A 53-year-old Elgin man that sexually abused an under age girl over a decade ago has been ordered to do unpaid work.
Steven Mellis, of Findhorn Court, appeared at Inverness Sheriff Court yesterday to be sentenced, having previously admitted the offence.
Defence solicitor Grant Daglish said: “He is struggling to come to terms with why this has taken so long to come to court. But he accepts he did wrong.”
Placing Mellis on the Sex Offender’s Register and under social work supervision for 20 months, Sheriff Sara Matheson told him: “This is nothing short of child abuse.”
Mellis was also ordered to carry out 180 hours of unpaid work for the community and told he must take part in a sex offender’s programme.
