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A man high on Valium beat up his friend while his head was wedged between railings then defecated over his police cell and exposed his genitals to CCTV cameras, a court has heard.

Scott Fraser and the man he attacked had spent the morning playing video games but neither can remember the events of the afternoon because of their levels of intoxication.

Swansea Crown Court heard a witness saw Fraser and his victim arguing and fighting in a lane behind Llanelli's New Dock Road on May 20 this year.

Brian Simpson, prosecuting, said the pair were standing on a metal stairs at the rear of a block of flats, and 28-year-old Fraser was seen to punch the other man causing him to stumble and to get his head wedged in railings.

The court heard Fraser continued to punch his stuck friend to the head.

His victim managed to free himself whereupon Fraser kicked him down the steps, and followed him to a nearby grassy area where he continued to punch and kick the man as he lay on the ground.

A short while later both men were seen on nearby Station Road swearing and shouting at each other.

Mr Simpson said police were called, and the defendant was arrested. That evening, while in custody at Ammanford police station, Fraser staged a "dirty protest", defecating and urinating and spreading the mess around his cell, and then exposing himself to the cell CCTV camera.

The court heard Fraser's victim suffered reddening and bruising to his face, and a cut above one eye, while the cost of cleaning up the mess the defendant caused in his cell was £132.

Fraser, of no fixed address, pleaded guilty to assault occasioning actual harm and to criminal damage - damaging his cell - when he appeared in the dock. He pleaded not guilty to the more serious charge of inflicting grievous bodily harm, a plea which Mr Simpson said was acceptable to the prosecution and no trial was sought on this charge.

The court heard Fraser has 27 previous convictions for 46 offences including several for common assaults, possession of a bladed article, racially aggravated battery, harassment, and a public order matter at Prince Phillip Hospital when he had abused and threated staff. He was subject to a suspended sentence for the hospital outburst at the time of assaulting his friend.

Nicola Powell, for Fraser, said that when her client and the victim were sober, they were friends.

She said neither party could remember much of the "sorry affair" because of their level of intoxication on the day - in her client's case as a result of taking a quantity of Valium tablets.

She added that prior to the events of May 20, Fraser had been out of trouble for almost six months which "for this defendant is quite something".

Judge Paul Thomas QC told Fraser that on the day in question he had "lost all control and dignity", adding: "The lesson you need to learn is that you and drink and drugs do not mix."

Giving Fraser a 25 per cent discount for his guilty plea the judge sentenced him to 12 months for the assault and one month for the criminal damage, and he also activated three months of the previously imposed suspended sentence - all the sentences will run consecutively with one another making a total of 16 months in prison.