The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Man jailed for £20,000 rooftop wrecking spree
PERTH: Sheriff tells Danny Stewart he put the public at ‘significant risk’
A man who went on a £20,000 trail of destruction in a six-hour rooftop standoff has been jailed for 20 months.
Danny Stewart hurled roof slates and chimney pots at police officers during the incident on Stanley Crescent, Perth, in August.
Three police vehicles were wrecked during the rampage, which happened after the 24-year-old had a disagreement with his partner. Jailing Stewart yesterday, Sheriff William Wood told him he had put members of the public at “significant risk”.
A man who held a six-hour rooftop standoff with police while hurling chimney pots and slates towards officers has been jailed.
Danny Stewart caused more than £17,000 of damage to police vehicles and £3,000 of damage to the building during the incident in Perth.
The 24-year-old had become agitated following a disagreement with his partner and when police visited him on a related matter he climbed out of the window of his flat and on to the roof.
Officers were forced to cower behind their vehicles while debris rained down on them from above and residents were unable to return to their homes.
At Perth Sheriff Court, Sheriff William Wood told him that the incident had come about because of his “selfish conduct” and accused him of putting members of the public at “significant risk of harm”.
He said: “On August 27 this year when you were upset following an argument with your partner – she had left and you didn’t know where she was – you returned to the flat and when challenged by police officers you scaled the roof and began what can only be described as a standoff.
“The cost of the damage amounts to almost £21,000 over the six-hour incident. A large area had to be cordoned off for public safety and resources were taken away from where they might be needed.
“Residents weren’t allowed to return to their homes and some people went without their medication.”
He added: “You have, for such a young man, an interesting but appalling record, with convictions for violence, breach of the peace, police assault, road traffic incidents and breach of bail.
“It seems to me you are an impulsive young man who has difficulty controlling his impulses. If you are not going to get a grip on those impulses it’s going to go on this way forever.
“I cannot deal with this in any other way than by the imposition of a custodial sentence.”
Stewart, a prisoner at Perth, had earlier admitted causing a breach of the peace by repeatedly shouting, swearing and refusing to come down from the roof, and by repeatedly throwing clay chimney pots and slates at blocks 13, 15 and 17 in Stanley Crescent on August 27.
Sheriff Wood jailed him for 20 months and ordered him to be supervised for 10 months after his release.
After disputing the validity of his sentence with the sheriff, Stewart called to a woman sitting in court and said: “It’s all right, it’s no that long.”
A large area had to be cordoned off for public safety.
SHERIFF WILLIAM WOOD