A SMIRKING shoplifter has been jailed after threatening to attack the home of a police officer and claiming he was “a gangster”.

Jourdain Burns was jailed for 11 months last week after claiming to be a gangster and threatening to attack the home of a police officer.

The 32-year-old appeared at Kilmarnock Sheriff Court last week and smirked as the charges against him were read out, admitting to two counts of theft by shoplifting and threatening and abusive behaviour.

The court heard that on October 31 last year, Burns stole £254-worth of meat from Marks and Spencer which was never recovered.

Burns, from Frew Terrace in Irvine, is further charged with abusive behaviour at Saltcoats Police Station on the same day, where he admitted to threatening to attack a police officer’s home.

Fiscal Depute Vicky McMillan told the court: “Following the theft of the meat he was detained and taken to Crosshouse Hospital and after being assessed he was then deemed fit to be detained and taken to Saltcoats Police Station.

“On arrival there he became aggressive towards the police stating that he was going to put cartridges and shells through the police officer’s home and stated that he was going to ‘collect some Scousers’ and said he was ‘a gangster’”.

The court was then told that on December 13 last year, Burns went into Dorothy Perkins in Irvine’s Rivergate Mall and stole four watches to the value of £100, which he claims he then threw into a river.

Defending Burns, Simon Brown told the court that his client suffered with a range of mental health problems and the thefts were mostly ‘senseless’ and said his client ‘can’t keep track of what he’s doing’.

He said: “He is no stranger to this court but he has longstanding mental health problems “He stole the watches and threw them in a river. It makes no sense at all, but gives you a small insight in to his psychiatric difficulties.”

However Sheriff Shirley Foran rejected Burns’ psychiatric problems as an excuse for his behaviour and jailed him. 

She said: said: “He has continued to offend even when he has been on orders for previous offences. “Mr Burns, you have continued to commit offences while on bail and in these circumstances I see no alternative to custodial sentence.”

Burns was sentenced to a total of 11 months in jail backdated to December 28.