Inverness Sheriff Court heard on Tuesday how Graeme MacMillan (45) started a blaze at a railway depot on Longman Road, which caused £152,546 worth of damage and saw 20 people, including children, evacuated from the scene by emergency crews.

The Network Rail worker pled guilty to setting light on October 28 last year to an office, two Portakabins and a car at Highland House, Longman Road, which formerly housed a number of small businesses and where Network Rail had office space.

Sentencing the divorced father-of-four to two years in prison, Sheriff Margaret Neilson described the case as being "difficult and tragic".

She said it was accepted he had previously been a "very upstanding member of society" until his car was hit by a train at a level crossing near his former home in Bunchrew in May 2008, leading the "course of his life to change".

It led to the diagnosis of post traumatic stress disorder, which had yet to be treated, and then when three people were killed in an unconnected level crossing accident at Halkirk last September, the sheriff recognised it had "triggered something inside" him to commit the offences.

But, she added: "The court has to treat these offences very seriously. You caused damage to property and could have put lives at risk."

She said public interest also had to be taken into account, and no alternative to custody was available.

She added: "As such, it gives me no pleasure to have to give a custodial sentence."

Procurator fiscal Ron Phillips told the court MacMillan was examined by a psychiatrist when he was remanded in custody on October 30, and was then committed to New Craigs Hospital because of "prevailing mental health issues".

Mr Phillips added MacMillan was then transferred back to Inverness Prison.

He said that following on from the level crossing accident, MacMillan had been receiving various forms of psychiatric care, and had voiced concerns about the safety of level crossings without barriers in the media.

But he said he felt a deep sense of "guilt" as well as "anger and embitterment" towards his employers Network Rail after three people - Inverness couple Angus and Margaret MacKay (both 81) and Angus's brother Donald (66) - were then killed when their car was hit by a train at Halkirk, Caithness, in September last year.

Then, on the morning of October 28, matters took a turn for the worse when he discovered his pay had not gone into his bank account.

This led to him making a phone call to a colleague and writing an email to his employers, warning he was going to take his own life as well as set fire to the offices.

The fiscal said that during the incident, police officers selflessly entered the smoke-filled room to rescue MacMillan, who they found apparently unconscious in the foetal position with a box of matches by his side.

Following treatment for smoke inhalation, he was admitted to Raigmore Hospital, where the following morning he wrapped an oxygen lead around his neck in an attempt to "cause himself damage".

His defence agent Iain Innes said MacMillan, described as a prisoner in Inverness Prison, was still technically employed by Network Rail and had worked mainly for British Rail since 1989.

He said he had previously been of impeccable character but something has "gone wrong" from a mental health point of view.

Sentence was backdated to October 30.

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