Supermarket staff were repeatedly terrorised by a booze-stealing thug who threatened to stab them.
Ryan Ogilvie was found clutching a blade on one occasion, before smashing bottles of alcohol on the shop floor while being chased.
He was also confronted in a bakery for shoplifting where he caused more than £1,000 worth of damage to windows.
The lout has now been locked up after admitting 20 different charges at Dundee Sheriff Court.
Workers have been left so fearful of Ogilvie’s abuse they felt the need to urge a sheriff to impose an anti-social behaviour order (ASBO) banning Ogilvie from entering the supermarkets.
Police welcomed the imposition of the five-year order.
Inspector Lucy Cameron of Longhaugh Police Station said: “During his crime spree Ogilvie committed multiple shop lifting offences daily.
“When challenged by supermarket staff he threatened them, causing them distress.
“There was also a significant financial loss for these stores.
“This will not be tolerated and anyone who has any concerns about thefts from supermarkets or shops in Tayside, they should contact Police Scotland on 101.”
Asda knife threat
The thefts happened at Sainsbury’s on Tom Johnston Road and Asda Milton of Craigie, where Ogilvie made off with alcohol worth more than £800.
The court heard how in the early hours of the morning, Ogilvie walked into the alcohol aisle at the Asda and placed a pair of one-litre bottles of Bacardi in his waistband.
A staff member repeatedly shouted “excuse me” at rampant offender Ogilvie, who ignored her.
Fiscal depute Joanne Ritchie said: “The accused walked towards the exit and was followed near to the chillers at the front of the store.
“The accused said ‘I’ll stab you and the security guard. Call the police if you want’.
“He then picked up a bottle of Fanta and said ‘call the police if you want’.
“He was followed to the security barriers.
“A witness took hold of the accused’s rucksack and she said she wanted the stolen items back.
“She observed a grey metal-handled Stanley in his right hand.
“The accused did not brandish the knife and said ‘I’ll stab you and the security guard’, before leaving.”
Trapped in shop
Ogilvie, 35, was cornered one occasion at Rough & Fraser on Baluniefield Road after being accused by KeyStore staff of shoplifting.
Staff members kept the crook inside by pulling the door shut while police arrived.
The force received numerous calls about the incident before Ogilvie began to kick the windows while demanding to leave.
A customer arrived to see the accused and bakery staff “in a state of distress”, which resulted in Ogilvie fleeing when the door was opened.
Dundee shoplifter banned from Asda and Sainsburys to protect ‘fearful’ staff
Ogilvie had been banned by Asda and Sainsbury’s but repeatedly flouted this, as well as bail orders and curfew conditions.
Ms Ritchie said of the ASBO request: “Police have spoken with staff at Sainsbury’s and they have expressed concern in relation to the accused’s repeated attendance at the store and the nature of the comments which the accused has made.
“They have expressed they are fearful to stop the accused when he enters due to the threats of harm that have been made.
“Police believe this condition is necessary and proportionate to protect the staff.
“Clearly the crimes narrated have had a significant financial impact on the stores and the offences have also had an impact on the staff in relation to their own workload.”
‘Bravado’ comments
Ogilvie, currently a prisoner of HMP Perth, admitted a raft of offences between November and December 2021 as well as between March and June 2023.
Solicitor Ross Donnelly told Sheriff John MacRitchie: “There are clearly aspects of some of these offences that go beyond the simple nuisance of repeated shoplifting.”
He said some of the comments made to staff were “partly out of a sense of bravado and to buy himself time to make good his escape”.
Mr Donnelly said Ogilvie had been in the grips of a drug addiction, as well as experiencing problems with housing and obtaining benefits.
Ogilvie was ordered to serve 17 months of an unexpired portion of a prison sentence before being hit with another 22-month jail term.
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