A drug addict whose horrified mother identified him as the man who robbed an Angus pensioner of her handbag in the street has been jailed for three and a half years.
George Meechan left his 76-year-old victim screaming in terror in the heart of Kirriemuir after the tea-time incident in January in which he got away with only £4 but also precious photographs of his frail victim’s grandchildren.
Callous Meechan then smoked his victim’s cigarettes before burning the snatched bag in the follow-up to an incident which has left the woman afraid to go out amid constant fears she is being followed in the street.
The woman remains too upset to speak about the traumatic incident but on Thursday Meechan’s solicitor told Forfar Sheriff Court that the 28-year-old wanted to write her a letter saying how sorry he was for an offence which led him to seek medical help after his “disgust” at the way he had acted.
Meechan, a patient at Sunnyside Royal Hospital near Montrose, appeared for sentence before Sheriff Kevin Veal after earlier admitting an indictment in relation to the January 19 incident at the Co-op in Kirriemuir in which he approached his 76-year-old victim from behind and grabbed her handbag as she emerged from the store in the Roods.
CCTV footage showed him in the vicinity just moments before the robbery. A witness who had come to the aid of the “extremely distressed” victim had said the images were those of the accused.
However, Meehan continually claimed to police he was not responsible for the robbery even when his mother confirmed he was the individual pictured.
When officers interviewed him a second time he admitted the offence, breaking down and saying how depressed he was after hitting rock bottom in his life. He then took police to the field where he had burned the distinctive multi-coloured bag.
However, the court had also been previously told how, before destroying the bag, the accused had smoked the remainder of his victim’s cigarettes the ends of which were discovered during an examination of the property in which he was staying at the time.A turning pointIn court on Thursday defence agent Grant Reid said the impact of his actions against the pensioner had led Meechan to a turning point in his life.
“He advises me, and it seems to be confirmed by the reports, that he was so disgusted and ashamed of his actions he went to Sunnyside Hospital and sought assistance from there,” the solicitor said. Meechan was also placed on a methadone prescription.
“He fully accepts responsibility. He is really at a loss to explain what he did,” Mr Reid added. “He was certainly under the influence of alcohol and drugs but he doesn’t seek to use that as an excuse, merely an explanation.
“He wants to start again and wants to write to the complainer through the courts, if it’s thought that might help.
“Mr Meechan completely understands that his behaviour in the past has affected the outcomes open to your lordship and he accepts there is only one possible sentence today.
“He has to accept what has gone before and he will continue his rehabilitation within the prison setting. He wants to come out the other end a completely different person.”
Sheriff Veal said the lawyer had offered a “very realistic” plea in mitigation for Meechan.
“The problem for the accused is that this offence involved a lady of 76 years old, described as elderly and vulnerable,” the sheriff said. “When such a person is targeted at five in the afternoon that has to be regarded as an offence of a very serious nature and has to be appropriately marked.
“I accept that the accused has taken steps in the meantime to alter his life but there has to be an assurance for the wider community that this sort of offence will be properly dealt with. The sentence of the court would have been 63 months but given the early plea the sentence is one of 42 months’ imprisonment.”