A 76-year-old man was kicked in the head and face 18 times during a sickening attack outside an Ipswich shopping centre, a court has heard.

Shane Gull shouted abuse at the man, who was standing outside Tower Ramparts reading a newspaper, before pulling back his arm and punching him on the forehead with a clenched fist, Ipswich Crown Court heard.

The victim of the attack stumbled backwards and landed on the ground and Gull had then taken three steps backwards before running towards him and repeatedly kicking him in the face, said Emma Nash, prosecuting.

During the attack Gull told the man, who is believed to have lost consciousness at one stage, that he was going to kill him.

The attack came to an end when a woman approached Gull and started talking to him and shop security staff arrived on the scene.

The incident, which happened at 7.45am on March 19 outside the Crown Street entrance to Tower Ramparts, was captured on CCTV and the footage was played to the court yesterday.

Miss Nash said the victim of the attack visited the newsagents at Tower Ramparts every day to buy a newspaper and was described by staff as “friendly and chatty.”

As a result of the attack he suffered a one-and-a-half inch cut to his forehead, which was treated with glue, cuts and bruises to his face and bruising and swelling to his hands.

Gull, 40, of Bull Road, Ipswich, admitted attempting to wound the victim with intent to cause him grievous bodily harm. Sentence was adjourned for at least three weeks to allow the probation service to prepare a report on Gull to address the issue of dangerousness.

The court heard Gull had 59 previous convictions, including an attempted robbery at McDonalds in Bury Road, Ipswich, in 2013.

Psychiatrist Dr Michael Kavuma, who was called by the prosecution, said in his opinion Gull suffered from emotional instability and wasn’t suffering from a major mental disorder which would make it necessary for him to be made the subject of a mental health hospital order.

However, Dr Ann Stanley, a psychiatrist called by the defence, said in her opinion Gull did suffer from a mental disorder and should be made the subject of a hospital order.

She said Gull suffered from bipolar affective disorder and had recently become clinically depressed. She said there was ongoing work to do with Gull before he would be ready to leave the clinic where he is currently being treated.