29-05-2025
Tain man jailed after knifepoint robbery at Invergordon man's home
An Invergordon man was robbed at knifepoint in his own home by two people he had invited for coffee.
Daniel McLean was accompanied by a woman who had both arrived at the property as guests of the unsuspecting victim.
Once inside, the female accomplice held a knife to her host's throat and the pair forced him to transfer £100 into McLean's bank account,
Next, the nasty visitors helped themselves to a soundbar attached to the man's television.
McLean, 44, appeared at Inverness Sheriff Court to be sentenced, after previously admitting to assaulting the man, robbing him of money, and taking the soundbar while acting with another person.
Fiscal depute Emily Hood told the court that on November 22 2022, McLean messaged the man, claiming he needed to drop off an HDMI cable, and was invited round for coffee.
The prosecutor said McLean arrived at the man's home in King Edward Court, Invergordon, with the knife-wielding woman.
She approached the occupant and held the blade to his throat while McLean removed the soundbar from the TV unit.
'The accused and the female then took his mobile phone from him and enabled the transfer of £100 to the accused's account as the witness remained frozen in his seat the whole time in fear of what they might do to him.'
Ms Hood said that the victim's father had been contacted and informed the police.
It wasn't until December 11 of that year that McLean was traced and charged.
Solicitor advocate Clare Russell, defending McLean, referenced her client's childhood experiences.
She told the sheriff her client 'was not brought up but beaten up as a child'.
The lawyer added: 'Now he has a record of violence and he should have stopped [the female accomplice] and not gone on to steal.
She explained that McLean is no longer associated with the woman.
Sheriff Ian Cruickshank told McLean: 'There are two worrying aspects of this. It was carried out in the man's home and involved the use of a knife.
'I have read the victim impact statement, and I have no doubt that he continues to have flashbacks and nightmares. There is no alternative to a prison sentence.'
The sheriff jailed McLean, of Mansfield Estate in Tain, for 22 months.
