A brazen thief who stole £59,000 worth of diggers and plant hire equipment to fuel his gambling addiction has been jailed for 12 months.
Kirkcaldy man, James Stewart, hired the JCB machines from stores in Cupar and St Andrews last year using his own name and address.
Some of the stolen equipment was recovered from industrial sites and travellers camps, but £21,000 of heavy machinery was never found.
As a result of his scheme, Stewart will miss the birth of his child, due later this month, Dundee Sheriff Court heard.
After he was traced by police, Stewart was identified by the owners of both businesses.
The 23-year-old admitted two charges of theft.
Fiscal depute Eilidh Robertson said yesterday: “On January 19 2015, the accused attended at FTM Plant Hire in Cupar and rented a JCB digger and dumper for a week at a cost of £250.
“Upon completion of the hired week the items of machinery were not returned.
“The owner attempted to contact the accused on numerous occasions by telephone.
“He spoke to the accused on the phone several times, however, the accused kept giving excuses and eventually stopped answering the phone.”
Following the initial theft, Stewart then made two visits to Mowers and Tools Ltd in St Andrews, where he stole a mini digger, a JCB digger, six buckets, a trailer and a ratchet strap.
Defence solicitor David Bell revealed that his client had been motivated by a “significant” gambling problem.
He said: “He had a significant gambling addiction but has managed to put that behind him, primarily thanks to an ultimatum put to him by his partner.
“She is pregnant and due their child later this month.
“It is a significant amount stolen and it is a very serious offence with a very significant value involved.”
Sentencing, Sheriff Tom Hughes said: “This was a deliberate attempt on more than one occasion to became involved in theft and then to go out and sell these items on.
“The recovery of two of them in this case was good fortune rather than anything else.
“It was a deliberate course of conduct and that makes it inevitable that a custodial sentence will be imposed.”
The thief would have been sentenced to 15 months in jail, but was given a reduced sentence after pleading early.
Stewart’s pregnant partner wept as he was handcuffed and led to the cells.