PICTURED: Pair who launched vicious random attack on man cycling to work

TWO men have been jailed for nearly six years between them after they randomly attacked an innocent man cycling to work.

Jamie Wright and Reuben Paton knocked Yikealo Tukue off his bike in Abbotsford Drive, St Ann's.

Wright kicked him and hit him with a bottle of vodka and Paton repeatedly punched him in the head and kicked him.

Paton then picked up Mr Tukue's bike and threw it at him as he lay in a heap in the middle of the road.

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Judge Michael Stokes QC, who sentenced them at Nottingham Crown Court, watched CCTV of the attack on the "entirely innocent" member of the public.

He said: "For no sound reason at all, that innocent member of the public was simply attacked viciously.

"He was first of all knocked from his bicycle. As he fell to the ground you, Paton, repeatedly punched him in the head and kicked him once in the head and you, Jamie Wright, having fallen over in your state of drunkenness, also joined in and kicked him and hit him with the Vodka bottle, although I accept it was somewhat a half-hearted blow.

"This sort of behaviour will simply not be tolerated. Members of the public must be able to go about their lawful business without being attacked in this vicious way."

Mr Tukue suffered a painful jaw, a bump on the back of his head and needed stitches to a cut on his chin, Nottingham Crown Court heard.

Wright, and Paton, were arrested and charged.

Wright pleaded guilty to wounding and having an imitation gun with him earlier that night.

Judge Michael Stokes QC gave Wright, 21, of Grimston Road, Radford, two-and-a-half years for the wounding and six months consecutive for possessing the imitation gun.

Paton, 22, of Oxbow Close, The Meadows, who admitted wounding Mr Tukue, received two years and ten months.

Both men had been standing in a group, in Abbotsford Drive, in the early hours of February 9 this year when they spotted their victim.

Wright had been showing off a imitation gun to the group before he dropped the weapon and attacked Mr Tukue.

Jon Fountain, prosecuting, said: "Wright drops the ball bearing gun and doesn't recover it. Wright kicked Mr Tukue and followed it up with a blow from the bottle. Paton threw the bike at him."

He said Wright had previous convictions for robbery, common assault, affray and wounding and Paton had been in trouble before for possessing a knife on three occasions.

Michael Evans, in mitigation for Wright, said his client was just 21 years-old and has a child and partner.

Judge Stokes said: "If someone had done that to me, the least I would be concerned about is whether he is 21 or 25."

He asked Mr Evans: "He said he was drunk on this occasion?"

Mr Evans replied: "You see he fell over. He had drunk the bottle of vodka."

Judge Stokes said both defendants were "extremely lucky" the victim was not more seriously hurt, otherwise they would have been looking at a prison sentence of at least eight years.