An Edinburgh woman who tore out the hair of a love rival in a nightclub attack has been warned she faces 18 months in jail.
Dee Flynn seized the victim by the hair in the Shanghai venue in Edinburgh’s George Street and pulled her to the ground. The 27-year-old punched Emily Sarpietro in the head during the assault before being escorted from the dance floor by door staff and ejected.
Emily had approached a man they had both dated in the club, a court heard. Now a sheriff has told Flynn she was in the “last chance saloon” for “thumbing her nose at the court”.
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Flynn appeared at Edinburgh Sheriff Court on Friday for sentencing, which had been deferred following her earlier guilty plea. She was also appearing for a review of a community payback order (CPO) imposed over a fraud she carried out, reports the Record.
Flynn previously admitted obtaining taxi journeys by pretending to be an employee of the Eden Scott recruitment agency. She had been put on 12 months supervision as part of the order, but the court heard a report into her conduct had been “poor”.
Defence agent Murray Robertson said his client had not “taken the opportunity” to properly engage with the programme. Sheriff Matthew Auchincloss said he’d dealt with the case to see if there was a “realistic alternative to custody”.
He told her: “You are thumbing your nose at the court and I cannot allow that.
“I can send you to prison, probably for about a year-and-a-half. I’m pretty sure you don’t want me to do that.”
The sheriff said he was giving Flynn “one further chance” but warned it was the “last chance saloon”. Sheriff Auchincloss said it would take a “glowing report to save you”.
The CPO review and deferred sentence were set for next month.
In March Flynn admitted a charge of assaulting Emily to her injury. Fiscal depute Abbie McKerlie said Emily had attended the nightclub with a friend at 1am. The court heard Flynn approached her an hour later and asked if she was “Emily”.
Ms McKerlie said it “clicked” with Emily that this was the current girlfriend of a man called Jack whom she previously went on two dates with.
The prosecutor said Emily made her way over to Jack, who was also in the club, but the accused stepped in front of her.
Flynn “grabbed her by the hair”, the court was told, before dragging her to the floor and punching her. Door staff threw Flynn out of the club and police were contacted following the incident on November 17 2019.
Ms McKerlie said Emily suffered minor cuts and bruises, with some of the cuts breaking the skin including where hair had been pulled from her scalp.
Flynn, of the city’s Craigmillar area, previously admitted the fraudulent taxi scheme which was carried out between May 14 and July 18 2019.
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