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A SERVING Scots soldier caught on camera stamping EIGHTEEN TIMES on a man's head walked free from court today.

Shaun Smith, 25, of the Scots Guards, is pictured on chilling CCTV bringing his boot down over and over again on the head and upper body of James Wormald.

Smith and Jason Collins, a Welsh Guard who served at Buckingham Palace, carried out the double assault near Catterick Garrison, North Yorkshire.

The attack was unprovoked and left one the victims unconscious on the road before they chase the second victim and begin to punch and stamp on him.

In total Smith stamps 18 times on Mr Wormald while Collins rains down punches on him.

(Image: NNP)

Smith, a guardsman with the Scots Guards, and Collins, 22, claimed they had been provoked, and both walked free from court.

Smith was given a 12 month sentence suspended for 12 months and Collins was handed a 12 month community order.

Judge Jamie Hill QC said today that he hoped both men would keep their jobs after reading glowing references.

But the verdicts shocked the victims and their legal teams, who had described the street attack as the worst they had seen after the brutal footage was played at Teesside crown court.

Smith and his comrade Collins were close to their barracks when they were filmed "pummelling" James, 25, and his friend Mark Thompson last April.

Mark was knocked unconscious and left lying in the road, while James suffered the horrific stamping attack, which left him with a suspected fractured cheek bone and severe bruising.

Smith is seen on the footage stamping on the heads of both men. The video shows him repeatedly put the boot in on James while Welsh Guardsman Collins punches him on the ground.

Collins can be seen delivering repeated blows to the men near the Catterick Garrison where they were both based at the time.

The pair ran off and hid in a stream when police turned up at the scene, Teesside Crown Court heard during two trials.

James Wormald said: "There was absolutely no reason for the attack, it came out of the blue.

"My friend and I were leaving the club when the two of them walked past us and said something, they were looking for trouble.

"They started on us before we even had time to realise what was going in.

"I can remember little about it but I've seen the CCTV and I'm as shocked as anyone else at the force he used.

"To stamp on someone that many times and get away with only being sentenced for actual bodily harm is wrong.

"It was thought at first that I had a fractured cheekbone but it was later found not to be, that's why the charge was reduced but it doesn't make the attack less serious. They claimed later that we threatened them with a knife but that's just a lie, it's not something we'd ever do it even think of.

"They were trying to justify the way they behaved, but there was no excuse for what they did."

Both men - recruits at the time of the assault - denied a charge of causing grievous bodily harm with intent.

They were found not guilty at their second trial - but have admitted two charges of actual bodily harm assault.

The soldiers claimed during their evidence that they were acting within the law to protect themselves.

They told a jury they were followed from a nightclub at 4am by the two men, who threatened to stab them.

Prosecutor Paul Abrahams said their violence was a "loss of control" and they were never at risk of harm.

Opposing sides disputed how the incident started - and it was not picked up by the security cameras.

The horrific violence which followed was caught on film, and was played to the sickened jury during the trials.

Smith told police after his arrest that he had been drinking in Darlington, Co Durham, before returning to the barracks.

He said he had had gin and cranberry cocktails, tequila and more gin on his night out with Collins.

During his evidence, he initially claimed he had only kicked the victim, but under cross-examination admitted stamping.

Collins also claimed he thought he was using only necessary force at the time, and denied "snapping".