A man was kicked so hard during an assault that his assailant left the imprint of his boot on his face, Perth Sheriff Court has heard.
Robert Moffat was jailed on Thursday after the court heard how he repeatedly stamped on his victim’s head as he lay on the ground in the town’s Newhouse Road.
The incident began on a bus heading into Letham at 10.30pm on March 14, when Derek Duff stepped on board one stop after the accused. Despite the pair sitting well away from each other for the duration of the journey, when the bus came to a halt in Newhouse Road, tensions rose.
Depute fiscal Alan Kempton said, “The accused and the victim both stood up to get off and at one point they were standing face to face. There was some sort of argument between the pair.”
As they both stood at the bus stop, Moffat punched Mr Duff, knocking him to the ground before launching a volley of kicks to his head and body. The 47-year-old was seen to stamp on Mr Duff’s face at least four times, as well as kicking him in the ribs.
Witnesses in a nearby flat watched as Moffat repeatedly kicked the man’s body and ribs before moving on to his head.
The court heard how the accused was heard to shout, “You deserve this. I know who you are and you deserve this.”
Mr Kempton said there was some background to these claims, which centred on an argument over a nickname.
Moffat ran off and police arrived shortly afterwards, having been flagged down by residents. They found Mr Duff struggling to get to his feet and falling down again, striking his head on the pavement.
He was taken to Perth Royal Infirmary with his eye swollen shut, bleeding from a cut to his eyebrow and bruising and swelling to his face. A wound behind his ear was glued, while he received three paper stitches to a cut on his scalp.
Defence agent John McLaughlin told the court his client accepted he should not have reacted in the way he did to a comment made by Mr Duff.
Mr McLaughlin said, “He advises me that when the complainer stood up on the bus, the only reason he stood up too was because Mr Duff had said that he would ‘see him off the bus.’ He realises that what he did was unacceptable.”
He added that, just like the complainer, Moffat had been under the influence of alcohol and he believes that led to the severity of the assault.
He said, “He accepts that had he been sober, while the matter might not have been avoided, he would not have gone so far.”
Moffat, of Primrose Crescent, Perth, admitted ssaulting Mr Duff by punching him, knocking him to the ground and repeatedly kicking and stamping on his head and body to his severe injury.
Describing the accused’s behaviour as “absolutely appalling”, Sheriff Lindsay Foulis said he showed an incredible lack of self-control.
“You clearly had totally lost it,” he said. “You are aged 47, you have numerous convictions for crimes of violence and at that point, you did not care what injuries you were going to sustain to the defenceless individual. All you were intent on doing was laying into him.”
Sheriff Foulis jailed Moffat for 35 months and imposed a supervised release order for one year, which includes alcohol counselling and anger management.