A sailor training to be a captain in the Finnish navy has pleaded guilty to criminal damage after smashing his way through a warehouse during a drunken rampage in Portland
A drunken sailor caused £36,000 in damage and smashed dozens of windows in a booze-fuelled rampage, a court has heard.
Finnish sailor Juska Ruti, 26, docked with a commercial ship at Portland port in Dorset and went to the pub where he became “incredibly drunk”, it was claimed. On returning to his ship, Ruti passed what he though was a derelict building, but which turned out to be a warehouse used by a small drainage company.
Ruti smashed every pane of glass in the warehouse, causing an estimated £9,000 in damage. A further £27,000 in damage was caused when the shattered glass covered the products stored in the warehouse, including pipe and drain liner that was rendered unusable because it was no longer airtight.
The products had to be scrapped, and the drainage firm – The Bloggs Ltd – said it would take several years to recover from the loss.
Patricia Sheehan, defending, said: “He came off the ship and he got incredibly drunk. He has very little recollection of it but he accepted that he did do the damage. The building looked derelict and not in active use. It was not pre-planned whatsoever. This is a young man who has never done anything like this before, he is deeply ashamed and couldn’t be more ashamed of what he did.”
Ruti plead guilty to a charge of criminal damage at Weymouth Magistrate’s Court and was ordered to pay Christopher Bloggs £10,800 in compensation. The sailor lives in Turku, Finland and is training to be a captain in the Finnish navy. He is expected to pay the compensation at £500 a month.
