Teen accused in armed raid

19-year old on trial following break-in

A woman used the bank card of a blind pensioner she was supposed to be helping to steal money, a court heard last week.

Margaret Wright, 31, of Quakerfield in Bannockburn, admitted stealing £130 from an ATM at Main Street, Bannockburn, on March 4, and obtaining £50 by fraud at the Tartan Arms on March 5.

Stirling Sheriff Court heard the card was owned by 76-year-old Robert Ferguson, who is registered blind.

Fiscal depute Anne Orr said Wright had been given the card to take £20 out for the pensioner, but she had used it to access £130 from the ATM and claim £50 cashback at the Bannockburn pub.

The man attended his bank on March 5 and realised he had no money in his account, leaving him upset and staff contacted police on his behalf. Defending, Frazer McCready said Wright - who has had issues with drug addiction - had struck up a friendship with the man, and that it was not accepted that she had taken advantage of him.

He said:“We do not, respectfully, accept that this was a case of her taking advantage of an old man. He was happy to have her and her young friends around, this was mutual.”

Sheriff William Gilchrist issued the woman with a £180 compensation order, and a community payback order, including 70 hours of unpaid work and six months supervision.

Wright also admitted a charge of being involved in the supply of diamorphine at Cowane Street on November 9 last year, and was sentenced to a separate community payback order consisting of 120 hours of unpaid work to be completed within six months.

A teenager has gone on trial accused of taking part in a masked armed raid at a house in Cowie.

Gary Ralston, 19, is said to have been acting with another male when he entered the house on Easterton Crescent uninvited and in possession of a knife, pick axe and baseball bat, and assaulted two people living there.

It is alleged that he brandished the weapons at Marion and Ben Bowmaker before grabbing Marion and pulling her up a flight of stairs, struggling with Ben and repeatedly demanding money from him.

He is then said to have hit him with the baseball bat, threatened him with violence, and robbed them both, and a third person - Emma Morrow - of three mobile phones, a quantity of money, and a video games console during a disturbance on December 11.

Ralston of Plean, whose face was allegedly covered by a mask, is also accused of uttering threats of future violence, saying that he would return, striking a light fitting with the baseball bat and also damaging a household telephone handset.

At the High Court in Stirling , Ralston, who is represented by advocate Drew McKenzie, pleaded not guilty to the charge against him when the trial got underway on Monday