A MAN who carried out an armed robbery in the Borders will be sentenced next month at Jedburgh Sheriff Court.

Marques Monroe previously pleaded guilty to assaulting a female employee by brandishing a knife, attempting to rob her of a holdall containing cigarettes and robbing her of a bottle of alcohol.

The 20-year-old - who gave an address care of his parents in Nottingham - had also admitted possession of a knife at the Caddon Court store in Innerleithen on May 14 last year.

He failed to show at Jedburgh Sheriff Court on Monday and a warrant was granted for his arrest.

However he was invited to attend voluntarily today, when Sheriff Peter Paterson told him that after considering a report it was accepted he had "significant psychological difficulties".

Sentence was deferred until August 21 for the production of a Criminal Justice Social Work Report, a Restriction of Liberty Order assessment and a pre-sentencing report.

Sheriff Paterson warned Monroe that his difficulties did not prevent him from attending court or co-operating with background reports.

He said: "Putting your head in the sand does not help you.

"If I don't have the reports it will leave me with no option but to remand you in custody.

"The system does not forget.

"I will have no choice, no matter the difficulties you have with custody."