A MAN who chased his brother with a knife in Stevenston has been jailed.

Jack Boyd appeared from custody at Kilmarnock Sheriff Court, where he pleaded guilty to a pair of charges following an incident at Ardeer Bowling Club and in nearby Warner Street on October 29.

The 21-year-old admitted being in possession of a knife and behaving in a threatening or abusive manner towards a number of witnesses.

The court heard the incident had begun after Boyd, described as a prisoner at HMP Kilmarnock, attended Ardeer Bowling Club with his brother and his partner as well as another family member and their partner.

They went to the venue at around 3pm following a family christening at which they had all been drinking.

There had been no issue during their time at the club until Boyd's brother asked him to "sit up straight or leave" due to his level of intoxication.

Boyd took exception to this request and challenged his brother to a fight before being calmed down by one of the other witnesses.

Later in the day, however, the situation escalated, with Boyd losing his temper with his brother outside.

This time, attempts to calm him down failed, with Boyd calling one witness a "fat cow" when they attempted to intervene.

The shouting and swearing continued and then a fight broke out.

Fiscal depute Chris Munro said: "The accused [Boyd] then removed a knife from and black sheath from one of his suit jacket pockets and chased after his brother.

"The accused was, however, caught. The knife was removed from his possession and thrown under a nearby bush.

"The police were later called and attended. They noted the accused was in an agitated state."

The knife was later recovered and Boyd was arrested. He had injured his hand and was taken to Crosshouse Hospital for treatment before being transferred to Saltcoats police station.

Rebecca Horton, defending, said her client had little memory of events.

She told the court: "He has a slight recollection of arguing with his brother and matters escalated. He had taken a considerable amount of alcohol and street Valium.

“He is disgusted with his actions, not only to his family but wider public.

“He fully accepts he was in possession of the knife, but has no recollection of where he obtained it.

“He says he was not in possession of this when he left the house, and obtained this while intoxicated.”

Sheriff Alistair Watson pointed out it was the latest in a line of knife-related offences on Boyd's record.

The sheriff also noted that Boyd had been handed community-based punishments on five occasions but that these "had clearly had no effect".

"This was a planned action," the sheriff added. "There is no alternative to custody."

Boyd was handed a 16-month prison sentence, backdated to November 20, when he was first remanded in custody.