THREE teenagers who savagely attacked two gay men on a train following their Valentines' Day night out - because of their sexuality - have been jailed for a total of 18 months.

The three male youths, two aged 16 and one 17, were each sentenced to six months in prison at Uxbridge Magistrates’ Court on Thursday, September 14, after admitting violent disorder and, in one case, possession of an offensive weapon.

They had attacked Phil Poole, 35, and boyfriend Zbynek Zatloukal, 26 in the early hours of February 15 while they returned home to Maidenhead on the Reading to London Paddington train.

The couple had fallen asleep during the journey and missed the stop at Maidenhead before the three teens, who cannot be named for legal reasons, got on at Hayes and Harlington.

One of the 16-year-olds walked through the carriages and spotted Mr Poole and Mr Zatloukal asleep and resting on each other. He went back to inform the other two.

The trio then returned and spoke to the couple before attacking them. They were punched and kicked several times. One was stamped on whilst the other was hit over the head with a glass bottle. The sustained attack left both men with extensive bruising to the head and face - and Mr Poole lost two teeth. Mr Zatloukal had to be carried off the train on a stretcher.

Following a British Transport Police investigation, the three defendants were charged and later pleaded guilty to violent disorder. One of them also pleaded guilty to possessing an offensive weapon.

Lauranne Middleton from the Crown Prosecution Service said: “This was a violent assault and we successfully argued that it was fuelled by the defendants’ homophobia.

“Where prosecutors have evidence that an attack was motivated by hostility towards someone’s sexual orientation, they will ask the court to consider this as an aggravating factor which deserves a harsher sentence.

“This successful prosecution demonstrates how seriously the CPS treats such cases and our commitment to bringing offenders of hate crime to justice.”

The prosecution had argued that the attack was motivated by hatred of the couple's sexuality - something the teenagers initially denied.

But the court accepted that the incident should be treated as a homophobic hate crime - which increased their sentences from four to six months imprisonment each.

The three were also each ordered to pay £100 in compensation to both Mr Poole and Mr Zatloukal.

Additionally, one of the couple and a witness were able to give evidence from behind a screen to allay their fears about being targeted or intimidated.