RICKSEN `TURNED AIR BLUE' WHEN COPS LIFTED HIM
Calum Macdonald
Daily Record
RANGERS star Fernando Ricksen hurled abuse at policemen after he was caught drink-driving, a court heard yesterday.
The 25-year-old Dutch midfielder was handcuffed after allegedly calling the officers "f****** b********" when he was arrested in his home.
Ricksen appeared at Paisley Sheriff Court charged with driving while almost twice the legal limit on Christmas Day 2000.
He was also accused of driving without due care and attention and colliding with a lamp post.
A third charge alleges he breached the peace by shouting and swearing at police officers.
Ricksen denies all the charges, but the trial was halted yesterday after a prosecution witness failed to turn up.
Sergeant George Gilpin should have been in court, but was on holiday in Majorca.
The court heard how Gilpin and Acting Sergeant James McAndrew turned up at Ricksen's home in plush Newton Mearns, near Glasgow, after a neighbour reported a suspected car accident.
They found tyre marks in the snow which led from an apparent crash scene to Ricksen's front door. McAndrew said the outburst came after a clash with Ricksen's wife, Graciella.
He added: "His wife asked me why we were there.
"She walked past, spoke to Mr Ricksen in Dutch and slammed the door on me. I immediately opened the door and told her he was in my control and custody. Mr Ricksen swore at me when we warned her about her conduct.
"He seemed to become agitated and called us `f****** b*******'.
"He came over and, with his face in front of mine, called us `p*****'. That was when he was handcuffed." McAndrew said the lamp post was dented and a door of Ricksen's car was damaged.
The sergeant claimed the engine was still warm.
Sheriff Bill Dunlop rejected a bid by Jim Pea****, defending, to have McAndrew's evidence about what happened inside the house ruled inadmissible because, he claimed, the star struggled to understand the cops.
McAndrew denied under cross-examination that Ricksen could not understand what was said.
He said everything had been spelled out "in layman's language" and Ricksen did not ask for an interpreter until he was taken to Govan police station to be breathalysed.
The Sheriff gave depute fiscal Keiran Dean one week to sort out his case when he discovered Gilpin was not in court. A date for the trial to continue will be set then.
The bold Fernando strikes again.
Calum Macdonald
Daily Record
RANGERS star Fernando Ricksen hurled abuse at policemen after he was caught drink-driving, a court heard yesterday.
The 25-year-old Dutch midfielder was handcuffed after allegedly calling the officers "f****** b********" when he was arrested in his home.
Ricksen appeared at Paisley Sheriff Court charged with driving while almost twice the legal limit on Christmas Day 2000.
He was also accused of driving without due care and attention and colliding with a lamp post.
A third charge alleges he breached the peace by shouting and swearing at police officers.
Ricksen denies all the charges, but the trial was halted yesterday after a prosecution witness failed to turn up.
Sergeant George Gilpin should have been in court, but was on holiday in Majorca.
The court heard how Gilpin and Acting Sergeant James McAndrew turned up at Ricksen's home in plush Newton Mearns, near Glasgow, after a neighbour reported a suspected car accident.
They found tyre marks in the snow which led from an apparent crash scene to Ricksen's front door. McAndrew said the outburst came after a clash with Ricksen's wife, Graciella.
He added: "His wife asked me why we were there.
"She walked past, spoke to Mr Ricksen in Dutch and slammed the door on me. I immediately opened the door and told her he was in my control and custody. Mr Ricksen swore at me when we warned her about her conduct.
"He seemed to become agitated and called us `f****** b*******'.
"He came over and, with his face in front of mine, called us `p*****'. That was when he was handcuffed." McAndrew said the lamp post was dented and a door of Ricksen's car was damaged.
The sergeant claimed the engine was still warm.
Sheriff Bill Dunlop rejected a bid by Jim Pea****, defending, to have McAndrew's evidence about what happened inside the house ruled inadmissible because, he claimed, the star struggled to understand the cops.
McAndrew denied under cross-examination that Ricksen could not understand what was said.
He said everything had been spelled out "in layman's language" and Ricksen did not ask for an interpreter until he was taken to Govan police station to be breathalysed.
The Sheriff gave depute fiscal Keiran Dean one week to sort out his case when he discovered Gilpin was not in court. A date for the trial to continue will be set then.
The bold Fernando strikes again.