A magistrate yesterday warned ?thugs? that they will be punished severely for violent crimes if they come before him.

Acting Senior Magistrate Carlisle Greaves told two men who got into a fight outside the Washington Mall: ?The community has to stop making excuses for you and say you?re thugs who will pay for it every time.?

Tarik Hill, 19, of Sousa Estate Road, Devonshire, and Damien Martin, 19, of Spice Hill Road, Warwick, pleaded guilty on Monday to multiple charges ofthrowing a missile (bottle), resisting arrest, fighting in public, and using offensive words in a public place.

Before jailing the pair to three months, Mr. Greaves said they would have to pay the price for bad behaviour.

?You come from one of the most fortunate communities in the world and you walk around playing thug, you hurt people, you accost the Police and you think you can do whatever you like,? he said.

Instead of feeling sorry for thugs, people in the community should send them a message by locking them up, Mr. Greaves said.

?Other men in the community make contributions, they go to university, they join the Police Force, the Fire Service, they?re not running around scaring the community until kingdom come. You fellows are just bad, we need to stop making excuses for you and make you pay. If we stop making excuses and lock you up the c*** won?t disappear but it will be reduced.?

The court heard earlier that at 3.15 p.m. on Saturday at the Church Street entrance to Washington Mall, two groups of men were engaged in an argument. As the argument became more heated, Martin was heard shouting at Hill: ?I will f**k you up?.

Hill drove away on an auxiliary cycle but kept circling the block, taunting Martin. Martin picked up the bottle and threw it at Hill who attempted to stop his cycle and throw it back.

When Police officers arrived on the scene Martin was restrained but he managed to slip out of the sleeves of his jacket. Officers caught up with Martin at the bus station and tackled him to the ground.

Asked by Mr. Greaves if he had anything to say, Martin said: ?I never hit him with the bottle, the bottle missed him.?

Hill said he was on his way home but was hit by the bottle and stopped.

Martin said Police officers had punched him in the face as they attempted to restrain him.