Invergordon knifepoint robbery aided by Tain man
A man sat frozen in fear as a woman held a knife to his throat and her companion forced him to transfer £100 to his bank account.
Although Daniel McLean (44), of Mansfield Estate, Tain, was not the one in possession of the blade, Inverness Sheriff Court heard he did nothing to stop his female friend, and then stole items from the victim's home.
On that basis McLean admitted being art and part in the offence and, while acting with another, assaulted the man in his home on November 22, 2022 at King Edward Court, Invergordon and robbed him of the cash and a soundbar.
Fiscal depute Emily Hood told Sheriff Ian Cruickshank that McLean had messaged the man that evening saying he had to drop off an HDMI cable and was invited round for coffee.
She said that McLean arrived with a female who approached the occupant and held a knife to his throat while McLean removed the soundbar from the TV unit.
"The accused and the female then took his mobile phone from him and enabled the transfer of £100 to the accused's account as the witness remained frozen in his seat the whole time in fear of what they might do to him," she said.
Ms Hood said that the victim's father had been contacted and informed the police.
McLean was traced and charged on December 11.
Sentence had been deferred for a background report on McLean whose solicitor advocate, Clare Russell, said: "He says in the report he was not brought up but beaten up as a child.
"Now he has a record of violence and he should have stopped his ex-partner and not gone on to steal. He is no longer in that relationship."
Jailing McLean for 22 months, the sheriff told him: "There are two worrying aspects of this - it was carried out in the man's home and involved the use of a knife.
"I have read the victim impact statement and I have no doubt that he continues to have flashbacks and nightmares. There is no alternative to a prison sentence."
