A MAN with a “horrendous” criminal record threatened to stab police officers after being arrested for throwing bins around a Dumbarton street.

Barry Carey was seen on CCTV cameras throwing the bins around the town's Ardoch Crescent at 10pm on June 23.

Dumbarton Sheriff Court heard the CCTV operator had asked police to go to the scene, but that Carey had flatly denied doing anything wrong.

Laura Knox, prosecuting, said: “Police continued to question him, but he returned to them saying 'I'll do you, you c***'.”

Carey, 29, was then arrested and taken to Clydebank police office, where he keopt up his threatening and abusive behaviour for a full 30 minutes.

“He threatened to stab either officer if he saw them again,” Ms Knox continued.

“The abuse culminated with him saying 'I'm glad I'm intimidating you'.”

Carey's tirade concluded with him calling the officers “ a*******s who want to lock up decent members of the public trying to get somewhere in life”.

Carey's solicitor, Judith Reid, said her client had both “a horrendous record” and a history of alcohol misuse, but that he had done everything he could to get back on the rails after being released from his last prison sentence in 2014.

“He has a record that has brought him into custody before,” Miss Reid said, “but when he has worked he has contributed to his family and to society.

“It's clear he's now doing something about his alcohol problems.

“He has secured a mature apprenticeship. He is desperate to avoid a custodial sentence which would jeopardise the mature apprenticeship which is being used to support his children.”

Sheriff Gerry McMillan placed Carey, of Whitecrook Street in Clydebank, on a community payback order with an 18-month supervision requirement, and told him to carry out two hundred hours of unpaid work within nine months.

He also imposed a four-month restriction of liberty order confining Carey to his home between 7pm and 6am – an hour less than most curfews after Miss Reid said a 7am limit could threaten Carey's full-time employment.

“For the reasons outlined by Miss Reid, I'm not going to sent you to jail,” the sheriff said.

“But your behaviour was appalling. I don't know who you were referring to as 'decent members of the public', because it couldn't have been you.

“There may be a chink of light. But if you don't do the order you will go to jail for as long as I can send you to jail.”