A teenager stole three goldfish belonging to a local primary school and then flushed them down the toilet.
Kevan Fraser (17), from Wick in Caithness, took the goldfish after gaining entry to Lybster Primary School through an insecure door, in October last year.
Solicitor Neil Wilson said that when Fraser flushed the goldfish down the toilet he thought they would make their way to sea, and had been unaware of how the sewage system worked.
The act was described as "unpleasant" by Sheriff Andrew Berry.
Fraser was ordered to carry out 100 hours of unpaid community service.
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