Man Fined After Spraying Liquid Manure Through Former Neighbours Letterbox in Aberdeenshire

A 62-year-old man was fined yesterday (MON) for spraying liquid manure through his former neighbour's letterbox. Stewart Reid, of Portknockie, launched an attack on the house because of a six year grudge over dog fouling. He drove through New Aberdour in the middle of the night and sprayed the foul smelling substance from a bottle into the house. Reid also splashed paint on the outside of the property then fled the scene. He was spotted soon afterwards by the property owner's son who saw him running from a lane. When police caught up with him, they found his car parked outside the Aberdeenshire village with more bottles of both the manure and liquid mixture and paint. Officers searched him at about 4:20am and also found a knife. Reid admitted acting in a threatening or abusive manner and being in possession of a blade in a public place when he appeared at Peterhead Sheriff Court earlier this month. Yesterday his lawyer Gail Wiggins said her client was a "highly literate" man who was full of remorse. She said: "He is a genuine first offender. He has never been in any form of trouble." The court heard that Reid, who appeared in court dressed in a tweed jacket, had been bullied and humiliated throughout his life and had relocated on various occasions. He had moved to New Aberdour in 2007 but felt he was being bullied again and treated as an outsider by locals. Ms Wiggins claimed that her client was subjected to abuse from the neighbour who had complained about the liquid manure incident. She said: "That resulted in him making a complaint to the police. "His pet animal was then taken out of his garden after that and dumped at the side of the road. "That was a matter that caused Mr Reid the upmost of concern." She said her client then became a recluse and refused to open his curtains and later moved to the west coast. After returning to the area last year, he drove through the village on September 5th and snapped when his car broke down. The court heard he had been blamed for dog fouling incidents when he had lived on the street. Ms Wiggins said: "What he has portrayed to me was that he had just reached the end of his tether and the memories were coming back coming through the village. "Mr Reid wishes to me to openly say that he very much regrets his actions and apologises to those who were subjected to his actions." The court heard that Reid was now seeking help for his problems. Sheriff Andrew Miller said: "I am persuaded on balance that your intention to seek support on a voluntary basis is real and genuine and likewise that you are genuinely remorseful about the circumstances of theses offences. "And you are motivated to seek help to enable you to deal with these issues in your life which may have contributed to your thought processes and behaviour on this occasion." The sheriff described the case as "quite unusual" and fined Reid 700 pounds. He was also ordered to pay the victim 200 pounds for the cleaning bill.