Thug faces jail for assault with iron
White left victim lying in a pool of blood
A Stirling thug who broke into a teenager’s house with a pal and battered the youngster with steam iron was warned on Monday he faced jail.
Curtis White, who carried the attack out with a pal, struck victim Kieran Robertson on the head with the heavy metal laundry tool while Mr Robertson, 19, was asleep on his own sofa.
The attackers then fled, leaving Mr Robertson in a pool of blood.
White, 23, was told by a sheriff: “Custody is at the forefront of the court’s consideration.”
Stirling Sheriff Court heard that the incident occurred after Mr Robertson, who had earlier been at his uncle’s house nearby, returned to his home in Raploch where he lived alone, and went to sleep in the living room.
Depute fiscal Sarah Lumsden, prosecuting, said in the early hours of August 17 last year Mr Robertson became aware of banging coming from his front door.
She said: “Although woken by the noise he was still in a slumber of sorts and suddenly felt himself being struck on the head.
“He felt pain to his head and blood running down the back of his neck.
“Looking up, he saw the accused and another male, who thereafter ran from the property.
“Looking down, he saw on the floor his iron, which was bloodstained.
“Blood was covering the area where he had been sleeping, and blood was coming from the back of his head.”
Miss Lumsden said Mr Robertson left his flat to go to his aunt and uncle’s house a short distance away, noticing, as he left, that there was damage to his front door “suggesting a person had kicked it and forced it open”.
Police and an ambulance were contacted, and Mr Robertson was rushed to hospital where doctors found two three-centimetre wounds on his head, which were closed with steri-strips and surgical glue. He was also suffering from dizziness and confusion.
White and the other man, named as Hayden Stewart, were traced and arrested.
White, of Woodside Road, Raploch, pleaded guilty to breaking into Mr Robertson’s home in Hazelbank Gardens, Raploch, and assaulting him with the iron.
The court was told that Stewart, 20, had tendered a similar guilty plea earlier this year, and was jailed for 16 months.
Ken Dalling, defending, admitted: “Mr White has an unenviable record.”
Sheriff Wyllie Robertson deferred sentence until December 5th for background reports. He continued White’s bail in the meantime,
The court was not given any explanation for the attack, but Mr Dalling is expected to address the sheriff in detail in mitigation at the sentencing hearing.
He felt pain to his head and blood running down the back of his neck