A convicted robber threatened to blow up a house during 11 hour stand-off with police.
William Carlin absconded from Castle Huntly after hearing his brother in Newcastle was seriously ill.
After making the trip south of the border, the 52-year-old went to stay with family in Ayrshire, where he was discovered by police.
He told officers he was near a gas main and would blow up the building if they tried to enter.
Fiscal depute Carol Whyte told Perth Sheriff Court that Carlin went missing after being dropped off on Hospital Road, Dundee, to attend a dental appointment.
After Carlin failed to return to the pick-up point, a G4S driver discovered he had not attended the appointment and raised the alarm.
On December 6 police were tipped-off that he was in Kilmarnock.
Mrs Whyte said: “Two Kilmarnock CID officers attended the address at around 8am. They saw that the blinds were closed but a window was open, suggesting someone was within.
“They then saw the window close, so approached the window and one of the CID officers attempted to engage the accused in conversation.
“The accused stated that he was beside a gas main and would blow up the block of flats should police enter.
“As a result, and armed response unit attended at the locus along with the fire brigade, an ambulance and gas engineers.
“Several hours of negotiations between the accused and trained police officers ensued, during which the accused stated that he wished to see members of his family.
“At 7.35pm entry was forced to the locus by trained officers concerned for the accused’s mental health.
“The accused was immediately compliant upon officers entering the flat, freely surrendered himself and allowed himself to be handcuffed and escorted from the locus.”
Carlin’s solicitor David McCaig said he had made the impulsive decision to abscond after fearing that his brother was about to die.
He said: “His brother is three years younger than him and they grew up together in care – thus they have a strong bond.
“He learned his brother was seriously unwell and thought he would not survive. He thought he would never see his brother again and that was part of the decision to abscond.”
He added that Carlin had health conditions, including a tripe heart bypass and COPD, which were exacerbated by the work regime and cold at Castle Huntly.
Yesterday Carlin pled guilty to attempting to defeat the ends of justice between November 5 and December 6 last year by failing to attend the dental appointment and attempting to evade capture.
He also admitted behaving in a threatening and abusive manner at McEwan Place, Kilmarnock, on December 6 by refusing to answer the door and threatening to blow the building up.
Carlin, a prisoner at Kilmarnock, had a further 18 months added to his sentence.
