Man who tortured and pulled shotgun on boss jailed
- Published
Ronald McLennan subjected his victim to systematic bullying
An Angus employee who tortured his boss and pulled a loaded shotgun on him has been jailed for 40 months.
Ronald McLennan subjected Ian Robertson to systematic violent bullying over 20 years and was found guilty by a jury of endangering his employer's life.
McLennan was jailed at the High Court in Paisley by Lord Hughes.
McLennan, 52, of Forfar, had faced 19 charges relating to incidents between April 2000 and April 2019 during a trial at the High Court in Dundee.
Thirteen of the charges were removed after a no case to answer submission, but the jury found McLennan guilty on four of the six charges which remained.
The jury found McLennan guilty of brandishing a loaded shotgun at Mr Robertson and threatening his family on various occasions.
They found him guilty of punching and kicking Mr Robertson on the head and body, and striking him with metal bars and pieces of wood.
McLennan was also found guilty of attacking Mr Robertson with a dog chain.
He was convicted of pulling on the chain and compressing his neck, causing him to fall, to his severe injury and danger of life.
Finally, the jury found McLennan guilty of brandishing a loaded shotgun at Mr Robertson.
The court was told that McLennan, who has no previous criminal convictions, had worked for Mr Robertson in the construction industry for 20 years.
Mr Robertson told the trial he was regularly hit with weapons and was left terrified on a number of occasions when McLennan pulled a loaded shotgun on him.
He also admitted that McLennan - who had several shotguns - had been allowed to keep the weapons partly because Mr Robertson had given him a reference to provide to police.
Mr Robertson described how, on one occasion, McLennan angrily confronted him and placed a dog chain round his neck to torture him.
McLennan pulled the chain tight as his employer gasped for breath and Mr Robertson, from Forfar, said he fell over as he fought for his life.
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