Thug is caged for 14 months for savage attack

A thug who battered a vulnerable schoolboy was caged after failing to complete his community service.

Darren Worthington was originally spared jail for lashing out at the youngster, who can’t be named for legal reasons.

Worthington, 27, branded the boy a “wee b*****d”, and spat in his face.

He then grabbed him by the throat and pulled his hair.

Worthington was placed on a Community Payback Order (CPO) as punishment for the offence in August last year.

But it served as no deterrent and he went on to carry out a savage attack on his girlfriend as they prepared to bring in the bells.

He found himself behind bars in January following the prolonged attack on his girlfriend last Hogmanay.

He carried out such a brutal attack that his victim was forced to phone 999 twice.

Worthington choked her, spat in her face and smacked her head off the floor, leaving blood on the floor and sofa and a clump of her hair on the couch.

He pleaded guilty to the assault, which took place in Neilston Road, Paisley, and was caged for 14 months .

This meant the thug was unable to carry out his CPO as he was behind bars.

Defence solicitor Rhona Lynch said Worthington had only managed 31 of the 240 hours unpaid work before he was caged.

She said he had been experiencing problems with his mental health.

Worthington returned to the dock for a further review of his progress on the CPO.

And, after being told Worthington was no longer in a position to carry out unpaid work, the judge caged him.

As he locked him up for six months, he said: “I will take account of the unpaid work you have carried out.

“I will revoke the order.”