A thief who raided an Aberdeen supermarkets was found hiding in a meat fridge drinking lighter fluid.
Concerned staff at the Aldi store in the Cornhill Shopping Arcade feared Sean Paxton would do himself serious harm and begged him to stop.
The city’s sheriff court heard the 49-year-old subsequently left, only to sneak into another store to steal meat, a ring, a purse and a mobile phone.
He first made his way into the loading bay at Aldi on March 10 while staff were distracted by a delivery truck.
Paxton slipped behind a “forklift-type vehicle” in the loading bay at around 5.50am before working his way towards a meat fridge.
It was here, nearly an hour later at 6.40am, that the manager of the store found him “consuming lighter fluid.”
Depute Fiscal Christy Ward said: “The manager asked him to stop ingesting the gas as he was concerned he would come to harm. He had no permission to be there.”
Paxton then went to the Spar store in Byron Square where around 9am he stole a handbag containing an iPhone 7 and a ring belonging to a staff member.
When the theft was discovered, staff noticed that the back door to the shop’s loading bay was open. A “quantity of meat” had also been taken.
Police were called, with CCTV footage showing Paxton leaving through the store’s back door and exiting through the loading bay.
Paxton, whose address was given as Stafford Street in Aberdeen, yesterday pled guilty to being found at Aldi with the intent to commit theft and possession of crack cocaine.
He also admitted stealing purses, a phone, a ring and a quantity of meat from the Spar store.
The court heard he was struggling with drug misuse and poor mental health at the time and “fully accepted” his crimes.
Sheriff Ian Wallace placed Paxton under supervision for six months and ordered him to be confined to his home between the hours of 7pm and 7am for the next three months.
