An eccentric pensioner who lived in a car by the A9 has admitted assaulting a court-appointed official as they tried to evict him from his roadside encampment.
Charles Ingram, 69, admitted attacking and injuring Messenger-At-Arms Roderick Stevenson, 44, by hitting him in the face with a china mug.
Mr Stevenson was part of a team appointed at the Court of Session to remove Ingram's car and tented village from the side of the trunk road for safety reasons.
Ingram, who appeared cuffed from custody, claimed he lashed out because he felt "intimidated" when the officers tried to lead him from his "home."
He was fined £1,000 and ordered to pay Mr Stevenson £100 compensation after he admitted striking him with a mug in lay-by 52 on the A9 Inverness to Perth road at Blair Atholl.
Fiscal depute Carol Whyte told Perth Sheriff Court: "The accused has been residing in lay-byes since March 2012. There have been a number of concerns raised by passers-by and the local community.
"There are also concerns for the safety of road users as the accused sometimes displays large home-made signs which are distracting.
"Various attempts have been made to offer the accused council housing, but he has refused to accept accommodation. On 29 September a warrant was granted at the Court of Session. The petitioners were Scottish Ministers.
"Authority was granted to remove the accused from the locus, along with his property. The A9 was closed in both directions for safety reasons."
She said Mr Stevenson was one of three Messengers-At-Arms who attended, along with a number of police officers, to remove Ingram and his Mercedes car.
They took hold of his arm and he lashed out with his hand while he was holding a mug. Mr Stevenson managed to partially duck but he was still caught in the face and left bleeding.
Solicitor Pauline Cullerton, defending, said: "When these two gentlemen took hold of him he got a shock. He felt a bit overwhelmed."
Sheriff Lindsay Foulis said the offence had been aggravated by the capacity in which Mr Stevenson was working at the time.
Ingram has become a familiar sight for road users after setting up camp in his Mercedes C220 car in the wake of a neighbour and business dispute in 2012.
The site on the A9, close to Pitlochry and the House of Bruar shopping centre, expanded and latterly featured clothes lines, tents and cooking equipment.
It regularly attracted passers-by who pull in to donate charitable items and money to Ingram, who was formerly a world class clay pigeon shooter. The court was told he had £600 savings and received a £152 per week pension.
Ingram slept in his car, which is filled with his possessions and his late mother's belongings, and has copies of Shooting Times and Classic Car magazine piled up on the dashboard.
The pensioner, who ran a garage business in Blair Atholl for 35 years, washed his clothes in the nearby River Garry.
He was formerly a member of the Kippen Gun Club in Stirlingshire, but claimed complaints from former neighbours led to him having his guns confiscated. He was once fined 500 pounds for driving through the set of TV soap Strathblair.
A Transport Scotland spokesman said: "Decisions like this are never taken lightly but reflect our responsibility for the safe operation of the trunk road network and our concern for Mr Ingram's personal welfare."
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