A BOY who was filmed assaulting a teenager in West Swindon has been given an 18-month youth rehabilitation order after a sentencing hearing at Swindon youth court yesterday.

The 14-year-old was due to be sentenced for common assault, a public order offence and attempted criminal damage last week but after vigilantes came to his father’s address attempting to break in, he was removed from Swindon and taken into the care of children’s services.

After the video of the assault went viral, the boy breached his bail five times, putting strain on police resources, but the courts were unable to impose stricter conditions due to his age.

The video had been uploaded to the Man Up Behaviour Facebook page after the attack on June 2, and had been viewed more than 50,000 times by the time the boy was arrested. Police are unable to remove the unedited version from the web.

In the footage, a 17-year-old is surrounded by youths and humiliated during the brief video.

The victim had been walking home from ice skating at the Link Centre when he was approached by a group of around seven youths, one who he knew from school.

A 13-year-old boy, who has since been handed a nine-month referral order, struck him around the legs with a bottle before his friends stepped in, and the recording began.

The tall 14-year-old punches his victim to the ground, and is heard to say: “Why are you getting mouthy with my brother, kiss his shoe.”

The lad submits while on the ground, beckons one of his attackers over and kisses his trainer, before he is further kicked and spat on by the 14-year-old.

At a previous bail hearing for the 14-year-old, Hashim Chaudri, prosecuting, told Swindon Magistrates' Court: “He has been arrested for seven offences since March, and has four convictions from April to June.

“He is a burden to the police resources, and has been arrested on five separate occasions for breach of bail, so it is thought no conditions can be imposed on him he could abide by. He is progressing from simple thefts to dwelling burglaries, and recently a high profile assault which was uploaded online.”

Kate Prince, prosecuting at an earlier hearing, described the footage: “The victim is heard to say ‘what have I done?’ “The defendant swings a punch with his right hand and kicks him to the left hand side before spitting on him.

“As a result the victim is scared to leave the house and worries about answering the phone.”

Wayne Hardy, defending the boy, asked how he felt after the video was shown in court.

“It made him feel uncomfortable, and he is very embarrassed by his actions that day,” he said.

“He is very sorry for the humiliation and harm he caused to the person subjected to the assault. What happened was a combination of bravado, peer pressure, and stupidity.

“He has to accept responsibility for his actions.”

Acting Sergeant Ho Tsang, who led the investigation, said today: "This incident was filmed and went viral via the internet.

"This was a particularly nasty and unprovoked attack. The way in which it was carried out was not only humiliating for the victim, but it also caused him great distress.

"It is clear that the community as a whole has been distressed by the footage of the incident, and have voiced their concerns about the matter.

"As a result, Wiltshire Police dealt with the incident and the offenders robustly. A positive result was achieved which resulted in these two youth offenders being charged with assault and a public order offence.

“I would urge anybody who witnesses video footage of crimes on social media to report it immediately, by calling 101, or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 where information can be left anonymously if preferred.

"Please do not share or repost footage like this as your actions can hinder vital police investigations.”