A man has been placed on the sex offenders register after making sexual comments to a 14-year-old girl and touching her legs and face at an Aberdeen shopping centre.
Martin McNolty was found guilty after trial of carrying out the worrying conduct with the child at the St Nicholas Centre in Aberdeen.
During that incident, on June 17 last year, McNolty assaulted the young girl by making “alarming comments” and indecent and “sexualised” remarks to her, while sitting next to her and “handling” her legs and face.
And the 42-year-old also admitted a string of offences, including defecating in the doorway of Clear Pharmacy on Holburn Street.
‘Grabbed staff member by the throat with both hands and squeezed’
Fiscal depute Victoria Kerr told Aberdeen Sheriff Court about the various offences, including McNolty stealing food, alcohol and a SIM card from Spar on Rosemount Viaduct on May 21 last year.
He also stole alcohol from Londis on Union Street on May 31.
Describing the vile act outside the pharmacy on May 23, Ms Kerr said a witness arrived at the entrance and found what appeared to be faeces so checked CCTV footage.
The video showed McNolty defecating there at 7pm. The witness notified the police.
In a separate incident around 8.35pm on May 31, McNolty assaulted a member of staff at Sainsbury’s at the St Nicholas Centre.
Ms Kerr explained staff spotted McNolty concealing items within his jacket so challenged him and tried to escort him out of the shop.
She said McNolty was “swearing and mumbling incoherently” and stumbled into the employee.
‘Alcohol or drugs or a combination of both’
Ms Kerr went on: “The accused grabbed the staff member by the throat with both hands and squeezed for a few seconds.”
Thankfully, the employee managed to break free and McNolty was removed from the store.
McNolty, of Glenbervie Road, Torry, pled guilty to two charges of shoplifting and one of assault on a retail worker.
He also admitted defecating “in such circumstances as to cause or to be likely to cause annoyance to another person”.
He also denied, but was found guilty of, assaulting the child, making sexual comments to her and handling her legs and face.
McNolty ‘has a lengthy record’
Defence agent Neil McRobert said his client had no clear recollection of the offences due to the substances he had taken.
He added: “He has a lengthy record, the majority, if not entirety, were committed while under the influence of alcohol or drugs or a combination of both.”
Sheriff Morag McLaughlin ordered McNolty to be supervised for two years and to complete the Aberdeenshire Sex Offenders programme as well as 200 hours of unpaid work.
She also made him subject to the notification requirements of the Sexual Offences Act for two years.
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