A MAN who robbed a necklace from a reveller outside a nightclub before punching him in the face has been spared jail.

George Coles went on to swear at police who came to arrest him before refusing to give his name.

The 20-year-old of Stowford Road, Oxford, had already admitted one count of robbery and was sentenced at Oxford Crown Court yesterday.

Read also: Man dies after being hit by van on A420

Outlining the case, prosecutors said that the incident took place at about 3am on June 16 last year.

The victim was outside the Atik nightclub on Park End Street waiting for a taxi when Coles approached him.

Coles became aggressive towards the man before ripping off the necklace he was wearing.

After robbing the man he then punched him, leaving him with a cut and a bloody nose.

After Coles walked off, staff from another nightclub persuaded him to get the necklace, which they did, and he was later arrested.

On arrest he swore at officers and refused to give his name.

Read also: Lamppost left in the middle of new cycle path is 'classic Oxford planning'

In mitigation, his defence barrister Rhianna Fricker said that the incident was ‘relatively short lived’, there had been no planning involved, and Coles and his victim did not know each other.

She went on to say that her client at the time had been suffering from a ‘decline in his mental health.’

Sentencing, Judge Ian Pringle QC said that Coles had had ‘much too much to drink’ that night and, while the crime warranted a jail term, it was one he could suspend.

He gave Coles a two-year sentence suspended for two years.

As part of that sentence he must complete 20 days of the Resolve programme, 10 days of rehabilitation and 120 hours of unpaid work.

Coles must also pay back £300 in compensation to his victim and pay a victim surcharge.