Perth gun terror man jailed.

Robert Lambert lured the officers to his home over a grudge

A 62-year-old man who cornered two police officers inside his flat at gunpoint then led their colleagues on a high-speed chase through Perthshire has been jailed for 21 months.

Robert Lambert will also be closely monitored by social workers for 10 months following his release in order to “protect the public from serious harm”.

Lambert had lured officers to his home in St Catherine’s Square, Perth, on the pretence that he was being robbed.

The city’s sheriff court heard he was already nursing a grievance against Police Scotland, having accused its officers of stealing medication from his car.

He had previously been arrested after he went to Perth Police Station and shouted and swore at officers, calling them “Nazis” and “fascists” and repeatedly giving Nazi salutes.

The officers who went to his flat 10 days later found themselves staring down the barrel of a convincing imitation weapon.

Believing it was real, they barricaded themselves in Lambert’s home, locking him in the close outside, and pressed panic buttons to call for back-up.

By the time colleagues arrived, Lambert had fled in his car, setting in motion a high-speed chase after he was spotted on the outskirts of the city.

He was recorded travelling at speeds of more than 100mph on the A9 Perth to Stirling dual carriageway and was only halted by an empty fuel tank.

Officers still had to smash their way into his vehicle to drag him out and arrest him.

Lambert admitted having an imitation firearm in the common close at his flat on August 23 and causing PCs Mark Chance and Michael Allardyce to believe unlawful violence would be used against them.

He also admitted behaving in a threatening and abusive manner at Perth police office on August 13, shouting and swearing and making offensive remarks and gestures.

Depute fiscal Vicki Bell said Lambert told the officers who went to his house: “I have a shooter and if anyone comes to my door tonight, they are getting it”.

The pair walked past him to check the flat for weapons, only to find Lambert had them cornered.

One of the officers activated their emergency button to make the control room aware of the situation.

Minutes later, they saw the letterbox opening and the firearm being poked through it. Realising it was an imitation, they updated the control room.

Lambert’s solicitor told the court his client suffered from a personality disorder, which could go some way to explaining his behaviour.

Sheriff Lindsay Foulis said imprisonment, with social work supervision upon release, was the only appropriate sentence.

I have a shooter and if anyone comes to my door tonight, they are getting it. ROBERT LAMBERT