Courts in Moray: Man jailed for delaying ambulance on 999 call
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An ex-serviceman has been jailed for drunkenly delaying an ambulance which was on an emergency call.
Scott Cruden's punishment originally saw ordered to stay home at night and fitted with an electronic tag.
However, when the 40-year-old appeared again at Elgin Sheriff Court on Thursday, this was increased to a prison sentence.
The court heard that Cruden had broken his home curfew earlier this month by going out to buy an electricity card.
His original offence took place on Elgin's Morriston Road during the evening of December 28.
Cruden, who was waving a kitchen knife about, was standing in the middle of the road and attempting to prevent vehicles from passing.
Amongst them was an ambulance displaying a blue flashing light on its way to an emergency in Lossiemouth.
Cruden threw his knife at the vehicle and challenged its crew members to a fight.
He was subsequently arrested and appeared in court the following day.
On December 29 he pleaded guilty to a series of charges including acting in a threatening manner.
He was then held on remand in prison for nearly four weeks until his next court hearing on January 25, when he had the home curfew imposed
Appealing for leniency yesterday, defence solicitor Robert Cruickshank asked the court to take note of the time his client had already spent behind bars.
However Sheriff Olga Pasportnikov stated that, given the breach of the curfew, the only appropriate sentence she could now impose involved prison.
She said: "Brandishing a knife in public was a serious offence, but to impede an ambulance was unforgivable."
Cruden, whose address was given in court papers as Morriston Road, Elgin, was sentenced to six months in jail.
