A SCOTSMAN claimed in court yesterday he had been tortured by fellow prisoners in an English jail.

Francis McIntosh, 40, was in a team of burglars raiding pubs when he was arrested in April and remanded to Holme House Prison, in Stockton, Teesside.

McIntosh, married with an eight-year-old daughter, found himself a target for the local prison population, said his lawyer.

Defence barrister Richard Bennett told the court: "He has a very difficult time on a day-to-day basis. The local English villains do not take very kindly to people coming over the border and committing offences here. His expression is that he is being tortured in Holme House."

Drug addict McIntosh was arrested with another man and two women from Glasgow after daytime burglaries at three pubs in Staindrop and Romaldkirk, County Durham.

He and Andrea Milligan, 36, told staff she was ill and needed a toilet and a reviving drink, Rebecca Young, prosecuting, told the court.

While staff were distracted, McIntosh ransacked slot machines and stole handbags, Teesside Crown Court heard.

They escaped with £800 from one pub in Romaldkirk and jewellery worth £750 from another. A chef's bank cards were used three times in Scotland the same day, said Miss Young. Three of the team were arrested a week later in Kendal, Cumbria.

McIntish, of Eckford Street, and Milligan, of Etive Street, both Shettleston, Glasgow, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit burglaries on April 13.

Judge William Hirst said: "I don't take into account the fact that you have come across the border but it was an expedition which shows a degree of planning. It is correct to describe them as well-organised raids, and that's why the only proper sentence is a custodial sentence.

McIntosh was jailed for 15 months and Milligan for nine months.