Man jailed for gouging

An Oban man has been jailed for 15 months after gouging a taxi driver’s eyes when he was asked for the fare.

Kieran McLarney, of 24A Shuna Terrace, Oban, pleaded guilty to assaulting the man by punching him on the head and gouging his eyes on Oban’s High Street on September 28 last year, and then resisting arrest and kicking two police officers.

The 25-year-old also admitted trying to force open and steal four vehicles in Stevenson Street on November 30, 2016, and in Millpark Terrace on July 19, 2017, and then on October 31 striking cars with a baseball bat on Colonsay and Shuna Terraces, where he set one on fire.

Procurator fiscal Joanne Gilmour told Oban Sheriff Court on Monday September 24: ‘The accused took a taxi. When he arrived at the destination, he was asked for the fare. The accused became aggressive. The accused poked him [the driver] in the centre of his forehead, then gouged his eyes.’ Given the ‘volume and gravity’ of the charges, defence agent Kevin McGinness argued the public interest could be served by a community payback order. ‘Mr McLarney has previously completed a substantial community payback order,’ he said. ‘There is a good prospect Mr McLarney will adhere to the terms.’

Sheriff Robert Dickson replied: ‘It did not deter him from behaving the way he did since then.’

‘He is older and wiser,’ Mr McGinness continued. ‘At the heart of the disorder is his use of drugs and alcohol. Much more might be achieved in addressing the underlying factors that trigger this behaviour.’

Sheriff Dickson sentenced McLarney to nine months in prison for the assault, plus another six months for the vehicle charges, and three years’ supervision with the condition he attend drink and drug counselling.