Tuesday: Done.
Smashed driver
An under-the-influence driver crashed into another vehicle after accelerating away from police.
Greig Dackers admitted driving dangerously by speeding on Lochgelly’s Paul Street and Erskine Street on October 11, 2020.
He failed to stop despite being directed to do so by a marked police vehicle with blue flashing lights.
The 25-year-old then lost control of the car and crashed into another vehicle, causing damage to it.
Dackers, of North Street in Lochgelly, also pled guilty to an offence of driving the vehicle while being unfit to drive through drink or drugs.
Sheriff Alison Michie deferred sentence until March 9 for the production of background reports and disqualified Dackers from driving in the interim.
Knife crime was ‘cry for help’
A Fife man walked into a police station on Christmas Day armed with a kitchen knife and begged to be jailed.
William Vanbeck appeared by video link at Kirkcaldy Sheriff Court and admitted possession of an offensive weapon.
The 43-year-old arrived at Levenmouth Police Station on December 25 carrying a knife with a 13 inch blade.
Officers inside were contacted by the front door intercom where Vanbeck identified himself and told them he had a weapon and that he wanted to be arrested.
At around 4.20pm, officers met him at the front door.
Fiscal depute Claire Bremner told the court: “Officers saw the accused at the door with a knife in his right hand.
“The accused stated he wanted lifted.”
Vanbeck held up the knife and tapped it on the window before placing it on the sill.
He then turned around and placed his hands at his side, inviting police to arrest him.
His solicitor Elizabeth Dryburgh said: “This was a cry for help.”
She noted how her client had struggled with his physical and mental health.
“He knows that a custodial sentence is likely,” she added.
Sheriff James Williamson jailed Vanbeck for ten months.
He backdated the sentence to December 27 when he was first remanded.
Bogus workman
A callous thief who donned hi-vis gear and posed as a workman to target victims in a sheltered housing complex has been jailed for three years and four months.
Paul Nicoll, 50, specifically picked his victims in a housing complex near his home because he knew they were elderly and vulnerable.
The brazen drug addict robbed his victims – who were in their 70s and 80s – while they were at home and he returned several times to the same properties.
Sheriff Paul Brown jailed Nicoll for 40 months at Dundee Sheriff Court and said: “These are reprehensible crimes.
“You targeted vulnerable elderly victims and stole from them to fund your drug habit. I see the vulnerability of the complainers as a substantial aggravating feature.”
Playpark rant
An ex-con faces being sent back to prison for a vile rant against children at a Perthshire playpark.
Duncan McPhee flew into a rage at the busy Balmanno recreational park in Bridge of Earn.
He called youngsters “mongos” and “a bunch of retards,” and told one boy: “Your dad’s a f***ing w*****.”
McPhee, who was previously jailed for defrauding two pensioners over shoddy roof repairs, appeared at Perth Sheriff Court and admitted behaving in a threatening or abusive manner, likely to cause fear or alarm.
He also admitted assaulting a woman at a birthday party.
The full caseload of the Dundee Crime and Courts Team can be found here.
