News / Couper jailed for breach
A REPEAT offender from Lerwick has been sent to prison for four months after being found guilty of breaching a non-harassment order.
Trevor Couper, of Tarland, appeared at Lerwick Sheriff Court on Thursday from custody to deny breaching the order, which was set on 25 November.
The order was set on 25 November when the 22 year old admitted assaulting a former partner at a house in Lerwick’s Sandveien in July.
Couper was told not to contact his victim for two years, however in late December he was charged with entering the woman’s house uninvited.
During a trial, the court heard that Couper walked into the house of his ex-partner’s mother at around 7am in the morning.
He was said to have entered the room of his sleeping ex-girlfriend, before being told by the woman’s current partner, who was also in bed, to leave.
However from the witness stand his friend Ryan Patterson gave Couper an alibi, saying he had been at his house at the time after a party.
Defence agent Tommy Allan questioned whether there was enough proof that the man who entered the dark room was his client, pointing out that Couper’s ex-partner did not know herself who had walked though the door.
After adjourning the “difficult” case for ten minutes, Sheriff Mann ruled that the woman’s current boyfriend was a reliable witness and citing Couper’s hefty criminal record, jailed him for four months.
He backdated the sentence to when Couper first entered custody on 31 December.
Become a supporter of Shetland News
Shetland News is asking its many readers to consider start paying for their dose of the latest local news delivered straight to their PC, tablet or mobile phone.
Journalism comes at a price and because that price is not being paid in today’s rapidly changing media world, most publishers - national and local - struggle financially despite very healthy audience figures.
Most online publishers have started charging for access to their websites, others have chosen a different route. Shetland News currently has over 600 supporters who are all making small voluntary financial contributions. All funds go towards covering our cost and improving the service further.
Your contribution will ensure Shetland News can: -
- Bring you the headlines as they happen;
- Stay editorially independent;
- Give a voice to the community;
- Grow site traffic further;
- Research and publish more in-depth news, including more Shetland Lives features.
If you appreciate what we do and feel strongly about impartial local journalism, then please become a supporter of Shetland News by either making a single payment or monthly subscription.
Support us from as little as £3 per month – it only takes a minute to sign up. Thank you.