Court / Man who caused £100k house damage avoids jail sentence

AN ABERDEENSHIRE man who caused an estimated £100,000 worth of damage to a “completely random” house in Shetland last year has narrowly escaped a prison sentence.

Greg Reid, 27, has been ordered to pay £10,000 in compensation to a distraught family after he “utterly trashed” their South Nesting home on 31 October 2024.

The court heard he was not in a position to pay back the full sum of the damage, which was estimated to cost between £100,000 and £120,000.

Reid was also placed under supervision for the longest possible period – three years – and ordered to carry out 300 hours of unpaid work within the next year.

Lerwick Sheriff Court heard last month that Reid appeared to be under the influence of drugs during the incident, in which he let himself into the home – which he had no connection to – and trashed it.

Some of the damage included smashing windows, ripping fixtures and fittings from walls, making holes in walls and spraying a dry fire extinguisher around the home.

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Procurator fiscal Duncan Mackenzie had said Reid smashed double and triple glazing window units of the exterior, internal doors were damaged beyond repair and furniture was overturned.

A knife was used to create holes in walls, with electrical wiring pulled out.

“The house was rendered completely uninhabitable,” Mackenzie told the court in September.

Reid was arrested and taken into a police van, where he struck his head off the vehicle and handcuffs, before being taken to Gilbert Bain Hospital in Lerwick.

When interviewed by police, Reid said he did not know what happened.

Mackenzie had added that the occupant of the house was “utterly distraught” by the damage caused.

The court previously heard that some items of personal and sentimental value were damaged.

Mackenzie had said the incident understandably had a significant impact on the complainer and their partner, and that the attack on their home had been “completely random”.

Sentencing on Reid had been deferred for the preparation of background reports.

Speaking at Lerwick Sheriff Court on Wednesday, defence agent Tommy Allan said his client had been experiencing mental health difficulties at the time, which had since been diagnosed after the intervention of experts.

He acknowledged it was “difficult to know what to say” about the incident, admitting his client had “absolutely trashed” the house in “extreme” fashion.

Reid was offering to pay compensation to the homeowners, Allan said, but could not afford to pay the full amount quoted for the damage.

The solicitor said it was clear from a victim impact statement handed to the court the effect Reid’s damage had caused to the complainer.

“It’s difficult to see how he could put that right,” he added.

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Sheriff Ian Cruickshank deferred making a decision on Reid’s sentence until later in the court day, in order to weigh up a proportionate punishment.

Returning to the case later on, the sheriff said this was clearly a “troubling and largely unexplained incident”.

Reid had caused “significant damage”, he said, which had a large “financial effect” on the complainer.

While he said some would automatically assume Reid should be jailed for the crime, he said he had to balance all the evidence in front of him – including Reid’s undiagnosed mental health difficulties at the time.

Sentencing Reid, he placed him under supervision for a period of three years and ordered him to carry out 300 hours of unpaid work within the next 12 months.

He was also ordered to pay the complainer back £10,000 in compensation within the next 18 months, though told him there could be a short extension to this if he was close to paying it off when the order concluded.

Sheriff Cruickshank also ordered that Reid must continue to engage with mental health services, as he has been doing.

He told Reid that this sentence was a direct alternative to a custodial sentence.

The court order will be transferred to Aberdeen Sheriff Court.