A police officer chased a pal through a Dundee shopping centre and kicked and punched him on the head and body.
Scott Singers, 26, left his friend Daniel O’Neill with swelling and bruising after launching the bizarre attack in the Overgate shopping centre.
Fiscal depute Chris McIntosh told Dundee Sheriff Court the incident happened on Sunday September 2 and was captured on CCTV.
Mr McIntosh said: “The accused was seen chasing the complainer. He kicked the complainer on the leg and he fell to the ground and then he started punching him on the head and body.
“A security guard came and the complainer got up and started running away again and the accused chased him. The complainer was then struck on the head and body by the accused punching him.”
Mr McIntosh told the court that police and a security guard from the shopping centre arrived and Mr O’Neill was seen to have facial swelling, redness and bruising.
Mr O’Neill refused to give a statement to police officers or to have any further involvement in the case, he said..
Solicitor Nicky Brown said: “It’s an unusual set of circumstances.
“He and Mr O’Neill are actually friends. He is an ex-police officer – he’s not serving now due to a disability.
“During the first part of the charge he thought he was being attacked.
“He got up totally disorientated and saw someone running away from him and assumed it was that person who attacked him.
“He ran after him and started attacking him in what he thought was self-defence. But then he realised it was his friend and stopped.”
Mrs Brown added that Singers was on sick pay from the police, having suffered a disability while serving on the force.
Singers, of Dalkeith Road, admitted assaulting Mr O’Neill by repeatedly punching him on the head and body, pursuing him and kicking him on the body and knocking him to the ground, all to his injury, at Overgate shopping centre on September 2. He was fined £100.
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