The High Court in Edinburgh heard how John McFadden, 56, struck his victim with a baseball bat and shouted at him: ‘Get your bank card out right now.’ Other men also punched the victim and hit him with various weapons during the invasion of his home.

Judge Lady Wise told McFadden: “I am in no doubt a reasonably significant custodial sentence is appropriate as punishment for this violent attack.” “While the physical impact on the man you attacked was relatively minor the experience was a terrifying one for him.” McFadden admitted assaulting the man, then 38, at his home in Paton Street on 14 November last year while acting with others and robbing him of a bank card. During the attack the victim was headbutted, forced upstairs, repeatedly punched and struck on the head and body with weapons.

He was threatened and bank cards and PIN numbers were demanded as he was held against his will.

McFadden also admitted two further charges of theft by taking a total of £330 from cash machines with the stolen bank card.

Advocate depute David Nicolson told the court that the victim was in debt to McFadden at the time.

He said that the man was awoken around 7.40am by the noise of knocking at the door and he opened it, as he was expecting a gas engineer at the time.

The prosecutor said: “But he was confronted by six males all dressed in dark clothing who forced their way into the house.” He said the victim was headbutted on the face by one attacker who was carrying an eight inch long hunting style knife, before being knocked to the floor, grabbed and dragged upstairs into a bedroom. Once in the room he recognised McFadden, who was armed with a wooden baseball bat.

McFadden hit him on the face with the bat before the other intruders joined in the attack.

When McFadden demanded his bank card the victim, now fearing for his life, told him where he kept his wallet.

He also told the victim: “Come back at 12 with £100.” When the victim said he had no money he was told he had ‘better get it’ from somewhere.

The court heard that he was led outside by some of the group and thought he was going to be taken to a cash machine, but managed to get away.

Mr Nicolson said the victim went home and hid his valuables before going to a bank to check his balance and found two withdrawals had already been made, so he contacted the police.

When officers turned up at McFadden’s home in Gael Street they found him inside and recovered a sheath knife, baseball bat and other weapons along with a bank card in the victim’s name.

McFadden told officers that the weapons were his and were for protection, as his house had previously been broken into.

Defence counsel Tony Lenahan said the debt owed had been ‘pursued in an amicable manner for a long time’ but it had become obvious to McFadden that he was being treated with ‘contempt’.