A Moray air serviceman has admitted acting threateningly towards his wife after returning home from a night out.
Sergeant Thomas Penny became angry and aggressive, and threw his wife’s phone off a wall after he could not find his own mobile phone.
Penny, who is stationed at RAF Lossiemouth, admitted the offence when he appeared at Elgin Sheriff Court yesterday.
The court heard the 34-year-old has been staying in the sergeant’s mess at the Moray base since the March 28 incident, which happened at his home on Easter Road, Kinloss.
Fiscal depute Kelly Mitchell told the court Penny had gone out drinking on the night of the incident.
She said although Penny and his wife lived in separate bedrooms since an “amicable” split, she phoned him on numerous occasions to ask if was returning home that night.
Ms Mitchell said: “She contacted Penny at 2.40am and again at 3.20am.
“He refused to tell her what he was doing, and laughed down the phone at her.
“When he returned home, shortly after 3.20am, he went into the complainer’s room and was laughing hysterically, and then went into his own bedroom where he fell asleep.”
The court heard Penny then realised he could not find his phone and woke his wife and began to ransack her dressing table looking for it.
Ms Mitchell added: “He became increasingly angry and aggressive, pulling out drawers around the room.
“He then threw the complainer’s mobile phone against the wall, causing a crack to the screen.
“After asking him to leave the complainer contacted the police, who later detained Mr Penny.”
Penny’s defence agent Iain Maltman said: “My client tells me he has no underlying difficulty with alcohol, and thinks the fact he hadn’t drunk for a long period and then did so to excess led him to behave in this way.
“He’s very embarrassed about the way he acted.”
Sheriff Susan Raeburn agreed to lift bail conditions so that Penny could contact his wife to arrange meetings with their children but forbade him from returning to the family home.
She deferred sentence for four months for Penny to be of good behaviour.
