A drug addict who stole thousands of pounds worth of jewellery from his disabled grandmother to pay off mounting debts has spoken of his shame.
David Adamson broke into a locked safe filled with 50 years worth of jewellery before taking it to a pawn shop.
He received £400 in exchange for the haul, which was estimated to be worth almost 40 times the sum he was given.
Yesterday, the 28-year-old appeared at Aberdeen Sheriff Court and admitted stealing the jewellery as well as £1,500 in cash he withdrew using her bank card and PIN number.
The court heard Adamson lived with his grandparents who continued to support him despite the offences.
Speaking afterwards, the serial offender broke down in tears and said he was ashamed of his actions and the hurt he had caused.
He said: “I’m thoroughly ashamed of what I have done and the pain I have caused my granny.
“We have a very close relationship and I am working on paying her back for the money I took.
“I was in a lot of trouble at the time with mounting debts and I couldn’t see another way out. I was desperate.”
The court heard that since the offences, which were committed between January 16 and March 15 this year, Adamson has taken steps to address his drug addiction.
Adamson’s solicitor Bob Anderson said he had been attending the Timmermarket, a drug support clinic in Aberdeen.
He said this had been so successful he was no longer required to attend and was receiving help from his GP.
Sheriff Graeme Napier agreed a custodial sentence was not necessarily inevitable and deferred sentence on Adamson, of 7 Shapinsay Court, Aberdeen, until next month for background reports after he received a letter from his grandmother.
The court heard the 71-year-old, who is wheelchair bound, had forgiven him for stealing the jewellery she had collected over the last 50 years and she continued to allow him to live with her.
He is also paying her back the cash he stole at a rate of £50 a week.
However, as part of the law designed to protect the pawn shop business, she may find herself having to pay them the £400 to get her jewellery back – despite it being stolen.
Sheriff Napier told Adamson to be prepared to also pay his grandmother the cash to retrieve the stolen items.