A WOMAN has described the moment the victim of a brutal beating collapsed to the ground 'like a puppet with its strings cut'.

Seven teenagers are on trial at Teesside Crown Court accused of the murder of Shane Tunney and assaulting his 21-year-old friend Anthony Kirk at about 2am on June 27 last year in Norton, near Stockton.

The trial has heard how the 24-year-old victim, who died in hospital five weeks after being attacked, was pelted with rotten food as he used a cashpoint in Norton High Street and challenged the gang of teenagers allegedly responsible for throwing the items from a roof.

Joan Berry, who lives close to where the attack happened, told the court today (Wednesday, April 13) she saw two boys kicking a man in a white T-shirt as others watched.

“It wasn’t just a little kick, they were really kicking hard," she said. "It was like kicking a ball into a goal.

“I could hear the kicks landing on his body. It was a few times –more than five times each.

“One of the boys stomped on his head. He was quite proud of what he had done. You could see that in the way he walked away.

“They [the other boys] were laughing, they thought it was funny.”

The group of boys then left the scene and the man in the white T-shirt stood up, she said.

“He held his hands out as if to say what was that all about and as his friend came towards him he collapsed,” she said. “I likened it to someone cutting the strings [of a puppet]. He just went down.”

Brandon Pitt, Kieron Harry Davis, his cousin Kearan Terry Davis and Jake Douglas deny charges of murder and attempted grievous bodily harm with intent in respect of Anthony Kirk.

Three others - two aged 17 and one of 16, none of whom can be identified because of their ages - have also pleaded not guilty to the same charges. All are from the Stockton area.

The court also heard evidence from Jamie Taylor, who also witnessed the attack before going to help.

He described the scene as “carnage” and added: “It was like a riot.”

He told police he thought there were between 10 and 15 young people attacking the pair and decided he should try to intervene.

He said: “They were all about 18 or 19. As a grown-up I thought I should do something. I only did what I would hope anyone else would have.”

He described seeing one of the group hitting Mr Tunney with a pole. He said: “After he hit Shane with the bar it was a free for all. I couldn’t see who was doing what. They were all as bad as each other.”

The trial continues.