A MAN who was looking for ways to pay off his gambling debt was caught trying to gain access to parked cars.

John McAuslane, 50, appeared at Glasgow Sheriff Court this week for sentencing, following the incident on May 31 last year.

A man was within his home on Woodrow Road, Pollokshields, at 4.18am when he received a notification on his phone, from an app linked to his CCTV.

He opened the app and viewed live footage of his CCTV at the front of his home.

McAuslane was in his driveway and was seen trying to open the driver’s door of his vehicle.

He then tried to open the doors of another vehicle, which was also in the driveway.

McAuslane, of Hillpark, soon spotted he was being recorded, as he looked towards the camera and left.

But the homeowner followed McAuslane and contacted police after catching up with him.

He was arrested, cautioned and charged and made no reply.

McAuslane’s lawyer said: “He’s too old for these regular appearances in court. His record does him no favour.

“He had an accident at the beginning of 2021 and significant damage to his knee was caused. He was unable to leave the house for that period and was drinking and gambling.

“He admitted that he went looking for a way to pay these debts. He is currently subject to a community payback order and is engaging well.

“I would ask you to defer sentence for him to continue to progress well on the current order. I did speak to him about a financial penalty, but he is struggling at the moment.”

Sheriff Charles Lugton deferred sentence for six months.

He told McAuslane: “You seem to be progressing well on an order. If you keep progressing well, I’ll deal with this matter more leniently.”