Man begged to go to jail
Wanted a bed for the night
A 45-year-old man walked into a Perth city centre supermarket and demanded to be sent to jail as he had nowhere to spend the night - or he would“kick the f***ing door in.”
William Murray ordered staff at the Tesco store on South Street to call the police so they would take him into custody.
And his wish was soon granted as Perth’s finest arrested him on Monday night.
He appeared from custody at Perth Sheriff Court the following morning - and admitted shouting and swearing and threatening to damage property at Tesco’s South Street premises on March 26.
His lawyer told Sheriff William Wood: “This was a cry for help from him.”
The accused, who admitted 10 pages of previous convictions, had a history of using illicit substances and had no permanent address.
He went into the store deliberately to get arrested - basically to “get a bed for the night,” explained the solicitor.
“He wanted to go back to jail - he’s not coping.
“He was only liberated from custody on March 19.
“He doesn’t see any merit in getting a background report.”
But Sheriff Wood told him: “Sending you back to prison would be easy for you, easy for
Murray begged for jail at this Tesco store in Perth me - and easy for the system.”
But he wanted to see what long-term support might be available - and called for a Community Justice Social Work report, albeit he would have to be remanded as he was of no fixed abode.
Murray protested that all he wanted was jail as he was led away by G4S security staff.
He will discover his fate when he returns to court on April 24.
Depute fiscal Alan Morrison said the incident took place about 10pm as as he was asked to leave the premises in relation to another matter.
Sending you back to prison would be easy