Man who threatened young mum jailed

A FAIRGROUND worker who terrified a young mum as she pushed a pram through a local beauty spot has been jailed for seven years.

John Simmons, 58, was wearing latex gloves when he clapped his hand over the 36-year-old woman's mouth and threatened her with a large kitchen knife. Simmons' victim fell to the ground and when she offered him cash and her mobile phone, he told her: "I don't want your money."

He then made her follow him until her defiant shouts brought a couple of passing cyclists to the rescue.

At the High Court in Edinburgh, Judge Lady Smith added Simmons' name to the sex offenders register and also made an order keeping him under supervision for ten years after the end of his prison term.

Advocate depute Gillian More, prosecuting, told how the mum left her Edinburgh home at about 1.30pm to walk her dog, taking her two-month-old son. She was walking along the main footpath through the Hermitage of Braid when Simmons sneaked up and grabbed her from behind.