A thief stole cigarettes and a till containing £1500 in cash from a Larkhall store during a Sunday morning raid.
Richard Hamilton, of Ness Gardens, had admitted a charge of breaking into the Smart Shop in Keir Hardie Road and stealing the items on August 7 last year.
Fiscal depute Vishnu Kathuria told Hamilton Sheriff Court last Thursday that shopowner Riaz Ali had locked the shop on the Saturday night and everything had been in order.
However, the accused was caught on CCTV footage clambering over a wall and approaching the rear of the shop with another unknown male.
Hamilton was then seen turning the rear camera to face the ground. He lifted the rear shutter and gained access through wooden boards.
Once inside, he stole cigarettes worth £400. He also ripped the till from a desktop, stole the till, which Mr Kathuria said was worth £1170, and the £1500 of cash inside. The fiscal depute said when Mr Ali looked at CCTV footage he recognised Hamilton as someone who had been visiting the store for around eight years. Mr Ali had described Hamilton as a friend to police officers.
Hamilton’s agent Sandy Morrison told Sheriff Douglas Brown last Thursday that his client “had been going through a fairly troubled time” between summer 2016 and the end of that year.
He pointed out that Hamilton had previously received community payback orders.
When he had earlier been remanded on the offence before the court it had been the first time Hamilton had been in custody, he added.
Mr Morrison said Hamilton was in full-time employment and earning £360 a week.
At the time of the offence Hamilton had been under the influence of alcohol, he said.
Sheriff Douglas Brown told Hamilton that, given the gravity of the offence, he could expect “a substantial sentence of imprisonment”.
He deferred sentence on the 27-year-old until May 10 for a criminal justice social work report and restriction of liberty order assessment.
Hamilton was ordered to appear on that date.