A callous thief raided a Bridge of Don family home of children’s Christmas presents, designer clothes and jewellery worth £15,000.
Graeme Bain took advantage of the Bridge of Don property having had its windows broken in a separate incident and helped himself to the haul of loot just weeks before Christmas.
The cruel crimes were committed to fund 40-year-old’s crack cocaine addiction, Aberdeen Sheriff Court was told.
Fiscal depute Dylan Middleton said the man who lived at the property on Balgownie Road left around 8am on December 13 2020, locking the door but leaving the smashed windows as they were.
Designer jewellery, watches and clothing
A couple of hours later, a passer-by spotted Bain leaving the driveway with numerous bags and, believing it seemed suspicious, challenged him.
Bain claimed it was his own house and walked off towards Brig of Balgownie, but not before the witness took a photo of him on his phone.
Mr Middleton said: “A short time later, numerous members of the public contacted Police Scotland regarding various items of clothing and gifts being found discarded on the bridge.
“Police attended and retrieved these items and were later sent the image taken of the accused.”
Graeme Bain also stole champagne and birdhouse
When the couple who lived at the address returned home they discovered the break-in.
Mr Middleton said: “Various wrapped Christmas presents and gift bags were missing and other wrapped items had the paper torn.
“Most of the stolen presents had been gifts for their children.
“They searched the house and found that various items were missing from throughout the property.
“These included a laptop, Kindle, games console, a purse, ballet bag, £500 in cash, a high quantity of designer jewellery, designer watches, and a high quantity of designer clothing and footwear.”
Bain was later traced at a bus stop on Ellon Road while wearing a stolen Berghaus jacket.
Many other stolen items were later recovered following a search of a property on Don Street.
CCTV showed Bain going “back and forth” between the two properties with stolen goods.
‘Turned his life around’
The total value of the stolen property was £15,141 – with £12,510 worth never recovered.
In separate incidents, Bain broke into two garages on Balgownie Road, stealing a garden strimmer from one of them.
From the other, he stole champagne and other alcohol, soft drinks, a baseball bat and balls, an electric planer, a birdhouse, a camera, a bag and a drill.
Bain, of Dove Street, Glasgow, pled guilty to theft and two charges of theft by housebreaking.
Bain’s solicitor told the court his client had previously faced addiction issues and moved to Aberdeen in the hope of a “fresh start” away from his old peer group.
However, Bain developed a crack cocaine problem in the north-east and committed the offences to fund that.
But the lawyer said Bain had now “turned his life around” and made significant changes.
Sheriff Andrew Miller handed Bain a year’s supervision and 150 hours of unpaid work as a direct alternative to custody.
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