A MAN was assaulted violently in Dunfermline when he tried to stop a noisy disturbance near his home at six o’clock in the morning.

Dale McFarlane was asked to keep the noise down and reacted by attacking the man.

McFarlane, from Dunfermline, has avoided a jail term narrowly but was ordered to pay the victim £1,000 in compensation.

McFarlane, 32, of McClelland Crescent, appeared for sentencing at Dunfermline Sheriff Court.

He admitted previously that on March 4, 2021, in McClelland Crescent, he assaulted a man by striking him on the head repeatedly, struggled with him, and seized and ripped his clothing, all to his injury.

Sheriff Charles Macnair told McFarlane: “This was an offence committed against a householder who, not surprisingly, was telling you keep quiet at six o’clock in the morning when you and a friend were causing a disturbance in the street.

“You not only continued the incident by remonstrating with him but ended up assaulting him, resulting in injuries which required medical treatment. His wounds required to be glued.”

The sheriff noted that McFarlane had a “bad record of previous offending”, including violence.

The sheriff said he would impose a community-based disposal, with the maximum level of unpaid work, and warned that any breach would almost certainly mean jail.

McFarlane was put on a community payback order with 300 hours of unpaid work and 12 months of supervision. He was also ordered to pay £1,000 compensation within nine months.