A man who lured a suspected thief into a trap that saw him battered close to death has been jailed.

Frank Hedgecock, of Cornwallis Avenue, Aylesham, took Wayne Sart to a deserted industrial estate where he received a savage beating at the hands of Jim and Dave Miller.

The brothers believed recovering drug addict Mr Sart – who has 93 previous convictions – had been stealing jewellery from Jim Miller's partner Kate.

Canterbury Crown Court heard Hedgecock, 43, drove Mr Sart to Dover on November 18, where he was subjected to a "pre-meditated, well-planned, cold-blooded attack".

Mr Sart suffered a fractured skull, bleeding on the brain and a broken leg on what was his 33rd birthday.

Prosecutor Paul Valder said Mr Sart had been in a relationship with Jim Miller's daughter Kirsty and had been a regular visitor to their Folkestone home.

Gold began to go missing and the Miller brothers decided to take matters into their own

“I got beaten all over, my leg was broken, there were marks all up my ribs, my head was spread out, they had severed an artery on the brain...” - victim Wayne Sart

hands, wanting to find Mr Sart.

Hedgecock called his ex-colleague Mr Sart and asked for his help collecting scrap metal from the Poulton Industrial Estate in Dover.

Mr Valder said: "Frank Hedgecock knew he was driving Wayne Sart into a trap. He knew the Miller brothers were lying in wait."

In evidence, Mr Sart told the court he had got out of the car while Hedgecock sat inside stalling for time, putting gloves on.

He said: "Then I saw car lights coming on and two men running towards me.

"One of them had a full size crow bar in his hand. I thought it had a hooked end. The men were Dave and Jim. Jim had the bar.

"I managed to grab hold of it and he is shouting 'let go, let go' and I am shouting 'no, no.' I was getting kneed, punched and hit and shouting to Frank for help. This would not have happened if he had got out of the car.

"Dave was kneeing and punching me. They are both big blokes, they didn't need to use a crowbar. I am only 10-and-a-half stone.

"I was shouting 'Frank, Frank, Frank', help me. But he just didn't come.

"I got beaten all over, my leg was broken, there were marks all up my ribs, my head was spread out, they had severed an artery on the brain."

Jim Miller was holding the iron bar and only stopped when Dave stepped in and shouted: "You'll kill him."

Hedgecock and Jim Miller, 51, and Dave Miller, 46, were convicted after a two-week trial of a malicious and unlawful assault as a joint enterprise which caused grievous bodily harm to Mr Sart.

Jim Miller was also convicted of possessing an offensive weapon and was jailed for a total of 12 years. Dave Miller and Hedgecock each received nine years.