A Crosshouse thug who assaulted a baby is being sued by the child's grandmother. 

Marc Tannahill was convicted last month of assaulting a baby after the child’s mother died from cancer.

He will return to Kilmarnock Sheriff Court for sentencing next week, after being found guilty of behaving in an abusive or threatening manner which was likely to cause a reasonable person to suffer fear or alarm after repeatedly shouting and swearing at the baby.

Tannahill was also convicted of assaulting the baby by “compress[ing] and shak[ing] her” and inflicting trauma to her head and body, to her severe injury and to the danger of her life.

The child and grandmother cannot be identified for legal reasons, but the grandmother is now set to begin a civil action against Tannahill to recover damages in an attempt to safeguard the child’s future care needs.

The child’s grandmother said: “Our daughter passing away and the reality of me not knowing how long I have left means we need to give real consideration to my grandchild’s future care needs.

“My grand-daughter has been robbed of her mother and now she has been robbed of her own future.

“A civil action is the only route open to us to ensure her ongoing care needs are met.

“All I can do is stay strong for her and do things that help improve her recovery and enhance her quality of life.”

Tannahill has now had his assets frozen ahead of the criminal sentencing next week.

Richard Pitts, associate at Digby Brown Solicitors, is helping the family with the legal action.

He added: “What happened to this child was truly horrific – there was simply no excuse for abusing a helpless infant in this way.

“The legal action is in a very early stage, so it would be inappropriate to speculate or comment further, but we remain committed to assisting the family and ensuring this child has a future that is as positive as possible.”