A teenager who carried out a revenge attack on someone he thought had firebombed his mosque has been given an eight-month conditional discharge.

Mohammed Aziz, 18, of High Road, Leavesden, along with Zain Hussain, beat up Liam Cady in a street attack on Wednesday, August 13.

Aziz pleaded guilty to ABH at a previous St Albans Crown Court hearing, but sentence was adjourned because the prosecution did not accept Aziz's claim he had not kicked Mr Cady as he lay cowering on the floor.

Liam Cadby had told police how he was beaten up by two men in the street for no apparent reason.

He said he was punched and repeatedly kicked in the head during an unprovoked attack after he was approached by two people in Sherriff Way, Watford.

The prosecution said Aziz and Hussain launched the attack near the Kingswood subway because they believed wrongly Mr Cadby was responsible for an arson attack on their mosque.

Mr Cadby said Aziz punched him in the chest before Hussain landed a blow to his left eye.

The victim said as he lay curled in a ball on the floor, both men kicked him in the face as he shouted: “My tooth, my tooth”. The attack left Mr Cadby with two broken front teeth and swelling to his eye and nose.

Aziz was to take part in what is known as a Newton hearing in front of a judge, without a jury at Luton Crown Court today - so called because it establishes the gravity of the offence.

However, the prosecution accepted the defence's version of events and Judge Breen imposed an eight-month conditional discharge and ordered Aziz to pay £150 in costs.