A grandson who turned up armed and threatened to stab mourners at his grandmother’s wake has been jailed for 15 months.
James Stewart, 27, pulled out a screwdriver and told his uncle he was going to stab him, before telling others he would ‘shank them and cut them up.’
Perth Sheriff Court was told that Stewart had missed the funeral because he had been arrested for an earlier incident and was in custody at the time.
He was released in time to attend the wake, but an hour after it started, he lost money, and his mood dramatically changed.
He and his friend Orin Lambert left the event and came back a short time later with the screwdriver and made a series of threats.
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Solicitor Alan Davie, defending, said: ‘He had been going through a fairly difficult time. One of the ways he tried to deal with his problems was through drink and drugs.
‘That’s clearly had an impact on his regulation of his emotions. He wasn’t at the funeral, but he was at the wake. He wasn’t at the funeral as a consequence of being in custody.
‘He was slightly upset at missing the funeral. He had had a drink. He came into contact with the co-accused, and drugs were taken before they attended the wake.
‘A lot of people were drinking. When Mr Stewart and his co-accused came back, they were not met with a great deal of enthusiasm by anyone. There was an altercation with his uncle.
‘He made the active decision to arm himself before heading back, and he’s aware how seriously the court will deal with these matters. He’s something of a Jekyll and Hyde character.’
Police were called to the scene after he initially left because there was an ongoing disturbance.
When he and Lambert returned with the screwdriver, the police were still there, so he issued several threats before running off from the event. He was arrested and spat in the face of an officer.
He admitted a series of offenses, including having drugs, and Sheriff Andrew Berry backdated his 15-month sentence to April 17 and also placed him under 12 months’ supervision.
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