A kebab shop worker who sliced through a customer's hand after being subjected to "gross provocation" has escaped an immediate spell behind bars.

Judge Jeremy Carey told 22-year-old Sina Kary he was able to take a wholly exceptional course and impose a suspended sentence.

Sitting at Maidstone Crown Court, the judge said Kary had been the victim of gross racial abuse, threats and intimidation by Ben Walledge in July 2007.

He accepted that Kary, formerly of Folkestone Road, Dover, and now living in Croydon, had acted recklessly when he attacked Mr Walledge with the kebab knife.

"After a period of what was described by one witness as commendable self-restraint in the face of all this provocation and abuse, the defendant lost his temper," said Judge Carey, "and went after those who had been abusing him."

But Judge Carey added that Kary should not have taken the law into his own hands, and warned that by imposing a suspended sentence he was not giving others the licence to do so.

Kary, who was described in court as an unresolved asylum seeker, admitted unlawful wounding. He had denied the more serious offence of wounding with intent and this was accepted by the prosecution.

As part of his nine-month prison sentence, suspended for 18 months, he was ordered to carry out 200 hours unpaid work.

The court heard that Mr Walledge's left thumb was almost severed in the attack in London Road, Dover, and had to undergo extensive surgery.

He has no recollection of the incident and, as Judge Carey remarked, was at the time unaware he had been seriously injured.

Mr Walledge was also said to have been boasting and laughing about it at the scene.

Prosecutor Trevor Wright told the court Mr Walledge's behaviour that night was "hardly condusive to good order."

He had bought some chips from another takeway and then gone to the kebab shop demanding sauce. He persisted with other demands and then threw a ladle of sauce at Kary.

Mr Wright said the goading and racial abuse of Kary continued until he "snapped" and, with a large knife in his hand, chased after Mr Walledge and friends.

Judge Carey said the case was "about as difficult that any judge is likely to face" in sentencing terms but in reaching his alternative conclusion he had balanced Kary's culpability and the harm caused to the victim with "very powerful" mitigation and the events leading up to the attack.

Judge Carey also commented that Mr Walledge himself committed a number of offences that night but was never charged.