A 21-year-old man who dumped a pig's head outside a mosque has been jailed for three months.

Rory Rowbottom left the animal part outside the Muslim place of worship in Pound Street, Newbury, Berkshire, last October.

Rowbottom, of Poffley Place, Thatcham, pleaded guilty to racially aggravated harassment and a Section 4 public order offence at Reading Magistrates' Court today, Thames Valley Police said.

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Lucky Nizami, a representative of the Newbury Mosque Committee, said following the sentencing that the local community was shocked by the incident.

He said: “The Muslim community is very tolerant of others' beliefs, but hold several things very close to them - those are the Koran, the Prophet and the mosque.

“It was therefore beyond the understanding of the community why anyone would wish to insult them by directly attacking one of those - in this case, the mosque.”

Chief Inspector Lindsey Finch, of Thames Valley Police, said: “This kind of harassment will not be tolerated by the police or by the community as a whole.

“It was heartening to see the response from other communities in west Berkshire who were equally distressed and horrified that this could happen to Muslims in Newbury.”

PA