News / Binge led pair to break into café safe
TWO young Shetland men who admitted breaking into a Lerwick café and stealing around £150 from the safe to fund a drink and drug binge narrowly escaped a jail sentence on Wednesday at the town’s sheriff court.
Steven Irvine, aged 26, of 162 Sandveien, Lerwick, and 22 year old James Garson, of Summerside, Walls, both admitted the break in and theft from New Harbour Café on Merran Moad Steps on 5 January.
Irvine also admitted stealing two bottles of wine from the local Tesco superstore on 27 January while on bail, both of which were recovered.
The court heard that the pair had been on a lengthy binge when they persuaded one of the café’s employees to hand over the keys to the building, which they used to stage the crime. As a result suspicion fell on the staff member who lost her job.
Defence agent Tommy Allan said: “There’s no secret about what was behind this. It’s clear from the reports that both were involved in a binge of large quantities of alcohol and other substances fore by. They needed money and got involved with this.”
He said that since the incident Irvine had completely stopped drinking, was working with the local alcohol and drugs service and was looking for independent accommodation away from people who might lead him into temptation.
Garson, Mr Allan said, had struggled with his addiction to the point where people around him were seriously concerned for his health, fearing his life was in danger if he did not receive support to come off drink and drugs.
He added that Garson appeared to have pulled himself out of the binge he had been on and was running the family business to pay them back for his behaviour.
“Neither if these two are in the habit of doing this sort of thing. They did this when they were very much the worse for wear and I don’t mean for one night only, but for a period of time. Both of them have worked to get themselves out of this hole that they are in,” he said.
Sheriff Philip Mann placed Irvine on a 12 month supervised community payback order during the first nine months of which he must complete 240 hours of unpaid work in the community.
However the sheriff warned Garson that if he did not combat his drinking he was facing time in prison.
He deferred sentence for three months during which he expects him to engage with the local alcohol and drugs team. He must also refrain from being under the influence of alcohol in public and submit to a breath test at any time
“You must understand a custodial sentence is still very much at the forefront of my mind and the reason I am doing this is to see if you can sort yourself out drinkwise,” he said.
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