A violent young Bristol man who head-butted a man in an unprovoked, drunken street attack has been jailed.

Michael Harkin, 20, of no fixed abode, had been drinking heavily when he assaulted the man, who works as a nurse, in Stokes Croft.

Prosecuting, George Threlfall described how at 6.10pm on May 22, the victim was walking towards a group of three men when one of them – Harkin – stood in his way, put a crisp in front of his face and asked him if he wanted one.

Bristol Crown Court heard when the man said "no thank you" and pushed his arm away, Harkin head-butted him on the bridge of his nose, which soon swelled up and bled heavily.

Prolific violent offender Harkin then said he thought the man had raped his girlfriend, before saying, "I've got the wrong guy, haven't I?"

The court heard he then turned nasty again, saying if the victim wiped his blood up, he would give him "some more".

After going to a nearby shop to wash his injuries, the victim later spoke to police officers in the area, who took him in their patrol car to look for Harkin. He was spotted and arrested after a short struggle. Harkin admitted actual bodily harm.

Mitigating, Nicholas Fridd, said: "This was as a result of drinking too much. He has been doing courses in prison and has resolved not to drink on his release."

The court heard Harkin had previously held down a job with Airbus, but lost it when he failed to turn up for work because he had been out drinking.

Sentencing him to 15 months in a young offenders' institution, Judge David Ticehurst described the attack as a "gratuitous assault".

He said: "Even though you are only 20, you've committed 77 offences. You have an appalling record."