A BRUTAL thug who beat a teenage boy so badly in a savage unprovoked attack that he looked like the “Elephant Man” is behind bars.

Vincent Crocker’s victim’s life flashed before his eyes during the horrific and remorseless attack in Newport captured on distressing CCTV.

He thought he was going to die after he was repeatedly punched, headbutted and had his head stamped on, prosecutor Nik Strobl said.

The 17-year-old boy, who cannot be named because of his age, was subjected to a pitiless onslaught that lasted several minutes, Cardiff Crown Court was told.

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I thought that this was it, that my time was up. I thought I was going to die.

Crocker set upon his victim and beat him to a pulp after a misunderstanding in the early hours of the morning on June 20.

Mr Stobl read the teenager’s powerful victim impact statement to the court: “I thought that this was it, that my time was up. I thought I was going to die.

“Images of my family flashed before my eyes. The vicious and unprovoked attack was unrelenting. He showed me no mercy.

“I had blood gushing down my face and pain flowing through my body. I couldn’t catch my breath.

“The agony was excruciating. He pummelled me and stamped on my head again and again. He wanted me dead.

“My family didn’t recognise me. I looked like an Elephant Man.

“I haven’t been able to sleep or eat since the attack. I wished to stop breathing to stop the pain. I see him every time I close my eyes.”

This was read after a clearly stunned court was shown the CCTV footage.

As it was being played, the defendant held his head in his hands.

Mr Strobl said that when Crocker, 20, of Bideford Close, Newport, was arrested, he was aggressive to police officers and told them, “I will chew all of you up even if you’ve got a Taser. He’s lucky he ain’t dead.”

He pleaded guilty to causing his victim actual bodily harm and to being in breach of a community order.

The boy was treated in Newport’s Royal Gwent Hospital for multiple fractures to his nose and swelling to his head.

An incredulous Judge Jeremy Jenkins asked Mr Strobl why the defendant was not charged with the far more serious offence of grievous bodily harm with intent.

He was told that the Crown Prosecution Service said they followed charging guidelines relating to a victim suffering a broken nose.

The court was told how Crocker is no stranger to violence and was convicted last year of causing his then girlfriend grievous bodily harm after breaking her jaw and nose.

The defendant’s lawyer Stuart John said: “He has a degree of remorse and for the impact it has had on the complainant for the rest of his life.”

Judge Jenkins told Crocker: “You jumped to the wrong conclusion. This is perhaps one of the worst cases of ABH that there ever was.

“This was a sustained and repeated assault upon your victim and you used your head and feet as weapons.”

The defendant was sent to a young offender institution for two years.