Court / Three men sentenced

THREE men have been placed under supervision for 12 months and given unpaid work after attempting to gain entry into a Lerwick property and behaving aggressively towards its householders.

Curtis Carter, Jakob Thorne and Shaun Penders had their faces covered when they carried out the offence on 8 December last year.

The three men previously admitted behaving in a threatening or abusive manner at the address in Lerwick by repeatedly striking the front door and attempting to gain entry, and behaving aggressively towards the householders.

Carter, 21, of Ladies Mire, Brae, Thorne, 20, of Lerwick’s Sandveien, and Penders, 21, of North Lochside, Lerwick, previously had pleas of not guilty on assault charges accepted.

The three men’s defence representatives said the trio were remorseful for their actions – with lockdown providing a chance for some “mature reflection”.

The court also heard that alcohol had been a factor in the incident.

The offence was carried out while Penders was on bail.

Sheriff Ian Cruickshank said the behaviour was particularly concerning in an island community.

He said the law dictated that in this instance prison would only be appropriate if there was no other option.

As a result, he gave the three men a community payback order including 120 hours of unpaid work as a direct alternative to custody.