A naked man swung a cricket bat at individuals who tried to grab a child from his arms, which he had abducted from a Dundee toy shop.
This was one of the shocking scenes Dundee Sheriff Court was shown, in “extremely distressing” CCTV footage.
The footage showed Prizemyslaw Kaluzny, 41, entering Toys R Us, Kingsway West retail park, with a cricket bat, removing all of his clothes and shouting aggressively in a foreign language.
He then ran down one of the aisles, “forcibly grabbed” a young child by one arm and dragged the child along the ground towards the shop’s front door.
At the door he picked the child up and swung the bat at anyone who tried to grab the child from him – including the child’s grandmother who he hit on the face with the bat.
The court heard Kaluzny had taken ecstasy tablets which he found in a Kinder Egg container on the street, shortly before entering the store at 2.30pm on April 5.
Fiscal depute Eilidh Robertson said as he entered the store with the bat, staff thought he was attempting to carry out a robbery.
However he walked up to the back of the shop, towards the toilets, removing his clothing as he went.
She said: “Members of the public were also aware of the accused. Witnesses speak of shoppers being panicked, unsettled and trying to shield their children from what was happening.”
At the back of the store he became aggressive, was shouting in a foreign language and gesticulated with the bat.
A woman and her child within the toilets were in “complete panic” and screaming.
Kaluzny then ran down an aisle, with the bat, towards a woman and her young grandchild.
The fiscal said: “Without saying a word and appearing calm and whilst still running, he forcibly grabbed the child with one arm and ran towards the front door.
“The child started crying hysterically and appeared petrified.”
Kaluzny was unable to leave the locus due to the electronic door system.
A number of staff and members of the public approached and shouted at him.
The child’s grandmother hit him with her handbag in an attempt to get the child back, but Kaluzny hit her on the face with the bat, causing her to stumble backwards.
A staff member, Ryan Chaplin, hit Kaluzny with a shopping trolley.
The child was pulled free although was “extremely upset” and had wet and soiled themselves.
Police arrived quickly and Kaluzy was taken to headquarters – managing the snap the handcuffs during the journey, injuring his wrists.
He admitted that on April 5, at Toys R Us, Kingsway West retail park, he had an offensive weapon, behaved in a threatening or abusive manner, committed an offence of public indecency, assaulted and abducted a child, and assaulted a woman to her injury.
He further admitted an act of vandalism, within a police car travelling from Toys R Us to police headquarters.
Sentence was deferred until January 20 for reports and Kaluzny was remanded meantime.
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