A crack addict drove at police, stole a car and took cash and high-value booze from Fife businesses during a drug-fuelled crime spree.
Michael Johnson, 32, appeared at Kirkcaldy Sheriff Court to plead guilty to 17 offences spanning a period between January 24 and February 10 this year.
Among his crimes were break-ins and thefts at four businesses, stealing one car and resetting another, multiple frauds using stolen debit cards, and dangerous driving.
Sheriff Charles Lugton jailed him for 22 months and banned him from driving for five years.
The court heard Johnson has previous convictions in both Scotland and England, including for dangerous driving and driving while disqualified, burglary, theft, and assault.
Booze raids
Prosecutor Lee Corr told the court the first break-in, at Cafe Continental in Kirkcaldy’s Hill Street, netted six bottles of Grey Goose vodka and £84.
On CCTV police identified a khaki green rucksack worn by Johnson, which was later found when he was traced at a property in the town’s Earn Road.
Johnson also stole fuel from a Shell filling station in Hendry Road and from a BP service station in St Clair Street.
He broke into The Station Hotel in Thornton and the owner discovered a coin machine in the bar area had been ripped open, with glass everywhere and the money box missing from inside.
Johnson’s position is there was no money in the box.
On February 5 he broke into the Amritsar Tandoori restaurant in Kirkcaldy High Street.
The fiscal depute said an employee arrived to find a “vast quantity” of alcohol had been stolen, including about £800 to £900 of wine.
Litre bottles of whisky taken during the raid included Glenmorangie, Glenfiddich, green label Johnny Walker and Balvenie.
Other spirts stolen included Bombay Sapphire gin, Smirnoff vodka, Drambuie, Baileys, Tia Maria, Glayva and tequilla.
Mr Corr said the total value of alcohol stolen was £1,358, along with £460 cash.
Drove at police
The fiscal depute said police in Kirkcaldy were looking for a stolen Honda Jazz seen at the scene of the raids.
In the early hours of February 6, a detective spotted it parked in a bay in Church Court and positioned his unmarked car in the bay opposite as other CID units took up position nearby.
The court heard Johnson had been walking nearby and was spooked by police but managed to sprint into Church Court and enter the Honda.
Officers boxed him in.
The fiscal depute said: “The accused drove the stolen Honda Jazz forward into both unmarked police vehicles, striking both vehicles, in an attempt to escape.
“One detective withdrew his baton and delivered two baton strikes to the driver-side window of the stolen vehicle.
“The accused reversed the Honda Jazz and accelerated harshly, driving at both police vehicles again at speed, striking them a second time and creating a gap to force the stolen vehicle through.
“One of the detectives then had to take evasive action to move out of the way of the stolen Honda Jazz vehicle to prevent being struck. as the accused drove at pace towards him.”
The court heard despite the car being driven through a garden area and picking up a puncture, it was lost to sight after a short chase and later found abandoned on Hendry Road.
Johnson pled guilty to dangerous driving, including at police.
‘Out of control’
The same morning Johnson, while acting along with another, stole a black Peugeot 208 Roland Garros car from outside an address in Kirkcaldy, along with a wallet containing two debit cards and £53 in cash.
He used them to make four fraudulent transactions and attempted another.
Police later found the stolen Peugeot parked about 100 yards away from the address which Johnson had been frequenting in Earn Road.
After a search, they found the car keys in the pocket of a jacket within a suitcase there.
On February 10, Johnson broke into a fourth business – Merchants House Cafe in Kirkcaldy High Street – and stole a cash register containing around £60.
Defence lawyer Graham Inch said Johnson, who was born in Fife but grew up in England, returned to the area around Christmas and ended up staying with associates of his brother.
The solicitor said Johnson started using crack cocaine and developed a habit, adding: “He was out of control and found himself committing multiple acquisitive offences to get money for drugs”.
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