricading himself in his home.
Andrew Neave, 29, was brought from HMP Perth to Dundee Sheriff Court where he admitted assaulting PC Conar Taylor.
Officers attended at his Glenlethnot Place home on January 15 where he had barricaded himself inside.
Fiscal depute Lynn Mannion explained that Neave refused to leave the property and spoke with officers after removing a glass panel from his front door.
After speaking with police, he went to his kitchen and retrieved a black-handled knife which he used to attempt to strike PC Taylor on the head.
Neave was sprayed with PAVA and taken to West Bell Street HQ.
Solicitor Billy Rennie said: “There was a number of mental health issues at the time.
“His position is little recollection of events on the day.
“He accepts the police evidence against him.”
Sheriff Alastair Carmichael jailed Neave and said: “This is a serious matter.
“You can’t behave in that way towards police officers.
“They should not be faced with violence like that.
“A custodial sentence is inevitable.”
Racist assault
A woman whose court case exposed a national hospital beds crisis has admitted a racist assault at a Perth corner shop.
Nicola Williamson made headlines in February when it emerged she had been held in jail for 50 days, despite an urgent need for a hospital assessment.
Scottish Ministers were ordained to appear at Perth Sheriff Court amid concerns her human rights were being breached.
And just days later, the court was told “all avenues had been exhausted,” a hospital bed was suddenly found.
Now the 33-year-old – who was since assessed as suitable for mainstream prison – has been remanded in custody after admitting a series of offences, including a bigoted outburst at the Premier store in Perth’s Balhousie Street on August 28 2021.
Court papers state Williamson behaving in a racially aggravated manner, causing employee Zegham Aziz alarm or distress.
She shouted, swore and uttered racially offensive remarks towards him.
Williamson then assaulted Mr Aziz by seizing him, pulling him from a motor vehicle and repeatedly punching him on the head.
Williamson pled guilty to a separate assault at Market Park, Crieff, on August 11 2022.
She attacked Veronica Moorhead and repeatedly punched her on the head, seized her hair and caused her to fall to the ground.
Both victims were left injured, the court heard.
Williamson, formerly of South Willliam Street, also breached an undertaking order by calling 999 when there was no emergency.
And she admitted behaving in a threatening or abusive manner outside her then home on December 14 2022.
Sheriff Mark Thorley was told Williamson had already served the equivalent of a six month sentence on remand.
He deferred sentence for background reports until November 1.
Dealer jailed
A Dundee drug dealer who attempted to raise funds for his mother’s funeral with a £16K cocaine operation has been jailed.
Liam Forbes was previously warned to prepare for prison after he admitted getting caught with a jar stuffed full of the illicit class A substance at his Craigmore Street home.
The 28-year-old told Dundee Sheriff Court his mother had been diagnosed with terminal cancer and he was raising money to cover the cost of her funeral arrangements.
Forbes, who again turned up to court wearing a hoodie with photographs of his mother on it, has a previous conviction for being concerned in the supply of cannabis.
Sheriff Paul Brown jailed him for 13 months.
Tooled up
A “tooled up” Perth prisoner who was caught with a handmade weapon has been given extra jail time.
Drug dealer Kurt D’Cruz was jailed in 2018 for his role in a £500,000 cocaine and cannabis operation in Dundee
He returned to the dock and admitted behaving in a threatening or abusive manner at HMP Perth on August 10 last year.
The city’s sheriff court heard that guards went to his cell at about 7.20am.
Fiscal depute Sarah Wilkinson said: “The accused began making threats towards another prisoner on the landing.
“He claimed to be ‘tooled up’ and produced a sock with items within from behind his back.”
The prosecutor said: “After some discussion, officer Dale Bustard convinced the accused to hand over the sock.
“It was filled with a padlock and a small glass jar and was tied with a knot at the top.”
Solicitor Jim Caird, defending, said the other prisoner had assaulted D’Cruz’s cellmate and “slashed him”.
“He was at his wit’s end,” said Mr Caird.
The court heard padlocks were given to each inmate to secure a safe in their cell.
Originally jailed for five years, D’Cruz was now serving the equivalent of a six-and-a-half year stretch after he was caught with illegal SIM cards three times.
Sheriff Jennifer Bain KC imposed a further four months. She told D’Cruz she was not prepared to let it run concurrently.
Cashpoint robber jailed
An 80-year-old woman has told of her continuing trauma after being attacked and robbed at a cashpoint in a Fife town.
Stuart Patterson dragged pensioner Margaret Jones to the ground and wrestled a purse from her hand at the Tesco in Station Road, Cardenden.
CCTV of the robbery was played at Dunfermline Sheriff Court, where Sheriff Charles Macnair jailed 40-year-old Patterson for 28 months.
Speaking afterwards, Mrs Jones said her experience has been “traumatic” and she is no longer able to leave home without her husband.
Of Patterson’s sentence, she said: “It’s more (jail time) than I thought it was going to be”.
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