Frosty reception to neighbours' snowman leads to row and breach of the peace charges

Published on Monday 28 December 2009 21:18

A COUPLE were charged with breaching the peace after a row with a neighbour over building a snowman.

Jacqueline and Derek McGillivray had been building the snowman for their son Taylor, eight, and daughter Abigail, 13, in the garden of their home.

However, their festive cheer turned sour after an argument broke out with a neighbour, who phoned the police at about 7pm on Sunday. All three were charged with breaching the peace.

Mrs McGillivray, a self-employed cleaner of Clydesdale Avenue in Hamilton, Lanarkshire, said they have since nicknamed the snowman "Bah Humbug".

She said: "We don't usually get much snow and we were all having fun when it just kicked off for no reason."

She added: "I still don't really know what happened or what it was about but the next thing the police have been called and all three of us are charged.

"Charged over building a snowman, you couldn't make it up."

Mrs McGillivray admitted there has been an ongoing dispute between people in the street for the past eight years.

Last night a spokeswoman for Strathclyde Police confirmed the incident. She said: "We can confirm that a 69-year-old man, 38-year-old man and 39-year-old woman were all charged with an alleged breach of the peace in connection with the incident in Clydesdale Avenue on Sunday evening."