A teenager who beat up a foreign exchange student in a vicious and unprovoked attack has been locked up.

Jay Knight, 16, of Haybourne Road, Whitehawk, Brighton, was with a gang of friends on the seafront by the West Pier on June 2 last year, Brighton Crown Court was told yesterday.

The group beat up and robbed three students who were out celebrating finishing their exams.

One of the students was dragged to the ground and kicked so hard he had a twisted bowel and his spleen was ruptured and had to be removed.

After a month in hospital and now lacking the organ which produces antibodies to fight infections, he faces a life taking prescription drugs.

Knight's co-defendant Lucas Pyke, 18, admitted grievous bodily harm on the man at an earlier hearing and was given 18 months in a young offenders' institute.

Knight denied robbery and affray and claimed he was acting in self defence but a jury at Brighton Crown Court found him guilty by a unanimous verdict.

He was sentenced yesterday.

Prosecuting, Rob Hall told the court that Knight approached the students and at first talked to them jovially before feigning a head-butt on one of them and then demanding cash and becoming violent.

Mr Hall said the students, all about 26, decided to leave the seafront but the gang followed and set upon them.

Knight demanded money and a mobile phone from one of them and while his friends beat up the other two, he punched and kicked the 26-year-old, leaving him with a broken nose and cuts and bruises.

The court heard that four days after the attack, Knight was arrested in connection with another robbery and has previous convictions for carrying two Stanley knives out on the streets and possession of the drug, speed.

Stephen Shay, defending, said Knight had a history of drug abuse and depression and had a troubled upbringing.

But sentencing Knight, Judge Richard Haywood said his upbringing was no justification for his "unprovoked and gratuitous"

crime.

He said: "This was an appalling incident.

Three young men, two of them visitors from abroad, enjoying a quiet evening out were set upon, kicked, punched and robbed by you and your loutish friends."

Judge Haywood told Knight the attack was "clearly unprovoked and completely gratuitous and there can be no excuse for it".

Knight was sentenced to a three-and-ahalf year detention order, half of which will be served in a young offenders' institution and the remainder supervised in the community.

Detective Sergeant Lee Horner said: "Knight's sentence reflects the fact that his actions initiated a series of events in which a group of drunken youths attacked random members of the public.

"It is hoped that the victims will be somewhat comforted by the convictions and we are grateful to them for providing the evidence to bring these offenders to justice."