A Kirkcaldy thief who stole two diggers worth almost £60,000 – then blew the proceeds on booze and gambling – was today facing jail.
James Stewart (23) hired three JCB machines from stores in Cupar and St Andrews in January last year.
But he didn’t give them back – fobbing off the owners off with excuses before ignoring their calls.
Police were called in and were able to track one of the diggers to a travellers’ site in Aberdeenshire and another to an industrial estate in Kirkcaldy.
Now Stewart, of Adamson Avenue, faces a jail term after admitting two charges of theft at Dundee Sheriff Court.
His lawyer told the court the theft had been a “foolish plan to make money” and that he’d spent the cash on alcohol and gambling.
Fiscal depute Eilidh Robertson told the court: “On January 19, 2015, the accused attended at FTM Plant Hire in Cupar and rented a JCB digger and dumper for a week at a cost of £250.