Moray man who spat in taxi driver's face told police officers "I was spiked"
Register for free to read more of the latest local news. It's easy and will only take a moment.
A MAN who spat in the face of a taxi driver after becoming aggressive at the end of a night out has been ordered to pay £250 in compensation.
On July 22 last year, a taxi driver stopped to pick up a man and a woman outside a hotel on Low Street in Buckie at around 10.30pm.
The man, later identified as Ricki Thain (22) from Portgordon, got into the taxi alongside the woman but the driver could not understand what he was saying.
Procurator fiscal Karen Poke told the court that it was at this stage that Thain started to get loud and aggressive.
The taxi driver pulled over but Thain demanded that she take him home.
She told him to leave the taxi but Thain grabbed her by the t-shirt, scratching her neck in the process, before spitting directly in her face.
He then proceeded to spit all over the taxi.
She told him that she would phone the police but he continued to shout and started to kick the outside of the taxi.
He attempted to regain access to the taxi by pulling at the door but the taxi driver pulled away so that she could contact the police.
But Thain was still agitated when officers arrived.
He screamed in the face of one officer and resisted arrest, kicking his legs out in an attempt to break free.
And, upon being moved into the back of a police van, he again started to spit profusely.
Elgin Sheriff Court heard that a spit hood had to be applied en-route to the police station.
He claimed that he had been "spiked" after waking up the following morning.
Defence solicitor Grant Daglish told the court that Thain had been out with friends drinking on the night in question.
However, he has little memory of what happened but has since apologised in person to the officers who arrested him and is hopeful of doing the same for the taxi driver.
Sheriff David Sutherland ordered Thain to carry out 100 hours of unpaid work.
He also imposed a 12 month supervision order and ordered him to pay the taxi driver £250 in compensation.
