A Fort William man who admitted sexually assaulting a woman in the town has been ordered to carry out unpaid work.
Andrew Farquhar, of Alma Road, pleaded guilty to a sexual assault on a woman on September 6, 2015.
He admitted touching part of her naked body and placing her hand on his clothing inappropriately.
The town’s sheriff court heard yesterday that the 23 year-old took full responsibility for his actions and “was full of remorse from the very start”.
Farquhar’s solicitor told the court: “He said he misread the signals, but potential flirting is not being offered as an excuse for what happened.
“He sent a facebook message to the woman saying, ‘I fully deserve what happens to me for what I have put you through’, as he realises the impact this has had on her.
“An excess amount of alcohol was also part of the problem.”
The court also heard that Farquhar, who was a student at West Highland College UHI in Fort William at the time, managed to complete his degree, but this behaviour had an impact as he failed to attain honours.
His solicitor added: “He pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity and is ashamed of his actions.
“He has been in a relationship for a year and has been living with his partner for the past eight months.
“His partner and family have been very supportive.
“Reports from the social work department suggest there is a low risk of him reoffending.”
Sheriff Eilidh MacDonald imposed a community pay back order on Farquhar of 120 hours of unpaid work to be completed in six months.
She also said that social work supervision would be required for a year and ordered him to co-operate with the department in his local area.
The sheriff added that he would be subject to the notification requirements of the Sexual Offences Act for a year.