A man who claimed he was unfit to carry out unpaid work despite telling social workers he liked “swimming, football and long walks” has been jailed for a year.
John Lochrane claimed he could not carry out a community payback order because he was unable to walk more than 60 yards.
However, Lochrane, 27, of Cumberland Barracks, Coupar Angus, told social workers in February he enjoyed an active lifestyle.
Sheriff William Wood said: “The court can’t just keep putting things off to be at your convenience. You are at the stage where my patience is exhausted and only a custodial sentence now remains.
“The difficulty I have with your claimed medical condition stems back to the original social work report from February 25 this year.
“You were said to have told social workers you enjoyed swimming, playing football and going for long walks with your dog.
“You agreed to undertake unpaid work and said you were fit to do so and that is why the court went down that route. You are not doing the work, and saying you are not fit to do it. I don’t know what to believe about your physical condition.”
Sheriff Wood revoked the community payback order and jailed Lochrane for 12 months, as well as imposing a six month supervision period upon his release.
Lochrane had breached the original order to carry out 300 hours unpaid work in the community imposed for armed racist attacks on two Polish men.
He claimed he had suffered from pleurisy and two collapsed lungs in the past and would only be prepared to do unpaid work if he was given special “light duties”.
Solicitor Susan Richmond, defending, said: “The report doesn’t make terribly positive reading. Contact was made giving a number of reasons why he was unable to attend for work.
“He did attend on two occasions, but found the work particularly difficult. He did unpaid work in 2011 but had recurring lung problems.”