Trial set on alleged armed robbery bid

A 26-year-old man has appeared via video link at Perth Sheriff Court, charged with an armed and masked robbery bid on a bus driver in the city centre.

Stephen Robertson, described as a prisoner at Perth, also faces a further charge of attempting to pervert the course of justice by changing his clothing at a nearby flat.

Represented by Perth lawyer David Holmes, he will stand trial at a jury sitting in Dundee, beginning on March 8.

The indictment alleges that on May 18, 2020, at Perth’s Scott Street, he attempted to rob Simon Barlow during the course of his employment as a bus driver.

Robertson is said to have boarded the bus, with his face masked, and presented a pair of scissors at the driver and tried to rob him.

He is also alleged to have been in possession of an offensive weapon - the scissors.

A further charge claims that the same day, at a house in Scott Street, or elsewhere unknown, he changed his clothing after committing the above crimes in a bid to avoid detection and apprehension by police.