AN ARDROSSAN man has been fined by a court for shouting and swearing outside a woman’s home in the town.

William Gardiner pleaded guilty to an amended charge of behaving in a threatening or abusive manner in Ashgrove Road on June 7, 2021.

The 40-year-old admitted repeatedly striking the door of a property on the street whilst shouting and swearing.

He also placed a woman residing at the property in a state of fear and alarm.

At Kilmarnock Sheriff Court last week Gardiner’s guilty plea was accepted after mention of him holding a hammer during the incident was deleted from the complaint.

The procurator fiscal depute told Tuesday’s hearing: “At around 3.20pm on June 7, the complainer was within her home address and heard banging at the front door.

“On hearing this she looked out of the window and observed the accused within the front garden.

"He was shouting ‘Get your f*****g man out’.

“The complainer opened the window and shouted that she was calling the police if he did not go away.

“The accused again shouted ‘Get your man out’. He then left the garden and made off.

“The complainer contacted the police and they immediately carried out a search for the accused, and about an hour later he was traced and arrested.”

Gardiner’s defence solicitor said the complainer in the case is his client’s long-standing friend, and she had phoned him that morning to tell him she had been assaulted.

“She was not expecting that reaction from him [Gardiner],” the solicitor said.

“It was with good intentions on his part.

“His motivation was that his friend had been assaulted and that is why he was there.”

Gardiner, of Carrick Place, was described in court as having an “extensive record”, but his solicitor said he has been out of trouble for seven years, and it has been almost a year since this offence occurred.

Sheriff Alistair Watson told Gardiner: “You always place yourself at risk given your record, which is absolutely appalling.

“Given the time you have been out of trouble and the background, I am prepared to deal with this by way of a financial penalty.”

Gardiner was ordered to pay a £300 fine plus a £20 victim surcharge, all payable at a rate of £20 per fortnight.