A man who subjected two women to “lengthy and sustained domestic abuse” will be sentenced at Inverness Sheriff Court next month.
But Sheriff Gordon Fleetwood, who also expressed the fear that Michael Macdonald, 26, may be regarded as “potentially a danger to women in the future”, was told that one of his victims – Kayleigh Macleod – wanted to renew their relationship and visit him in prison.
The Sheriff added: “I will be interested to know if Miss Macleod does go to visit him.”
Macdonald appeared from custody and admitted charges of breach of the peace, stalking, resisting arrest and breaking bail conditions by contacting Miss Macleod.
On one occasion, the court heard, Macdonald was with Miss Macleod in McDonald’s restaurant, and on another, he was found by police in her Inverness home at Mackintosh Road, from which he was banned.
Fiscal depute Michelle Molley told the court that Macdonald’s first victim was Alison Jappy with whom he was in a relationship for nearly four years.
“They moved in with each other and both attended college courses in Thurso. One evening, Ms Jappy came home and was looking at her iPad and saw numerous messages from Macdonald to women.
“She took the iPad into the bathroom to look at the messages and locked the door. But he forced it open and pushed her over twice. He also kicked her on the body.”
Ms Molley said Macdonald and Miss Macleod met in December 2015 when he was staying in an Invergordon bed and breakfast.
She described one occasion where the couple were asked to leave a local bar because of their behaviour.
“A witness overheard him threaten to hit Miss Macleod. He then smashed her mobile telephone, leaving it unusable.
“They went back to the B and B where she admits hitting him because he said something insulting. He grabbed her by the throat and she nearly passed out.”
Ms Molley added that Macdonald had asked to move in with Miss Macleod.
Between May 1 last year and January 7 this year, Ms Molley described how Macdonald “on repeated occasions, shouted at her and called her abusive names.
“On November 4, 2016, an argument ensued between them, he threw her to the ground, struck her on the bridge of the nose and threw her onto a hoover, causing severe bruising.”
Ms Molley then described how Macdonald and Miss Macleod were at the Drumossie Hotel for her graduation as a nurse, and he dragged her out of the hall by the back of her head.
“Police were contacted but he refused to comply with the officers, resisting efforts to place him in handcuffs, struggling violently with them and kicking out.”
Defending, Patrick O’Dea said: “She wishes to renew the relationship and support him. She also wants to go and visit him while he is in prison.”
Sentence was deferred to May 9.
