A warehouse worker who ran after a group of weapon-wielding yobs with a large kitchen knife his mate passed to him has narrowly avoided jail.

Kayo Dairo chased a machete-wielding youth away from his friend’s home in Strood in September after they turned up at the home and trouble erupted.

The incident, in Bingham Road, saw the 21-year-old run down a street brandishing the large blade after a yob who was said to be brandishing a machete.

Dad-of-one Dairo shouted at them and then turned around and returned to his friend’s home, but was later arrested over the matter.

A court heard trouble erupted after a number of people arrived at his friend Theo Kibe’s house to pick up Kibe’s girlfriend’s younger sister, but the group were armed with weapons.

Dairo, of Salisbury Road, Chatham, admitted possessing a knife in public and pleaded guilty to the offence in January when sentencing was adjourned and a pre-sentencing report was ordered.

He returned to Medway Magistrates’ Court last Thursday (March 27) to hear his fate.

Lucie Fish, prosecuting, said: “He pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity on January 24, 2025.

“The incident happened in Bingham Road, on September 22, last year and he was at an address of a friend and an altercation took place.”

The court heard as the trouble erupted on his doorstep, Kibe armed himself with two knives from his kitchen, went outside to confront the youths and passed one blade to Dairo.

Ms Fish added: “He (Dairo) left the address to confront them and he had a long kitchen knife and one of the others (the youths that turned up) had a machete and he chased him down the street carrying it.

“It was a residential street but he has no previous convictions and his co-defendant (Kibe) was dealt with a lot earlier and he got a suspended sentence.”

Magistrates also heard it was his co-defendant who went into the home and brought the knives into the street, but that Dairo had taken one from him.

The court heard it was a 10-second chase where he shouted at the other youths and showed them the knife and then Dairo, who works in a warehouse, walked away back to the property.

The bench told Dairo the offence passed the custody threshold, but because he pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity and had not been in trouble with the law before they were prepared to suspend the sentence.

As a result, he was jailed for two months, but the term was suspended for 12 months.

He was also ordered to carry out 80 hours of unpaid work and attend 20 rehabilitation sessions.

Magistrates also ordered Dairo to pay a victim surcharge of £154 and £85 court costs and ordered the knife be destroyed.