Two Angus men who left a footprint on another man’s face during a brutal assault have been jailed for a total of 42 months.
Stuart Douglas and Rory Starkey attacked 23-year-old Steven Cameron in a Forfar residential street following a disagreement at a local nightclub.
The 20-year-old former school friends appeared from custody at Forfar Sheriff Court on an indictment alleging assault to severe injury and permanent disfigurement on August 9.
Starkey admitted initiating the attack in the vicinity of Glamis Road by chasing and pushing the complainer to the ground, and Douglas admitted kicking and stamping on his face.
The court heard a disagreement over Mr Cameron’s fiance led to the attack, following two flare-ups at the Royal Nightclub.
Father-of-two Douglas’ solicitor Nick Markowski said his client wanted to publicly apologise for the attack, of which he was “ashamed”.
He added that a jail term would disrupt Douglas’ final year study as an apprentice joiner.
“He’s fortunate the injuries sustained by the complainer weren’t worse.
“Injuries from stamping and kicking are in the lap of the gods.”
Starkey’s solicitor Lynne Sturrock said her client’s involvement in the attack was lesser but he wished to apologise to the complainer, who he had known at school.
“He appreciates custody will be foremost in the court’s mind,” she added.
Fiscal depute Jill Drummond said both men were on bail at the time and Douglas committed the offence on the heels of another assault, for which he received a community payback order.
She said: “In the early hours of the Sunday, the complainer and his fiance were in the Royal Nightclub.
“(The woman) was speaking to Douglas when the complainer barged past him.
“A brief altercation was quickly separated by door staff.”
A second altercation took place at kicking-out time, and Mr Cameron was the victim of a “short but sustained attack” at 2.30am as he was approaching Lowson Avenue.
As well as a swollen face and a lump on his legs, the complainer was left with “what looked like a footmark above his left eye.”
Douglas was remanded for 16 months including bail aggravation, while Starkey was sentenced to a year’s custody.
Starkey also received another 14 months due to breaches of previous community payback orders for assault and public disorder.
Sheriff Gregor Murray said: “You were both the perpetrators of a brief but premeditated, sustained assault on a young man.
“Mr Douglas, I accept there may have been an element of provocation (but) you kicked him on the head and then stamped on his head.
“Society expects such severe charges to be dealt with seriously.”