A man who breached an order banning him from Scotland and robbed a north-east bank has been jailed.
Darren Brunston held up the Bank of Scotland in Peterhead in a raid described as “hopeless” by his own lawyer.
He pointed a knife at a terrified cashier, who was heavily pregnant at the time.
Five weeks earlier, Brunston had been granted bail by a sheriff after being caught with a knife in the town.
The 47-year-old, who is originally from Liverpool, was ordered to leave Scotland and only return for solicitor or court appointments.
But the High Court in Glasgow heard yesterday that on May 4, Brunston decided to target the bank – while wearing a high-vis jacket.
He managed to get away with just £30 and a mobile phone.
Brunston has now been jailed for four years and 10 months after he admitted the robbery, having a knife and breaching bail.
The court heard that at the time of the incident, the cashier was 34 weeks pregnant.
Brunston held a knife at her and said: “Give me the money.”
The woman said she only had access to a cash box, which he leaned over and grabbed before fleeing the scene.
Advocate depute Chris McKenna, prosecuting, said the “distinctive tattoo” on his neck was spotted by witnesses, despite his efforts to mask his face.
He was later traced to a flat in Peterhead where the knife and the cashier’s mobile phone were found.
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The cash box along with the hi-vis jacket were dumped nearby.
Brunston’s counsel, advocate Lorenzo Alonzi, said his client had stayed in Peterhead as his girlfriend lived there.
He added: “He did not know the female teller was pregnant and is appalled at his behaviour.
“This really was hopeless – if it was not so serious, it would be comical.
“The fact he went to rob a bank wearing a hi-vis jacket says it all.”
