A judge has allowed a student responsible for a beating outside St Albans’ Slug & Lettuce to holiday in Dubai before starting his curfew.

At St Albans crown court on Thursday, October 4, Judge Michael Kay QC said Maximilian Straube could have his week’s holiday in Dubai before starting a curfew for common assault and affray.

This is despite saying Straube, 20, was “an aggressor whose persistent aggression led to the horrific scenes of someone lying in the road being punched and kicked”.

The judge added: “This is another depressing event from the streets of St Albans that persuades elderly people and the public not to go to the centre of St Albans at night as they may come across drunken and violent youths in the middle of an affray.”

The incident took place after midnight on November 4 last year when Straube was ejected from the Victoria Street bar for grabbing someone around the neck after a cigarette was found in his drink.

Despite his friend trying to pull him away, Straube began challenging the victim inside the pub, saying: “I am going to f*ck you up.”

Judge Kay said Straube was “angry and continuing to inflame the situation”.

He added: “Eventually the person came outside and you continued to aggravate the matter by being aggressive and abusive towards [the victim].

“Others at the scene, who you did not know and probably they did not know [the victim] saw an opportunity to indulge some primitive enjoyment by kicking another person.”

Someone else hit the victim, but the court decided it was not Straube, leading to a struggle where the victim grabbed Straube and they fell to the ground.

At that point a number of people began kicking and punching, leading to the victim suffering a broken nose.

Straube, who divides his time between Meadow View in Redbourn and a Masters degree in engineering at Sheffield University, had previously pleaded guilty to the charges, which can carry a prison sentence.

He was ordered to carry out 150 hours of unpaid community work and must abide by a curfew between 8pm and 6am for the next three months.

This curfew will not begin until Monday, October 15 as he is flying out to Dubai for his dad’s 50th birthday, a flight arranged before the incident took place.