Man fined £110 for sending abusive text to councillor

A MAN has been fined after sending an abusive text message to a city councillor.

Alan Robertson, 50, of Sleigh Gardens, Edinburgh, pled guilty at the city’s Sheriff Court to sending Councillor Ewan Aitken an offensive and abusive text message on April 26 this year.

Fiscal Depute Fiona Caldwell said Councillor Aitken, a Labour member of the City Council, was out of the country when he received a text message saying: “Up the IRA” and “F**k the Queen and the UK”.

The councillor, she said, contacted the police. They traced the message to Robertson’s home. “He was a constituent of the complainer” she added.

Defence agent, Andrew Houston, told Sheriff Frank Crowe that Robertson “... is a constituent of Councillor Aitken and had raised legitimate constituency business with him in the past, but with little response”.

Sheriff Crowe told Robertson his action had been “unwarranted” and fined him £110.