A YOUNG man who displayed a ‘serious pattern’ of racially aggravated offending has been jailed for five years.

Joe Alan Michael Scott, 20, appeared at Dorchester Crown Court to be sentenced for a string of offences including racially aggravated assault, racially aggravated harassment, affray and two charges of robbery.

Prosecutor Edward Elton told Dorchester Crown Court that on the night of May 16 last year Derrick Miller was walking down St Mary’s Street in Weymouth with his pregnant girlfriend when he was subjected to racial abuse from Scott, who was out with two other men.

He said they both found the incident ‘frightening and upsetting’ and Mr Miller walked his girlfriend home before returning and following the group of men at a short distance while he was on the phone to the police.

Mr Elton said he watched on as the group then attacked another three men, with Scott headbutting another black man and throwing a chair as well as aiming a punch to the face of one of the man’s friends.

Another of Scott’s group 25-year-old Jason Madlin, a fisherman of no fixed abode, was also jailed for six months after admitting a charge of affray.

The charge of racially aggravated assault related to Scott, of Douglas Road, Weymouth, and others attacking Teejay Smith-MacFarlane at an address in Rodwell Road on June 4 last year.

Scott headbutted Mr Smith-MacFarlane on the nose and the victim was also subjected to racial abuse as he was attacked.

Mr Elton said police attended the address at around 4am and Scott fled before attempting to evade arrest by jumping into Weymouth Harbour but was pulled out by police two hours later.

The robbery charges related to an incident on October 10 last year when Scott and Robert Crofts forced one person to hand over a mobile phone and attacked another before making off with a rucksack.

Crofts, 25, of King Street Weymouth, had only been released from prison on the day of the offence and he was sentenced to 32 months in jail.

Charles Gabb, mitigating for Scott, said his client recognised his offending had been appalling but had made serious attempts to address his behaviour during the nine months he had now spent in prison on remand.

He said: “He was seemingly hell bent on a course of self destruction. This prison sentence has brought about a very significant change so far as he is concerned.”

Judge Jarvis sentenced Scott to a total of five years in prison for all the offences.

He told the defendant “It is plain that there is a very serious pattern of racially aggravated offences so far as you are concerned.

“These were actions carried out by you designed to humiliate your victims in the presence of others.”