Image caption Lawyers for the girls said they were deeply ashamed of their actions

Two teenage girls carried out a prolonged "degrading" assault on a vulnerable young man, Arbroath Sheriff Court has heard.

Paige Sharp, 16, and Danielle Sinclair, 17, admitted assaulting the 21-year-old man, who suffered from learning difficulties.

The victim suffered 16 separate injuries during the incident in Arbroath in March.

Both girls were remanded in custody and sentencing was deferred until Thursday.

One of the lawyers in the case said it was a "sordid and squalid" tale.

The public benches were cleared as a video recording taken on a mobile phone during the assault by an unnamed witness was shown to the court.

It showed the 21-year-old man being beaten and sworn at.

Victim 'wasted'

He was then sexually assaulted with a vacuum cleaner and was heard to shout and scream.

The court heard Sharp, who was only 15 at the time, and Sinclair launched their attack because they believed their victim had sexually assaulted Sinclair.

It also heard drink and drugs had been taken, including mephedrone, but apparently not by Sinclair.

The victim himself told police he was "wasted" on "Bubbles" - the street name for mephedrone - and on cannabis at the time of the assault.

Lawyers for both girls told Arbroath Sheriff Court they were deeply ashamed of what they had done and had pleaded guilty to the assault.

Sheriff Kevin Veal told the girls they had subjected their victim to "degrading" and "demeaning" actions.