An Aberdeen teenager left two students scarred for life after a frenzied knife attack in a city street.
Ben Payne and Lewis Walker ended up permanently disfigured after Rhian Doran carried out the vicious attack in Esslemont Avenue.
One victim was slashed by Doran up to 14 times, leaving him with severe facial scars.
And the other suffered a broken cheekbone after the teenager kicked him in the face.
It emerged yesterday at Aberdeen Sheriff Court that the 18-year-old struck just four months after being released early from HMYOI Polmont for a previous offence.
The court heard that in the early hours of Sunday, October 30 last year, Mr Payne and Mr Walker had been socialising with friends at a number of flats in the city centre.
Fiscal depute Stephanie Ross said the pair had been drinking, but “not to the extent that they could not recall their movements at the time”.
At around 3am they visited a kebab shop in Chapel Street, before going up Rose Street and past Thistle Court.
As they were passing the flats, they saw Doran and another man standing at the entrance.
He shouted to Mr Payne and Mr Walker, asking them repeatedly if they knew someone.
When Mr Payne eventually told the accused to “shut up”, Doran swore at him.
The two victims then saw him pull a five-inch knife out of his pocket.
Mr Payne and Mr Walker walked up Esslemont Avenue, but soon spotted Doran running after them.
The court heard that Mr Payne decided to suddenly stop running in an attempt to trip up Doran as he sped past him.
Miss Ross said: “This tactic worked to some extent because the accused was tripped up, but not before the accused could use his knife in a slashing motion to the right hand side of his face before the accused fell to the ground.”
Mr Walker turned around and went to help his friend, but Doran had already “attempted to repeatedly use the knife to strike Mr Payne to the head and body”.
The two students made another attempt to run away, but the teenager grabbed Mr Payne’s lower leg, causing him to trip and land on the ground.
Doran then went on “all fours” on top of him.
The court heard Mr Payne, an Aberdeen University student, was struck with the knife approximately 14 times, endangering his life.
Doran then got off Mr Payne and lashed out at Mr Walker, before kicking him in the face and knocking him to the ground.
The students managed to escape and call the police, who arrived soon after and saw Doran running away.
The officers arrested him, and a member of the public alerted the police to a knife they had found nearby, which the court heard matched the description of the weapon given by the two students.
Mr Payne and Mr Walker were taken to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary’s accident and emergency department for treatment, but were left permanently disfigured by the attack.
Mr Payne suffered a laceration between his hairline and right eye, and numerous wounds to his scalp, left ear, and left shoulder, all of which required stitches.
Mr Walker suffered a broken cheekbone and deep cuts to his left ear.
Doran admitted assaulting Mr Payne and Mr Walker, and having a knife in a public place.
Sentence was deferred until later this month for background reports.
