A one-punch thug has been ordered to pay compensation to a man he left scarred for life in a Perthshire town street attack.
Jason Sturrock was unable to say why he assaulted Colin Stewart in Alyth’s Airlie Street.
Perth Sheriff Court heard how he attempted to intervene in a fight between other men on July 9 2022.
The 38-year-old smacked victim Colin Stewart, causing him to fall and strike his head on a pavement kerb.
He was knocked unconscious and left permanently scarred.
Sturrock, who last appeared in court for stealing a sex toy from his ex-girlfriend, was spared jail after pleading guilty to the assault when he appeared on indictment.
One-punch assault
Sheriff William Wood told him: “You accepted that this fight was over and you cannot explain why you got involved.
“Drink was taken and there may have been confusion about who was who and what was going on.”
The sheriff said: “The consequences for Mr Stewart could have been catastrophic.
“I take into account that this was one punch but deaths have been caused because of single punches in the past.”
Sheriff Wood said he accepted that this was a “blip” on Sturrock’s limited record.
“I will impose a community payback order and the discount here is that I am not sending you to prison.”
Sturrock, of Whitson Close, Rattray, was ordered to carry out 300 hours of unpaid work.
The sheriff also set a compensation requirement as part of a 12-month supervision order.
Sturrock was told he must pay his victim £1,200, at a rate of £120 a month.
“Let’s not see you here again,” the sheriff told him.
Sex toy thief
Sentence was previous deferred to allow Sturrock the chance to complete a previously imposed unpaid work order.
He had been handed a 225-hour sentence after he admitted creeping into a former girlfriend’s home and stealing a sex toy from her bedroom drawer.
The court heard how he clambered into the Inchture property through a kitchen window and texted his ex while he roamed around inside.
He later told police he had gone into the property to give water to a dog.
Sturrock was told that his bizarre behaviour would have been “very upsetting and distressing” for his ex-girlfriend.
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