Man attacked and held neighbour hostage while flouting four bail orders

A serial offender who flouted four separate bail orders when he held his neighbour hostage has been jailed for five and a half years.

Alan Clark attacked his victim at a flat in Paisley, Renfrewshire, on July 24, 2021.

The assault saw the 48-year-old restrain the man, binding his ankles with a cable before escaping with belongings including his phone, watch and car.

Clark – who did not have a driving licence – fled in the vehicle before crashing into a fence.

On Tuesday, he was sentenced via video link at the High Court in Glasgow.

He had been found guilty last month of abduction, assault and robbery as well as careless driving and other road traffic offences.

It emerged after the trial that he already had almost 50 previous convictions including for violence and drug crimes.

Judge William Gallacher said he had considered the possibility of imposing an Order for Lifelong Restriction on Clark, but had decided against it.

He told Clark: “You have a dreadful criminal record and have been a persistent offender since first appearing in court in 1992.

“Your first conviction was for assault and robbery aged 16.

“You are now 48 and, in those 32 years, have committed scores of further offences showing the shocking disregard for anything and everything in the community around you.”

The hearing was told the victim had been subjected to physical violence, detained against his will and restrained.

The judge said: “The process of giving evidence was an uncomfortable one for your neighbour, but he was able to do notwithstanding the anxiety and distress caused.”

Clark will also be monitored for four years on his eventual release.

The criminal had been the subject of four different bail orders from the sheriff courts in Paisley and Dumbarton between 2019 and 2021 – one imposed just weeks before the attack.

A condition he breached was that he did not leave his home after 7pm.