A thug whipped his pal with a fishing rod and kicked him so hard he almost had to have his spleen removed after they fell out over £40.
David Dalgarno turned up at his friend’s Torry flat in the early hours of the morning shouting that he owed him £40, but when the man denied it Dalgarno turned violent.
The 30-yea-old smashed a glass vase across his victim’s face, before grabbing a fishing rod and whipping him with it.
As the man curled up in a ball on the floor, Dalgarno repeatedly booted him in the stomach, so hard that he was left with lacerations on his spleen and internal bleeding that could have proved fatal.
Fiscal depute Alan Townsend told Aberdeen Sheriff Court the men had known each other for a few months prior to the attack.
He said Dalgarno had visited his friend at 9pm on May 13 with “a couple of bags of food” and left 15 minutes later.
But at around 2am he returned to the Menzies Road flat unexpectedly while “angry” and shouted that the man “owed him £40”.
Mr Townsend said: “The accused proceeded to attack the complainer, lifting a glass vase from the coffee table and striking the complainer over the right side of his face with it.
“The vase smashed on impact.
“He then picked up a nearby fishing rod and started whipping him on the body with it a couple of times.”
Dalgarno’s victim “curled up in a ball to try to protect himself” but he “kicked him repeatedly in the stomach”.
Victim could have died without treatment
Meanwhile, a neighbour had heard “various bangs and thumps” and, on a security camera, saw Dalgarno leave the flat seemingly “out of it”.
When the injured man woke up later that morning he visited his local pharmacy where another customer called an ambulance after seeing his condition and head wound.
He was found to have low blood pressure, a cut on his forehead and a bruise on his lower chest.
Scans revealed he had two lacerations to his spleen and moderate bleeding into his abdomen.
Mr Townsend said “consideration was given to operating to remove the spleen” but that this was not done due to the man’s medical history and need for lifelong antibiotics.
He was moved to a high-dependency unit and given a blood transfusion.
The spleen injury was deemed “life-threatening, with a possibility of death, had the complainer not received treatment”.
At 8.30am the following morning, May 15, Dalgarno returned to the flat and, after banging loudly on the door, was confronted by the neighbour.
He “expressed that he was concerned about the complainer” and stated the pair “had a fight”.
Injuries were noted to his head and hand.
Dalgarno returned again at 7.55pm that day and was met by officers, who were leaving the building. He was promptly arrested.
Blood from the assault victim was found on the fishing rod, the vase and Dalgarno’s trousers and shoes, and Dalgarno’s DNA was found on a blood-free area of the rod.
In interview, he described his relationship with his victim as “brand new” and said the man was “harmless”.
Dalgarno, a prisoner of HMP Grampian, pled guilty to assault to severe injury, permanent disfigurement and to the danger of life.
‘As criminals go, he’s pathetic’
He also admitted failing to comply with a bail curfew, and attempting to pervert the course of justice by claiming a phone in his possession, that was actually his victim’s, belonged to his girlfriend.
Defence agent Mike Monro said: “They could be the best of friends and the worst of friends. That is primarily because of drug and alcohol abuse by each of them, on their own and together.
“The accused does not recall everything. He recalls that he and the complainer got into some kind of disagreement.”
Mr Monro added: “His state of mind is indicated by the fact he went back to the address after the incident when the police were there.”
Describing his client as “befuddled”, he went on: “Instead of keeping well away from the locus, having committed the offence, he actually goes back.
“As criminals go, he’s pathetic.”
Sheriff Philip Mann ordered Dalgarno to be jailed for 38 months and also imposed a 12-month supervised release order.
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