A thief who preyed on the elderly and disabled and stole precious family heirlooms of sentimental value has been jailed for three years.
Peter MacMillan, 41, described as a prisoner at Inverness, raided the homes of five vulnerable women in one area of Inverness, creating fear amongst other relatives that they might be next, the court heard.
However MacMillan did have one pang of conscience when he returned a handbag he had stolen from a 62-year-old woman and left it on her doorstep.
MacMillan appeared on indictment at Inverness Sheriff Court and admitted the five offences which included attempted theft by housebreaking and theft by housebreaking between May 9 and June 6 this year.
The offences involved women aged from 62 to 80 years old living in properties which had been adapted for the old and disabled in the Dalneigh area.
Fiscal depute Michelle Molley told the court MacMillan would either force open doors or climb in through windows to pursue his crime spree.
“One woman challenged him in her kitchen and he ran away without taking anything. On another occasion, a 75-year-old woman was asleep in her bedroom when she woke to find him standing there.
“She challenged him and he ran off. But he had taken her engagement ring, her mother’s wedding ring, another gold ring and two brooches as well as £15.
“They were never recovered.” Ms Molley added.
MacMillan then broke in to another three properties and stole a handbag from one which contained £15, £100 in vouchers as a gift token and a mobile phone.
He was frightened off from another home, and was finally caught after stealing a box of jewellery worth £3,000 from the last raid.
Ms Molley said: “He dropped it as he was making good escape across garden fences. But several neighbours had emerged from their houses, and they informed the police who quickly caught him hiding in one of the gardens.”
Defence agent Duncan Henderson said there was little he could say on behalf of his client other than he immediately wanted to plead guilty.
Sheriff Margaret Neilson told MacMillan: “You have a bad record of crimes of dishonesty but these charges take your offending to a whole different level.
“You deliberately targeted vulnerable women living on their own. Housebreaking is a disgraceful crime as it makes people feel violated and scared in their own homes.
“You committed five separate offences in the same area in less than a month and undoubtedly caused those living in that area to be fearful and wondering if they would be targeted next.”
