A teenager stamped on an asylum seeker's head outside a crowded bar, a court was told yesterday.

Louise Dobbs, 18, sneered: "You scruffy bastard" at Kosovan Gazim Harexhim, 30, and left him brain-damaged, it was alleged.

After the refugees pinched girls' bottoms and pulled down a girl's top, fights broke out with local men before they were ejected, said Shaun Dodds, prosecuting.

Outside The Royal Exchange in Middlesbrough, Teesside, both sides squared up to each other. Harexhim was punched to the ground, then Ms Dobbs ran towards him as he lay on the ground and repeatedly stamped on his head, Teesside Crown Court was told.

Harexhim was rushed to Middlesbrough General Hospital, where a scan showed serious brain injuries, multiple fractures to the skull and face, and bruising to the lobes of the brain.

Home Office pathologist Doctor Hugh Sunter said that the most significant injuries were caused by stamping on his face.

He said: "His condition is such that he will never be able to give evidence to the court."

Ms Dobbs, of Birch Tree Close, Spencerbeck, Middlesbrough, denies causing grievous bodily harm with intent on November 20 last year.

The case continues.