A homeless man feared he was going to die as he was viciously attacked at knifepoint by two thugs.

The rough sleeper was set upon by drink and drug-fuelled Josh Sayer and Jordan Sherry in Ramsgate town centre.

CCTV captured the men, who knew each other from school, repeatedly chasing and assaulting their victim.

Sayer, who was on licence from prison at the time, could clearly be seen brandishing a 5in blade while Sherry kicked and stamped on the man.

They then turned their attention to a woman, but this time it was Sherry who punched her to the ground and Sayer who stuck the boot in.

Canterbury Crown Court heard neither victim gave a formal statement or chose to support a prosecution.

But evidence was provided by the camera footage, a witness who saw the tail end of the incident, and a police body-worn camera recording.

‘You were chasing him, catching up with him, chasing him again...’

As an officer examined the bruised and bloodied male, he revealed how he had feared for his life during the prolonged attack in the early hours of April 10 this year.

"I nearly got stabbed. I thought I was done for, thought I was dead. I ain't been stabbed. I've just been kicked the f*** out of," he explained.

Sayer, 22, and 21-year-old Sherry later pleaded guilty to assault causing actual bodily harm, possessing a bladed article and assault by beating.

It was not said at their sentencing hearing on August 1 if they knew their victims or what had sparked the violent outburst.

But prosecutor Alexander Williams said it was first detected on the High Street by the CCTV operator.

The footage, lasting four minutes, showed Sayer, of Queens Avenue, Margate, and Sherry, of Harbour Street, Ramsgate, persistently chasing the homeless man and attacking him repeatedly even as he lay on the ground.

Others tried to intervene but the thugs were undeterred, even as Sayer's jeans appeared to be falling down below his backside.

"The knife could be seen in Josh Sayer's hand, with Sherry kicking and stamping on him. At one point he was kicked so hard that a shoe came off," said Mr Williams.

Referring to the moment the female was assaulted, he told the court: "Jordan Sherry punched her in the face, knocking her to the ground where Josh Sayer kicked her in the face."

The pair then fled but were found by police hiding separately in nearby roads.

A Taser had to be used to detain Sayer, who had the bloodstained folding knife in the rear pocket of his jeans.

A blade was also discovered close to where Sherry, with blood on his hand and arm as well as scratches to his face, was located.

The male victim's injuries "happily" did not include any stab wounds, the prosecutor said.

He was however left with blood on his nose, a swollen eye, cuts to his lower back, a mark to his stomach and bruising.

"He told police he had soiled himself out of fear during the attack," added Mr Williams.

Sayer had only been released from a 31-month jail term for drug-related offences less than two months earlier.

Having now been recalled to prison, he read a letter to the court expressing his remorse for the violence, which had left him feeling "sick to the stomach", and apologising not just to his two victims but also the wider public.

"I feel so bad for the victims and their families. They must have felt so scared," Sayer told the court.

"I'm so sorry to everyone. The community should be a safe place and people should feel safe to go out into the community.

"The victims and public should be able to go out without worrying that something is going to happen."

Sayer also described being "messed up" that night after learning a grandparent had cancer, and detailed how in custody he had started to address his poor mental health and learnt coping mechanisms.

"I'm fully determined to turn my life around. I feel like a completely new and better me," he added.

The court heard how he had grown up in care and been diagnosed with Asperger's and ADHD.

But in arguing that his client could be spared jail, defence counsel Peter Cruickshank said his "foolish and stupid" behaviour that night was out of character.

"He knew Jordan Sherry from school, they had met up, been drinking and taking drugs together. He has no memory of what happened," explained the lawyer.

"You have heard from him his remorse and, as he said to me, he feels terrible, not just for the obvious impact on him but also the victims and community at large."

Sherry was said to have experienced an "unsettled life in his formative years", spending time in foster care, a care home and emergency housing.

But Antony Bartholomeusz, defending, said he had achieved enhanced status while in custody on remand, and recognised from watching the CCTV footage how "horrific and disgusting" his behaviour had been.

Passing sentence, Recorder Sarah Counsell told the defendants their "nasty, vicious, and horrific" attack had had "immeasurable" impact, and it was "fortunate" the injuries had not been more serious.

"He has not supported the prosecution but he provided an account to the officer at the time when he showed him the injuries and it is clear from that what impact at that time your behaviour had on him," she said.

"He said 'I thought I was done for'. He was so frightened that he soiled himself during the course of that attack which appears to have gone on for a number of minutes.

"You were chasing him, catching up with him, chasing him again.

"He was vulnerable, it was a prolonged and persistent assault, there was a knife and he was being threatened."

Recorder Counsell added that in deciding the appropriate punishment she had considered their remorse as well as efforts made in custody.

But she told Sayer that a jail term of 18 months was the only way of dealing with the current risk he posed to the community.

She concluded, however, that although Sherry had only played a "slightly lesser role" in the violence and would have known his accomplice was wielding a knife at the time, he could be spared any more time behind bars.

Handing him a 12-month term of custody suspended for two years, with 40 rehabilitation activity requirements and 240 hours of unpaid work, the judge said she had taken account of his lack of previous convictions, time served on remand, and realistic prospect of rehabilitation.