Stalker turned up at golf club with knife

Former chef (42) admits causing‘fear and alarm’

A man was found with a knife in his pocket after walking uninvited into a Strathallan golf club to search for a former female work colleague after she did not respond to messages he sent her on social media, Perth Sheriff Court heard.

The court was told Robert McDonald ( 42) was spotted hanging around Auchterarder Golf Club several times late at night looking for the woman and was even warned off the premises at least once before he brazenly walked into the clubhouse to seek her out earlier this year.

McDonald, who the court heard formerly worked at the club as a chef until 2017, was also said to have alarmed several people living in the town after knocking on doors and asking questions of householders in an attempt to ascertain his former co-worker’s home address.

On one occasion the accused was even said to have claimed his former co-worker was actually his wife despite the fact the female, said to be just 22 years old, only worked with him for nine months and did not have any contact with him whatsoever after he left his job.

“They were just co-workers [and] were not particularly close,” depute fiscal Joanne Ritchie told the court.

Ms Ritchie said McDonald began his attempts to re-establish contact with the woman earlier this year by sending her a series of message via social media saying hello and asking how she was.

“She did not respond to these messages,” Ms Ritchie said.

Ms Ritchie went on to tell the court how McDonald then began knocking on doors at various addresses in the town and asking householders if his ex-colleague lived there, then appearing confused when he was told she did not.

She said of one such occasion: “The accused seemed unsure what to do with this information. He stated he was looking for her because he was her husband.”

Ms Ritchie added on this occasion the accused also claimed “something big was going on in Auchterarder” in a bid to persuade the householder to part with any information she had about the woman’s whereabouts.

“The witness found this behaviour to be quite alarming [and] contacted the police,” said Ms Ritchie.

She said McDonald was then spotted “loitering” in Auchterarder Golf Club’s car park later that same day then turned up again a few days later asking people if his former colleague still worked there.

Ms Ritchie said the accused was then seen hanging around the club a third time on May 18 as an employee was trying to lock up for the night.

“He was told he was not welcome at the club anymore and he should leave”, she said.

However, she went on: “On May 21 at 12.30pm the accused was seen to enter the clubhouse. He walked past a member of staff towards the entrance to the kitchen. He then turned around and made his way out of the building.”

Ms Ritchie said staff later reported him to police out of concern about his “strange” behaviour then rang them a second time after reviewing the club’s CCTV and realising he was carrying a kitchen knife in the back pocket of his jeans while he was there.

When officers finally caught up with him and retrieved the knife he replied: “It’s only two inches.”

McDonald, whose behaviour was branded “bizarre” by Sheriff Keith O’Mahoney in his summing up of the case, pled guilty to engaging in a course of conduct which caused his former coworker fear or alarm between May 7 and May 24 this year.

He also admitted being found in possession of a knife without a reasonable excuse or any lawful authority at an address in Auchterarder’s Orchil Road on May 21 this year.

Sheriff O’Mahoney opted to sentence McDonald, a first offender, to complete 160 hours of unpaid work over the next 12 months.

He also imposed a non-harassment order on McDonald prohibiting him from contacting or approaching his former coworker for the next three years.