Two vandals who committed criminal damage at St Ninian’s High School have been sentenced.

William David Gilardoni, of Peveril Road, Douglas, was with another male when they damaged a door at the school.

Gilardoni, who is 20, was ordered to do 40 hours of unpaid work when he appeared before magistrates for sentencing last week.

The co-accused, a juvenile who cannot be named for legal reasons, was handed a six-month conditional discharge.

The pair was initially jointly charged with burglary with intent to cause criminal damage and pleaded not guilty.

But at a pre-trial review they pleaded guilty to the replacement joint charge of criminal damage.

We previously reported that the pair entered the school through an open window after climbing over a fence on September 22.

Once inside, the juvenile then used a hammer belonging to the school to damage an internal door.

The damage was not discovered until the following morning by the school caretaker.

They were identified using CCTV footage.

Although the damage was caused by the other male, the duo was charged jointly which means they are held equally accountable for each other’s actions.

A probation report said that Gilardoni was one of eight children and had a difficult background.

The report said that he was unemployed but hoping to find an apprenticeship or training programme which he could go on.

Gilardoni was said to have had an argument at his grandmother’s home where he was living on the night in question and said he had gone to the school intending to spend the night there but had then been scared off by an alarm going off.

Defence advocate Peter Taylor said the probation report painted a positive picture that there was hope for his client.

Magistrates also ordered Gilardoni to pay £150 compensation for the damage. He will pay at a rate of £10 per week deducted from benefits.