A Dunfermline man who targeted women at their shopping centre workplace and on a bus in strange sex offences has had his sentence further deferred.
Steven Boyd sexually assaulted a 19-year-old shop worker by kissing her hand and told a second victim he thought she was beautiful and blew her kisses.
Boyd sat beside a third woman on a bus and asked her personal questions before going into her workplace.
The 41-year-old appeared at Dunfermline Sheriff Court for sentencing after earlier pleading guilty to a sexual assault and two charges of behaving in a threatening or abusive manner likely to cause fear or alarm.
Boyd, of Westwood Place, Dunfermline, has been put on the sex offenders register.
Strange behaviour
Prosecutor Annie Henderson told the court previously Boyd regularly attended at the Kingsgate shopping centre in Dunfermline and is known to sales assistants and security staff there.
He has learning disabilities and gets 56 hours of care a week from Fife Council.
The fiscal depute said on June 30 last year, Boyd approached a woman at work in a shop in the Kingsgate, introduced himself and began to “follow her around the store”.
He began complimenting her, calling her “beautiful” and “blowing kisses across the store,” the fiscal said.
“It made her uncomfortable and she did not engage with him.
“He then asked her if she had a boyfriend and continued to remain in the store and stare at the complainer while she continued her shift.”
Boyd eventually left and the complainer reported the matter to a manager and the Kingsgate security team.
Hand kisses
The fiscal depute said a woman, then aged 19, was working in another store in the Kingsgate and was alone on the shop floor when Boyd arrived at around 10am on August 23 last year.
She had previously met him when he came in and asked to shake her hand, which she had then allowed.
This time he approached, offered his hand and “took hold of her hand, moved it to his mouth and began kissing it,” the fiscal said.
The woman quickly pulled away but due to Boyd’s size, did not challenge him.
She recorded him leaving and it was reported it to security.
Bus questions
The court heard that on October 22 last year, at around 12.50pm Boyd got on a bus on Halbeath Road and, despite there being empty seats, sat next to a 19-year-old on her way to work in a High Street shop.
He then asked questions similar to “are you single?” and “would your boyfriend be jealous?” and “can we be friends?”
The girl felt uncomfortable and gave brief answers and Boyd remained in the seat next to her until they both disembarked at Dunfermline bus station at around 1.40pm.
At around 2pm she saw him in the store and informed her manager of the bus incident and Boyd was asked by security to leave.
Kingsgate ban
In court this week, defence lawyer Aime Allan referred to a social work report stating there are “difficulties ascertaining” Boyd’s level of culpability “on the basis of not insignificant learning difficulties”.
She said Boyd has been subject to some form of order through the hospital system since 2001 and has been in and out of residential and hospital facilities and is latterly being treated in the community.
He is subject to a compulsion order, due to expire next month.
She said Boyd is not suitable for unpaid work or supervision and justice social work do not have capacity for such intensive support and specific needs.
Sheriff Susan Duff told Boyd she would defer sentencing until April 2 to “see what is happening with your compulsion order”.
The sheriff reminded Boyd that he is still not allowed into the Kingsgate Centre or to contact any of the women involved in the charges.
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