A police officer dropped to his hands and knees at a wedding and threatened to kill himself over a female colleague he is accused of harassing, a court has heard.
Tayside Division constable Dale Mudie went on trial on Monday accused of harassing PC Amy Hutchison when their “intense” relationship which blossomed after the pair attended police college went sour.
Mr Mudie, 24, from Carnoustie, threatened to report the woman to their professional standards body, and arrest her earnings, over money he had used to pay for a holiday and gifts.
On the first day of evidence at Forfar Sheriff Court, Ms Hutchison said she felt “threatened” by a barrage of text messages from Mr Mudie when their five-month relationship ended in 2011.
Things had come to a head at a wedding reception in Blairgowrie, where Ms Hutchison said she was leaving the relationship.
She told the court: “He got on his hands and knees. He said he would commit suicide. I said I couldn’t deal with that as there had been other threats of suicide.”
Ms Hutchison said Mr Mudie began text messaging her about an amount of money he believed she owed him for a holiday to the Lake District that went on his credit card.
Depute fiscal Bill Kermode said: “As far as you were concerned, did you owe him any money?”
She replied: “No”.
On September 24 that year, 20 days after the couple had split up, Ms Hutchison received a text message from Mr Mudie that included a direct quote from a private email she had received from another male officer.
She said: “It had a direct quote from him and he said, ‘I knew I was right about you and Neil professional standards will have a field day with you’.
“I was shaken, I was crying I wasn’t sure what he was capable of doing.”
Ms Hutchison, 26, told the court she has been a plain clothes PC working in public protection for more than four years.
Mr Kermode asked her: “Shortly after leaving your training, did you begin a relationship with anyone?”
Ms Hutchison indicated she had started seeing Mr Mudie in April 2011, saying: “It was initially quite good. I would describe it as deteriorating quite rapidly.”
She said he was “quite possessive and controlling”, adding: “He was checking my mobile, reading texts, deleting texts he would make me feel almost guilty for spending any time with my friends.”
Ms Hutchison said she spoke to an inspector on September 20, after becoming worried about implications for her future police career.
Defending Mr Mudie, advocate Gavin Anderson asked her what the relationship was like during their time at Tulliallan Police College.
Ms Hutchison said they had become friends and kept in contact following graduation.
Mr Mudie had a girlfriend at that time but the pair formed a relationship in April 2011.
Addressing the court, Mr Anderson produced “a volume” of text messages.
Much of Mr Anderson’s cross-examination of Ms Hutchison was held in private due to the sensitivity of some of the information in her evidence.
Mr Mudie denies a charge alleging he harassed Amy Hutchison over almost two months from September 2011.
The trial is scheduled to continue on January 16.