'˜I broke my Buckie bottle so give me another for free'

A man with a broken bottle of Buckfast behaved in a threatening manner because a shopkeeper would not give him a replacement for the drink he claimed to have dropped.
buckfast bottlebuckfast bottle
buckfast bottle

Chancer Gary Frew (27) had already argued with staff over the change he had been given after purchasing the bottle.

He left the shop and came back a short time later clutching a broken Buckfast bottle – a bottle he believed to be faulty – and demanded the shopkeeper give him another free of charge.

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Appearing at Falkirk Sheriff Court last Thursday, Frew, 16 Bute Place, Grangemouth, pled guilty to behaving in a threatening manner at Castleton Mini Market, Castleton Crescent, Grangemouth, on July 28.

Procurator fiscal depute Samantha Brown said: “It was 6.30pm when the accused entered the shop to purchase alcohol. There was a dispute over change that was given.

“He eventually left the shop, but returned several minutes later claiming his bottle had broken and he was demanding another. He was in possession of a broken bottle and was described as aggressive and threatening.

“There was no suggestion he was doing anything with the bottle, he was just in possession of it.”

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Martin Morrow, defence solicitor, said: “He had bought Buckfast from the shop and there was some dispute over him paying with a £20 note or a £10 note and he wasn’t going to win that.

“He then dropped the bottle and it broke so he took it back to the shop.”

Sheriff Derek Livingston said: “I think your client has a conceptual problem with the Sale of Goods Act.”

Mr Morrow said for some reason Frew thought that if you dropped a proper bottle of Buckfast it was not supposed to smash.

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“He basically wanted a refill,” said Mr Morrow. “He knows he is in the wrong and not the shopkeeper.”

Sheriff Livingston placed Frew on a supervised community payback order for two years with the condition he attend alcohol counselling.