A Celtic fan from Kinross who set off a pyro outside a stadium has been banned from every football match in the UK for 18 months and fined £790.
Hoops season ticket holder Aaron Smith, 21, lit the pyrotechnic outside Motherwell’s Fir Park ground while standing in the middle of a crowd.
Police spotted Smith “fidgeting” in his pocket before he set off the device and threw it away.
A search revealed he had two lighters, other “flash-bang fireworks” and a smoke bomb in his pocket before the lunchtime kick-off.
Smith told officers he did not have a ticket for the Scottish Premiership game on February 6 2022 but had been making his way to pick one up from a fellow fan.
The joiner claimed he had been a victim of mistaken identity and went on trial at Hamilton Sheriff Court.
He was convicted of culpable and reckless conduct by Sheriff Michael Higgins, who banned him from going to games and slapped him with a fine.
Police saw firework
The court heard two police officers watched Smith light the firework and throw it away before they moved in.
PC Ross Dalrymple, 27, said: “We observed a male light a flash-bang firework which made a loud bang.
“He was in the middle of a large group of 25 or 30 people.
“Within his pocket he has pulled something out, lit it, held it to the side in his right hand and it has made a loud cracking noise with a flash.
“He was identifiable by his height because he was the tallest in the group who were walking shoulder to shoulder.”
PC Stephan Dowling added: “I saw a male fidgeting in his pocket, he then appeared to light it, hold it in his hand and throw it away.
“There was a loud bang and a puff of smoke.”
‘Picked out due to height’
Giving evidence Smith, who has attended Celtic games for 13 years, insisted he had gone to Motherwell to soak up the atmosphere and watch the game in a pub and had been picked out because of his height.
He said: “I was going to go to the pub because we did not have tickets so there was no chance of us going to the game and we were there to take in the atmosphere.
“There was a lot of people and there were bangs going off everywhere, a lot of cars going past, people singing, it was just a football atmosphere.
“I would imagine the size of me in that crowd that I have been picked out and they thought it was maybe me who did it but I didn’t light anything.”
James McGowan, 33, claimed he had been walking beside Smith and did not see him set off a pyrotechnic.
He added: “I would have been in danger if he had lit something because I was standing right next to him.”
‘Self-serving and contrived’ evidence
Isla Sinclair, defending, said: “He is an individual who has attended football for 13 years and it is a huge aspect of his life in terms of socialising and he is a season ticket holder which costs him in the region of £600 a year.
“This whole process that he has found himself in has been a very abrupt wake-up call for him and he is far more mature now than he was then and I think a banning order would be disproportionate.”
Sheriff Higgins branded evidence given by first offender Smith as “self-serving and contrived” and told him: “The behaviour of which you were convicted of is worrying, given you were in the middle of a group of people and it was potentially dangerous.
“I’m satisfied that because of the nature of the offence and the circumstances it is appropriate to impose a banning order on you to prevent violence and disorder at football matches.”
Celtic ran out 4-0 winners of the match with goals from Tom Rogic, Liel Abada, and Daizen Maeda.
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