A boozed-up Fife chef snatched and drank a fellow train passenger’s water and told him he would “sort him out” on the platform.
Sean McGowan turned nasty on a standing room-only ScotRail service between Edinburgh and Inverkeithing on August 9 last year.
Dunfermline Sheriff Court heard the 39-year-old later assaulted a police custody security officer by picking dried blood from his broken nose and flicking it at his face.
McGowan, of Maria Street, Kirkcaldy, appeared for sentencing after earlier pleading guilty to the assault and behaving in a threatening or abusive manner.
Arrested on platform
Prosecutor Charlotte Allan told the court the train was very busy and McGowan was among those standing in the aisles.
As the train made its way to Inverkeithing, McGowan went to the front vestibule and became threatening and abusive towards some passengers.
The fiscal depute said: “He snatched a bottle of water out of the hand of (a man), drinking it and threw it on the floor of the carriage.
“He stated to the man he was going to ‘sort him out’ on the platform when he got off the train”.
A train conductor was informed, and they asked McGowan to leave at the next stop at Inverkeithing but he refused.
The employee stood on the platform at Inverkeithing and McGowan came off the train to confront him.
The train doors closed to prevent him re-boarding, the fiscal said.
Police attended and McGowan was offered a lift home but declined and said he would get a taxi.
As officers returned to their vehicle, he became abusive towards them and was arrested and taken to Dunfermline police station.
There, a custody officer was completing a welfare check on McGowan, who started picking dry blood on his nose before flicking it at the officer, hitting him in the cheek near his mouth.
‘Disgusted’ by CCTV footage
Defence lawyer Lucy Martin said McGowan, employed as a chef in Edinburgh, was drinking heavily at the time of the offence and as a result had broken his nose.
The solicitor said a social work report suggests he does not recall much about what happened but showed disgust after viewing CCTV.
She said McGowan has made efforts to address alcohol misuse and says he has been sober for four months.
Sheriff Mark O’Hanlon told McGowan his behaviour was “entirely unacceptable” and it must have been distressing for both people on the train and the police officer.
The sheriff sentenced him to 225 hours of unpaid work.
For more local court content visit our page or join us on Facebook.
