Three racist thugs who abused and attacked a commuter have been locked up in a young offender institute.

The trio, attacked a man from Strood on a train after he asked them to stop smoking on board.

The victim, 31, who has not been named, was attacked on the Charing Cross to Gillingham service, after he smelt cigarette smoke.

After he asked them to stop they responded with a torrent of racial abuse. The situation seemed to calm down but about 20 minutes later the trio began intimidating him again before a fight broke out.

The victim used a craft knife to defend himself, wounding all three and himself in the process.

The Strood man suffered bruising to his head, eye and ear as well as a deep laceration to a finger.

The men, Connor Philips, 20, Karl Rozier, 19, and Ashley Mongen, 18, who are all from Thamesmead, south east London were also injured.

Concerned passengers, who had tried to stop the fight, pulled the train's emergency cord and police officers met the train at Woolwich Arsenal.

The thugs were jailed at Blackfriars Crown Court after admitting violent disorder at an earlier hearing.

Phillips and Rozier were each sentenced to 21 months in a young offender institution and Mongen was given 20 months.

DC Vanessa Cottington, from British Transport Police, said: "For simply asking the group to stop their anti-social, loutish behaviour, this man was submitted to a tirade of vile, racist abuse before being violently attacked.

“Not only was this incident terrifying for the victim, but equally for other passengers on the train, who desperately tried to intervene and break it up.

"Thuggish, racist behaviour like this will not be tolerated on the rail network and we will continue to put offenders who think otherwise before the courts."