A police officer was injured and left “covered in blood” during a disturbance on the edge of a Perthshire village.
The officer suffered an eye injury in the altercation at Auchterarder on Monday morning.
He was taken to Perth Royal Infirmary for treatment.
Police were scrambled to the town’s Ruthven Park following reports of a man behaving suspiciously near a bus stop.
Neighbours said a male was spotted standing in the centre of the A824 Feus road with his arms outstretched, just after 10.30am.
Police Scotland confirmed a 41-year-old man had been arrested and charged in connection with the incident.
He is due to appear in court on Tuesday.
Commotion on the street
One onlooker said: “I didn’t know what was going on. I just heard this commotion outside on the street.
“There was a lot of raised voices. It sounded like a man screaming but I couldn’t make out what was being said.”
Another resident said one of the police officers appeared to be badly injured.
“He was covered in blood,” she said.
“It looked like he had a wound on his head and blood was just pouring out of it. It looked really bad, I hope he’s alright.”
Officers called for back-up and within minutes, more police vehicles arrived with blue lights activated and sirens blaring.
At the height of the incident, there were five Police Scotland vans and cars parked up at the side of the A824, and in nearby Ruthven Park.
Locals said several police were involved in a “scuffle” on the road. At the end of the incident, a man in handcuffs was led by officers into the back of the van.
A Police Scotland spokeswoman said: “Around 10.40am on Monday, police attended a report of a disturbance in Ruthven Park, Auchterarder.
“During the incident, a male police officer sustained an eye injury and was taken to PRI for treatment.”
She said: “A 41-year-old man was arrested and charged in connection with the incident and is due to appear at Perth Sheriff Court on Tuesday.
“A report will be submitted to the Procurator Fiscal.”
