Two violent robbers have been jailed after subjecting their victim to almost an hour of “utterly barbaric” torture which left him with a fractured skull.

Bader Mohamed and Lewis Rowley, who repeatedly hit the man with a bottle and stamped on him so hard he lost two teeth, have been given a combined sentence of 22 years in prison.

The victim's ordeal started after the men broke into the victim’s Maidstone town centre flat during the evening of June 9 after Rowley knocked on the door asking to borrow some milk.

Once inside, they demanded cash. One searched the property while the other subjected the victim to the violence.

He was dragged around the flat, beaten around the head with at least one bottle, punched repeatedly and stamped on while on the floor.

Mohamed, 37, made attempts to choke the victim using a piece of string. The torture lasted at least 45 minutes before both men fled.

The victim raised the alarm by running outside before he returned home and found Mohamed in a bedroom trying to start a fire.

Mohamed again ran from the scene but after police attended, he was arrested nearby. Rowley, 25, was detained the following day.

Such was the ferocity of the assault that the victim needed surgery for some of his injuries. He later picked his attackers out during an identification process.

The investigation also recovered CCTV from a supermarket which showed Mohamed purchasing a bottle of vodka. Images matched one of the bottles recovered from the scene.

After being charged, both men denied any wrongdoing and a trial was held at Maidstone Crown Court.

In a unanimous verdict, the jury found them guilty of assault with intent to commit robbery.

Mohamed, of Blake Avenue, Barking was also found guilty of causing grievous bodily harm with intent.

Rowley, 25, of no fixed address, was convicted of a lesser offence, of grievous bodily harm.

On Thursday, February 20, Mohamed was handed a 12-year sentence in prison. When he is released from prison he will be subject to an extended licence period of four years.

Rowley was jailed for 10 years. He also has an extended licence period of three years.

Detective Constable Josh Littley said the victim had been put through an “unimaginable and utterly barbaric” ordeal by the men.

He said: “The victim was convinced he was going to die, particularly when Mohamed was choking him and he was fighting for his life.

“He was left suffering some horrific injuries which also included a fractured skull.

“This was an entirely unprovoked and senseless attack, which to this day continues to have a profound impact on the victim’s life, who has been left feeling scared, angry and vulnerable.

“I only hope these significant sentences will go some way to helping him continue to rebuild his trust and confidence in people and that he can once again feel safe within his own home.”

Both men were deemed “dangerous” by the judge, who commended the police investigation and told them they will have to serve at least two-thirds of their sentences before any chance of parole.