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A Fife knife attacker who inflicted a "horrendous" wound on a man after slashing him from behind has been jailed for seven years and eight months.

Scott Vettrino cut his victim's back, leaving him with a 30 centimetre injury that needed about 40 staples.

A judge told him at the High Court in Edinburgh that such a violent attack carried out in broad daylight with a bladed weapon was behaviour that society could not tolerate.

Lady Haldane said it represented "a significant escalation" in the offending of Vettrino, who has previous convictions including for crimes of violence and public disorder.

Scott Vettrino was sentenced at the High Court, Edinburgh

The judge pointed out that a background report prepared on him considered that he was a high risk of reoffending.

Vettrino (35) had originally faced a charge of attempting to murder Thomas Cavanagh in the attack at Kirkside Court, Leven on June 4 in 2021.

But his guilty plea to a reduced charge of assault to severe injury, permanent disfigurement and to the danger of life by striking him on the body with a knife was accepted at an earlier hearing.

The court heard that there had been an altercation involving the men but Mr Cavanagh had turned to leave.

Vettrino, who had fallen to the ground, got to his feet and produced a small, blue handled knife and approached his victim from behind.

He struck Mr Cavanagh, then aged 44, with the weapon cutting him from his rear left shoulder down the side of his back.

Unemployed Vettrino, formerly of North Street, Leven, had been abusing drugs, the court heard.

Defence counsel Ronnie Renucci KC said that Vettrino had no recollection of the actual assault but did not dispute that he was responsible.

Mr Renucci told the court: "He still struggles to believe that he did what happened. He accepts he has pleaded guilty to a serious matter and as such a custodial sentence is inevitable."

He said a relatively small bladed weapon was used in the assault but the result was "a horrendous looking injury".

Lady Haldane said she noted Vettrino's issues with addiction, adverse childhood experiences and trauma, but she told him that he would have faced an eight and a half year jail term for the offence if he was convicted after trial.

Vettrino followed the sentencing proceedings by a TV link to prison, where he has been held on remand.

Over seven years in jail for Fife knife attack which left ‘horrendous’ wound