"This was an offence aggravated by the fact that it was entirely unprovoked."
A 22-year-old man has been sentenced to 12 months in prison following an unprovoked king-hit attack in a Perth nightclub earlier this year.
As Perth Now reports, Brent Robert Johnston pleaded guilty to causing grevious bodily harm to Tristan Ceccato at Amplifier Bar and was sentenced on Tuesday.
CCTV footage of the incident showed Johnston and Ceccato bump into each other at the venue, before Johnson turned and punched Ceccato.
Ceccato hit his head on a table after the punch and fell face first on to the pavement, before Johnson quickly fled the scene.
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The attack left Ceccato with broken teeth, as well as bruises to the jaw, face, neck, shoulder and chest.
District Court Judge John Staude called the attack "cowardly" and "deliberate and forceful".
"This was an offence aggravated by the fact that it was entirely unprovoked," Staude said.
"Moreover, it was a blow to the back of the head of the victim, a blow thrown in circumstances where the victim could not see it coming and could do nothing to protect himself,.
"It would seem that instead of dealing with the issues which confronted you in a mature and responsible way you’ve indulged yourself in alcohol, and I dare say self-pity, leading to a situation where you were prepared to take out your frustration by an act of random violence," he continued.
"(You were in a) slough of despondency, going out to get yourself written off... in the state you were in you should not have been in the nightclub at all. Other patrons should not have been at risk of your simmering antagonism."
Johnston has undergone alcohol and anger management counselling, written a letter of apology to Ceccato and paid over $7000 in medical expenses.
He is eligible for parole next April.
"I had full faith and trust in the justice system and even though some people in the community may believe the sentencing was not harsh enough, it certainly met, and if not exceeded my expectations, Ceccato said of the verdict.
"I hope that it makes those people think twice about going out to get incredibly intoxicated and instead they treat their problems and issues without having to get blind drunk."
"I recognise that both Brent and I were incredibly lucky that I did not suffer from more severe injuries, or worse, die.
"But I think that does come down to luck because as the CCTV footage shows, the actual attack was incredibly cowardly and could have certainly resulted in a worse outcome for me."