A Saltcoats man is awaiting sentence after assaulting his neighbour.

John O'Hare also threatened two other neighbours during the incident near his home in Canal Street on December 17 of last year.

The 43-year-old appeared in Kilmarnock Sheriff Court last week in relation to the incident, where he pleaded guilty to a pair of charges.

O'Hare admitted to assaulting one man and behaving in a threatening or abusive manner to others.

The incident occurred at around 11am, when the three witnesses to the offence were in a Canal Street property.

The procurator fiscal depute explained how one of the trio looked out the window and saw O'Hare kicking their white van.

The man went outside and confronted the accused, asking him to stop.

O'Hare then followed the male witness as he began walking away before getting close to his face and shouting and swearing at him.

At this stage, the witness noted that the accused appeared to be intoxicated and he pushed the 43-year-old in an attempt to get away from him.

As the man continued to walk away from O'Hare, he fell and hit his head, causing it to bleed.

A woman, who had witnessed the incident, then came out of the property to check on the situation.

O'Hare began to shout and swear at her, which woke up a third witness in the Canal Street home.

He also went outside and put his body between the accused and the woman.

The accused then acted aggressively towards the third man. He grabbed the man's t-shirt, causing it to rip, before he started punching him in the face.

When police arrived at the scene, O'Hare had disappeared. However, an area search was conducted and he was traced nearby.

The 43-year-old, who police noted was "clearly intoxicated", was then taken to Saltcoats police station.

O'Hare's solicitor Gillian Swanney said the Saltcoats man was unable to provide any explanation as to what led to the incident.

Ms Swanney explained that though the accused and the witnesses were neighbours, "he does not know them and there is no bad blood."

She added that O'Hare was heavily under the influence at the time and that alcohol was "something of a difficulty" for him.

Sheriff Colin Bissett opted to defer sentence so background reports could be obtained, granting O'Hare bail until this time.

He told the accused: "It should be concerning for you as well as for me that you have no recollection of this incident."