An Aberdeen man has been fined after threatening to have acid thrown in a woman’s face and send people to another’s house with a knife – in a row over a car.
Shaun Richmond, 28, launched into a vile tirade of sickening threats over a string of phone calls and texts after a fallout over the vehicle.
But when he decided to sell the car, he phoned her up shouting and demanding the vehicle back, before making several terrifying threats to send people to hurt her and her family.
Fiscal depute Susan Love told Aberdeen Sheriff Court: “On Tuesday there was some back and forth between the two. It transpired the accused had sold the vehicle and wanted to get it back from her.
“On Wednesday at 8.30am she received a telephone call. She answered and immediately recognised the voice to be that of the accused, shouting at her and demanding that she give him the vehicle.
“She ended the phone call.
“Coming up for 10am the woman received a further telephone call and this time the accused stated words similar to ‘there are people looking for you’.”
He also said he’d get people to go to another woman’s house “and stick a Stanley knife in her face”.
Ms Love added: “The accused further stated he would pay someone to chuck acid in her face and make her look like a monster.
“Just before 10am she received a text message from the same number which read ‘answer this phone or I’m putting a wage on your face’.”
In a further text Richmond said he would get someone to “take the absolute face off you”.
Ms Love said: “The woman was very frightened by this and telephoned the police.
“Police attended at her property and just before 11am while the police were in attendance she received a further text message which read ‘honestly there are pictures of the house being sent to people’.
“In total she received approximately 30 telephone calls from the number, the majority of which she chose not to answer, along with several text messages some of which were threatening and some of which weren’t.”
Richmond was later traced, cautioned and arrested.
Richmond pled guilty to a charge of behaving in a threatening or abusive manner likely to cause a reasonable person to suffer fear or alarm.
Defence solicitor Neil McRobert said: “The background to this would appear to be Mr Richmond had purchased a car. It would appear that was for the woman to use.
“He was made an offer by someone else wishing to purchase the vehicle and saw an opportunity to make a quick bit of money and thereafter contacted her to get the vehicle returned so that could be carried out.”
Mr McRobert said “elements” of the threats had been “exaggerated” but that his client accepted the “gist” of it was correct.
He added: “He tells me he had consumed alcohol and substances that may have clouded his proper judgement.”
Sheriff Margaret Hodge told Richmond, of Corthan Crescent, Aberdeen: “Your behaviour was unacceptable and unreasonable.”
She fined him a total of £420.
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