A BORDERS chef who had two bust-ups with partners as the relationships ended in acrimony has been ordered to pay a total of £730.

Two-year non-harassment orders were also imposed telling 25-year-old James Millen, from Walkerburn, that he must have no contact with either woman during that period.

Selkirk Sheriff Court heard Millen was in a relationship with a woman which started in November 2019, and lasted for around six months.

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Fraser Matheson, prosecuting, said: "At around 10am the accused saw a message on her phone which ended with an x which he said represented a kiss. 

"He became annoyed and claimed his partner was cheating on him.

"He said you have been through my phone so I should go through your phone.

"He got hold of her phone and started to look through the contents.

"She attempted to take the phone back but he refused to hand it over and during the struggle it fell to the ground and the screen cracked.

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"The accused kept saying you are cheating on me and asked why a password had been changed.

"The argument spilled outside and he kept saying he wanted to see the messages."

Mr Matheson said the argument continued back in the house with Millen appearing in a room carrying a knife which had his own blood on it.

At this point his partner phoned 999 and she tried to leave but as she tried to get into a vehicle Millen tried to prevent her from getting in.

When police attended shortly thereafter they found Millen in possession of cannabis which was valued at £295.

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Millen also pleaded guilty to a charge of stalking involving a previous partner.

The court heard he had been in a relationship with the woman for about a year and it had come to an end in September 2019.

Mr Matheson said Millen would send her messages to which she would not reply.

The messages continued over the coming week before she eventually contacted him on October 23 and said he was now blocked on all her social media platforms.

Mr Matheson said: "She thought that would be the end of the contact but on December 11, 2019, she received a bank transfer of £1 sent from a Mr J Millen and in the reference field it said Merry Xmas followed by a small x.

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“On January 10 she received a phone message from a number she did not recognise but she recognised the style of the message as coming from Millen and she again told him not to contact her.”

Defence lawyer Mat Patrick said that had been a long-term relationship and his client took it badly when they separated and did not conduct himself appropriately.

In relation to the second partner, he insisted that he had not been violent when he tried to stop her getting in the car and explained that in his job as a chef knives were always lying about his home.

Fines of £400 were imposed with Millen ordered to pay £150 each to both of his former partners.

A £30 victim surcharge was also imposed.

In addition, Sheriff Peter Paterson made a two-year non-harassment order preventing Millen having any contact with either woman.