A Crossgates man has admitted drunkenly shouting and swearing at the family of a paedophile neighbour in the early hours of the morning.
Colin Flockhart pled guilty to acting in a threatening or abusive manner towards the wife of convicted Nicholas Denison from within his own garden in Baxter Road.
Denison had fled more than 500 miles to stay with family in Cornwall after he had received abuse for pleading guilty to sending indecent images to police decoy accounts posing on social media as teenage girls.
Neighbours staged a peaceful protest outside his home after his sentencing in June.
Neighbour became ‘fearful’
Fiscal Depute Mat Piskorz told Dunfermline Sheriff Court that, more than a week after the residents’ demonstration, Flockhart was “intoxicated” when he swore at Denison’s wife and acted in an aggressive manner.
“The accused was causing the witness to become fearful of his actions,” he said. “The complainer called police.”
Scaffolder Flockhart admitted to repeatedly shouting and swearing and uttering offensive remarks to Denison’s wife at around 4am on June 19.
Dunfermline Sheriff Court heard that Flockhart was regretful of his actions and had been drinking.
The incident took place hours after the Euro 2020 clash between Scotland and England.
Sheriff Alastair Brown fined the 36-year-old £320.
The Sheriff said: “When a person is convicted of an offence which involves being placed under supervision, the court is dealing with the matter.
“The court is dealing with it, and you don’t.”
Curfew suspended
Later that day, Dunfermline Sheriff Court heard that Denison had temporarily fled to Truro, Cornwall, to escape his surroundings.
Complications arose in court related to shifting his Restriction of Liberty Order to the English courts setup.
However, upon being told that Denison’s relocation would only be until his house had sold and he found another elsewhere in Scotland, Sheriff Brown ordered a three month suspension of the curfew.
The sheriff added that: “The irony is, those making noise about wanting a more severe sentence” have been effectively influential in temporarily lightening Denison’s sentence.
Sex offender Denison, 61, had sent indecent images to accounts on social media channel Kik, which he believed were going to girls aged 12 and 13.
Both his family and his neighbours had sent opposing letters to Sheriff Charles MacNair when he appeared in court earlier this year.
Denison was ultimately handed the maximum unpaid work sentence of 300 hours.
However, unhappy neighbours staged a protest outside his home days later.
