A cleaner who drunkenly attacked a workmate during a drinking session in a caravan left his former friend permanently scarred.
David Stewart, 50, and his victim, a fellow cleaner, were enjoying a post-work drink at the caravan in Kinloss when they drunkenly fell out and things got physical.
Neighbours at Seaview Caravan Park heard shouting and swearing and noted both men were upset but Stewart, who couldn’t remember the incident later, claimed they’d “just had too much drink”.
Fiscal depute Karen Poke told Elgin Sheriff Court the pair had socialised together on various occasions but things turned violent this time, on June 20 2019.
Victim left permanently scarred
“At 2pm, they had finished work for the day and had bought alcohol for consuming that evening,” she said.
“They had consumed a number of alcoholic drinks together and what appears to have transpired is a disagreement between them.
“It was overheard by witnesses that at around 10pm both males sounded upset and there was shouting.”
Stewart then punched and struck his friend in the face causing him to fall onto the ground onto some smashed glass, the court was told.
Despite his injuries, including bloodied face and hands, they carried on drinking until they fell asleep in the caravan.
Stewart’s victim however woke up covered in dried blood and in need of several stitches to his nose, face and left hand. He also needed surgery to sew a ligament back together.
‘Things got out of hand’
Stewart, who now lives in Essex and wasn’t present in court, told police it had happened because there’d been “too much drink and things got out of hand”.
He admitted a charge of assault to severe injury and permanent disfigurement.
Defence agent Stephen Carty said his client hardly remembers the incident and has since moved away, got a full-time job and cut down his drinking “severely”.
“His memory of the event is very poor,” the solicitor said. “His recollection of events could not be relied upon.
“Shortly after this incident he removed himself from the area and is doing well. He now works full-time which has had a positive impact on his mental health.
“He has cut down, severely, his alcohol intake.”
Sheriff Gordon Fleetwood handed Stewart, of Pallister Road, Clacton-On-Sea, a community payback order comprising 80 hours of unpaid work and supervision for one year.
