43-year-old jailed for stealing van in Lauder

Ryan Armstrong, currently serving a prison sentence for another offence pleaded guilty at Selkirk Sheriff Court to committing that offence in the town’s Thirlestane Drive on March 18, 2019.

The court heard that the van’s owner runs a removal business and his name and phone number are advertised on the vehicle, and that enabled a woman in Bishop Auckland in County Durham to ring him to ask, after Armstrong had stolen it and left it there, why his van was blocking her driveway and request that he move it.

A not-guilty plea to stealing a vehicle in Jedburgh in April 2019 was accepted by the crown.

Defence lawyer Mat Patrick admitted his client was “no stranger to this kind of activity” but has since addressed a long-standing drug problem.

He also pointed out that there had been a full recovery of the van and its contents.

Armstrong, from Bishop Auckland, was first remanded in custody in connection with the van’s theft last December but is now serving a prison sentence for another crime and isn’t due to be released until October 31.

Sheriff John Cook imposed a prison sentence of four months, reduced to 15 weeks due to Armstrong’s guilty plea, backdating it to December 16.