INVERNESS SHERIFF COURT: Teenager turning his life around after being caught with a blade

A TEENAGER convinced a sheriff he was turning his life around to follow a law-abiding path when he appeared for sentence at Inverness Sheriff Court.

Anthony MacAllister, of Maclennan Crescent, Inverness is serving a sentence of detention until October this year.

But his lawyer Marc Dickson told Sheriff Ian Cruickshank that his client had taken advantage of the educational programmes available in the young offender’s institution.

He detailed a number of courses the 18-year-old had completed, mostly for prospective employment in the construction industry.

Mr Dickson said: “He does not intend returning to this area on his release. His girlfriend is in Giffnock and he intends to live with her and her family who are non-criminal. She is a steadying influence on him. Her mother is very supportive so he hopes to make a fresh start after an unfortunate start in life.”

A previous court heard that police were called to deal with a noise complaint at an Inverness property and discovered the teenage occupant was not there when he should have been under a court order.

The court was told that MacAllister was traced later on May 18, 2021 and routinely searched. Fiscal depute Robert Weir said that MacAllister had a backpack and a toolbox with a hunting knife found within the haversack. A body search of the teenager also revealed a two-pronged fork. MacAllister admitted possessing a bladed item and a pointed object without reasonable excuse and a breach of a bail curfew.

Mr Dickson added: “He was drinking too much and abusing illicit substances. The fork was a BBQ fork and the knife was a fishing knife. He is at a loss to explain why he had them.”

Sheriff Cruickshank placed MacAllister under 15 months of social work supervision.