An axe-wielding thug who held his girlfriend prisoner inside his Perth flat because he suspected she was having an affair with “Russian models” has been jailed.
Kenneth Douglas abducted his partner, flung her across the room and “flushed her smart watch down the toilet” after a series of innocuous spam emails – including daily horoscopes – convinced him she was having an affair with Russian models.
Perth Sheriff Court heard how 42-year-old Douglas hurled an axe towards the woman – a care worker – during the three-hour ordeal.
She tried to escape his St Catherine’s Square home about 40 times before police arrived to rescue her.
Douglas previously admitted abducting and robbing his partner on May 16 last year.
He was jailed for 32 months when he appeared in court via videolink for sentencing.
Supervised release order
Sheriff William Gilchrist told Douglas: “The offence you committed was a very serious one.
“It is one that is still having a considerable psychological impact, judging by the victim impact statement.
“Given your record of violence, I am satisfied only a custodial sentence is appropriate.”
The court heard Douglas had already spent the equivalent of a two-year sentence on remand.
He will be supervised for a year after his release.
The sheriff also issued a five-year non-harassment order.
Solicitor David Holmes, defending, said his client had been seeking help for mental health difficulties.
Horoscopes
The court heard how Douglas and his victim were in an on-off relationship and had known each other since secondary school.
While she was working in Kirkcaldy, Douglas accessed her iPad and spotted spam emails, including one regarding “Russian women in the local area”.
He concluded she was cheating on him with Russian women and having an affair with someone sending her horoscopes.
Douglas presented his findings to his partner when she arrived home.
He threw perfume bottles, picture frames and hair straighteners around the flat and blocked her from exiting, saying the only way she would leave “was in a body bag.”
When she managed to get onto the landing, he grabbed her and pulled her inside.
At one point, he threw her across a bed and onto the floor.
He then lobbed an axe at the bed.
She was able to grab it before Douglas could recover it.
Drunken joyride on a tractor
Douglas told her to phone 999 and said he wanted to be shot by police.
Officers responded to the dropped call but Douglas barricaded the door with furniture until they managed to push their way through.
When they put Douglas in handcuffs, he told them: “It’s the first time I’ve had a domestic in here.”
Mr Holmes said his client – who once took a tractor on a drunken joyride down the A90 – was “extremely intoxicated” and had no memory of the incident.
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