A CLACKS man who spat at police and screamed "I'm part of the IRA – you can't arrest me" has been jailed for 18 months.

Jordan Green, 27, was high on drugs and in a rage after running through people's gardens and jumping over walls to evade arrest, Falkirk Sheriff Court was told.

The court heard that the incident happened near Aldi, in Alloa, on December 16, 2020, when officers tried to stop Green to speak to him about breaching a bail curfew.

He immediately ran off and "numerous police units" were sent to the scene in a bid to trace him.

Prosecutor Cheryl Clark said: "Following various sightings the accused was seen climbing through gardens and over walls in an attempt to escape the police."

He was chased by two cops down Whins Road, Alloa, and into an open space below a railway bridge where he was captured.

He "thrust" his arms to try to break officers' grip and escape, and had to be taken to the ground and handcuffed.

He continued to resist by trying to tuck his arms under his body, and further officers attended to provide assistance.

Ms Clark said: "He claimed to be part of the IRA and said he was not able to be arrested due to his associations.

"He was searched and while he was being placed in a cage in the rear of a marked police vehicle he attempted to spit on one of the officers.

"His spittle hit the cage door as it was shutting and a spit hood was applied for the officers' safety."

Cautioned and charged for police assault, he said: "No I didn't, nothing will stick."

Green, a father-of-one, of Pine Grove, Alloa, who was said to have "a number of previous convictions for violence", pleaded guilty at Falkirk Sheriff Court on Wednesday, April 14, to police assault, breaking bail, and a statutory breach of peace.

Solicitor Frazer McCready, defending, said Green had sustained a "very nasty head injury" in a motorcycle accident when he was 16, and had suffered "real problems since".

He said: "He is a regular target for youths in the Alloa area, who seem to pick on him."

Mr McCready said Green had been under the influence of drugs he had consumed when the police came across him.

He said: "He was unhappy at being caught and he ran off but was quickly apprehended."

Announcing the 18-month jail term, Sheriff Keith O'Mahony said: "There's no alternative to custody."