Two men have admitted late-night assaults on a city centre street that were caught on CCTV.
Liam Taylor, 32 and Tyler Buchan, 24, attacked two men in the early hours of Sunday March 17 2019 following an argument, knocking them to the ground and punching them repeatedly.
But a city centre CCTV operator spotted the incident and alerted police who raced to the scene and arrested the culprits.
Pair plead guilty to assaults
The pair appeared at Inverness Sheriff Court where solicitors Rory Gowans, for Taylor, and Matthew Berlow, for Buchan, entered guilty pleas for the co-accused to two charges of assault.
Fiscal depute Naomi Duffy-Welsh told the court: “At 2.55am Crown witnesses were walking from Drummond Street on to Baron Taylors Street.
“The accused were walking in the opposite direction and pushed past the witnesses.
“A short verbal argument began before the accused, Buchan stepped forward and directed a punch with a closed fist.”
The court heard that after this Taylor struck the second complainer.
During the incidents both victims were knocked or pulled to the ground, with one of the men suffering “multiple blows to the head.”
CCTV operator alerted police
“The incident was captured on CCTV,” Ms Duffy-Welsh told the court, adding: “Police were notified by the CCTV operator.”
Officers attended the scene and traced both men to the corner of Academy Street and Union Street where Buchan, of Coulpark, Alness, was arrested.
Taylor, of Shore Street, Tain was apprehended “following a short foot chase,” the court heard.
Ms Duffy-Welsh told Sheriff Gary Aitken that one complainer had suffered bruising to the left side of his face, a cut to the inside of his cheek, a black left eye and a cut to his lip.
The other complainer suffered a cut to his lip and bruising to the left side of his face.
Sheriff Aitken deferred sentencing to the new year for the preparation of reports.
