Violent criminal claims he is reformed character

Scot deported from australia

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A VIOLENT criminal, deported from Australia to Scotland after serving time for a vicious attempted murder, was yesterday allowed back on the streets of Inverness.

But Scott Morrison insists he is a “reformed character” and is hoping to start a new life with his wife and children in the Highlands.

The 43-year-old appeared at Inverness Sheriff Court yesterday and admitted sparking a major gun scare at a hostel in an upmarket area of Inverness earlier this year.

The incident led to an armed police response with dog handlers but the weapon turned out to be an air pistol and yesterday Morrison, of no fixed abode, pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of breach of the peace.

He was jailed for two months but the sentence was backdated to April 8, when he was remanded, allowing him to walk free almost immediately.

Authorities in Australia have described Morrison as “volatile and dangerous”.

Police in Perth, Western Australia, were so concerned about his capacity for violence they reportedly used a Taser gun and handcuffs to arrest him before deportation. After his court appearance from custody yesterday, Morrison said: “When I was deported I was split from my wife Marie, the twins Angus and Seumus, aged three, my 13-year-old daughter and my stepson. I don’t want to do anything that will jeopardise my chances of being with my family again.”

Morrison said his mother, who took him to Australia when he was 11, was prepared to loan him £1,000 as a deposit on a place to rent until he found work. He claimed that in Australia you can be deported if you serve a jail sentence of more than 12 months, and 20 years ago he was jailed for eight years for attempted murder.

Morrison, who was flown back to Scotland about a year ago, admitted he had a record for assaults against police.