Woman fled from man who had claw hammer

A valium-fuelled Elgin man who was offered shelter by a concerned good Samaritan repaid that kindness by brandishing a hammer and sending her fleeing from her own home.

Connor Gray was heard noisily thrashing about outside a block of flats in Lhanbryde’s Garmouth Road at 1am before he was invited in by a worried resident.

However, when he got to her door, he pulled out a metal hammer which sent the homeowner rushing to call for help.

Depute fiscal Shamielah Ghafar told Elgin Sheriff Court the incident happened on March 20 this year.

She said: “Looking out the window, she (the homeowner) saw he was heavily under the influence and was very unsteady on his feet.

“She invited him up to her home. However, at this time he withdrew a claw hammer from his backpack.

“She ran from the home, and the accused entered her address.”

Concerned for his welfare, the woman called NHS 24, but police turned up first and found Gray, 31, on the floor with the metal hammer lying beside him. Gray’s alarming behaviour continued after he was arrested, when he verbally abused officers and threatened to kill them.

The court also heard how on a different occasion, Gray was found with a 2.5 inch flick knife at the University of the Highlands and Islands main Moray campus in Elgin.

Gray, of Ernest Hamilton Court, Elgin, pled guilty to one charge of knife possession and another of behaving in a threatening and abusive manner.

Sheriff Robert McDonald handed him a six-month supervision order and 120 hours of unpaid work.