Drug addict bingo ban after man shoots up in groin

A DRUG addict has been banned from entering a Capital bingo hall for a year after being caught by police injecting himself in the toilets.

Stephen Greenhorn ducked into the toilets of the Mecca bingo hall in Manderston Street for one last fix, after he mistakenly thought he was being pursued by CID officers.

The 32-year-old was spotted by members of the security staff, however, and when confronted threatened them while holding the uncapped hypodermic needle.

He told them: “Don’t come near me” and “Don’t open the door. I am going to stick this in my veins”.

The police were contacted but when they arrived he told them to go away and allow him to inject himself.

Officers repeatedly told him to drop the syringe, but when they opened the toilet door he had his trousers round his ankles and was trying to inject himself in the groin.

He then waved the syringe at the officers and continued to try and inject himself.

One of the officers then struck Greenhorn’s hand to stop the injection and Greenhorn began bleeding from the groin with blood spraying on to the toilet floor.

The details were heard when Greenhorn appeared at Edinburgh Sheriff Court on May 14. Sheriff Frank Crowe 
commented: “This really is as sick as you can get.”

Greenhorn, a prisoner in Saughton, had pleaded guilty to two charges of breach of the peace at the Mecca bingo hall in Manderston Street, Leith on April 13. Sentence was deferred until yesterday for background reports.

Defence solicitor Elspeth McPartlin told the court that her client had successfully completed a Drug Treatment and Testing Order (DTTO) in 2007 and had been completely drug free. He managed to get a full-time job and was enjoying it, but was then laid off.

To his credit, she said, he got another job as a cleaner at Edinburgh Academy and that lasted until December last year. Then, however, he lost his accommodation and began sleeping rough. This led to him “dabbling in illicit drugs” and he lost his job and split from his girlfriend.

The lawyer said Greenhorn’s drug use escalated and he was using cocaine and speed.

Ms McPartlin said: “He began suffering from paranoid delusions. He became convinced he was being pursued by CID officers. They were, in fact, looking for friend of his. He was convinced he was being taken into custody and decided to take an injection before being arrested.”

She said Greenhorn did not want to harm anyone, and added that Greenhorn’s family said he would be welcome to the family home in Falkirk.

Sheriff Crowe placed Greenhorn on a 15-month DTTO and banned him from entering the bingo hall for 12 months.

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