A man has been jailed for nine months after a losing control in a Forfar incident in the early hours of Christmas Eve.
Mark Smith saw red over a complaint about a pint of beer in a town pub, leading to his arrest, and for the entire duration of a journey to Dundee in a police van he punched, headbutted and spat through the cage in the rear of the vehicle.
The 22-year-old’s behaviour was condemned by a sheriff who noted the accused had only been freed months previously from a 39-month jail term after a Forfar town centre incident in which he held a foot-long Bowie knife to the throat of a man he was using as a human shield against CS spray.
Smith, of Lochlands caravan park, Forfar, admitted behaving in a threatening and abusive manner in the Vine & Monkey, West High Street, Forfar, on December 23, and on the following day behaving in a similar manner in the back of a police vehicle and spitting at two officers.
The court heard Smith had been in the bar with friends when he bought a pint and, after consuming some of it, complained that the drink was flat.
Although staff and other witnesses said there was nothing wrong with the drink, Smith was offered his money back, and was refused any further service.
He then became angry and was taken outside by other witnesses in an attempt to calm him down, but he re-entered the bar and told a staff member that if he contacted police he would “get him”. Police were called and Smith was apprehended.
Depute fiscal Saima Rasheed said: “On being placed in the police vehicle be immediately reared up and started headbutting the cage of the vehicle, spitting towards the officers.”
“He told officers: ‘I’m going to get you you’re dead.’”
Defence agent Grant Bruce said Smith was ashamed of his behaviour and had drastically cut down on his drinking since his release from jail.
Sheriff Kevin Veal said: “The fact is that this accused is subject to an unexpired portion of his sentence and he behaved very badly. If you are out on licence you take responsibility for your own behaviour.
“He can go back to prison for six months of the unexpired sentence and thereafter serve a further three months.”