Cops in bid to catch racist who threatened schoolboy

Hunt after yob fails to appear in court

A racist thug who terrorised a teenager in Paisley town centre and threatened to stab him is being hunted by police.

Nicholas Goodwin, 25, failed to turn up at Paisley Sheriff Court for his latest appearance.

He was acting along with Conor Watson when they accosted the 16- year- old at Gilmour Street railway station as he made his way to school.

They lured him to a quiet lane and put him through the ordeal just before Christmas 2014.

They confronted the schoolboy at 7.20am on December 15 and followed him into the railway station.

He was then subjected to racial abuse and called a “black b*****d.”

The lad was encouraged to go outside, where one of the men was heard saying: “Wait. Not here because of the cameras.”

The court was previously told how threats were made that the schoolboy would be battered and stabbed.

He managed to get away from the pair and, once back inside the station, staff took him to one side and contacted the British Transport Police.

When they originally appeared in court, both accused pleaded guilty to acting in a manner that caused or was intended to cause their victim alarm and distress by acting in an aggressive and intimidating manner towards him.

They also repeatedly made racial remarks, followed him into the station, threatened violence against him and threatened to stab him.

After hearing that Goodwin, of Dalry, was serving three back- toback jail terms at Low Moss Prison for offences that took place in Kilmarnock and Ayr, Sheriff Robert Fife told him he was offering him an opportunity to show he could stay out of trouble once released from custody.

He was eventually made the subject of a Community Payback Order, but that was revoked due to noncompliance in November last year.

He had sentence further deferred and was ordered to be of good behaviour.

When the case against him was called again in court yesterday, he failed to appear, with no explanation given for his absence.

A warrant was issued for his arrest.