This is the shocking moment a brutal thug dragged a man into the path of an oncoming double-decker bus after beating him unconscious.

Damien Pankiewicz has been jailed for 12 years after he launched the sickening and unprovoked attack on a man with learning difficulties, punching him until he passed out before dragging him into oncoming traffic.

Pankiewicz, who is Polish, had only been in the country two days at the time of the attack, and had convictions for rape and assault in Poland.

The thug set upon his 52-year-old victim at a bus stop on Brixton Hill at about 7pm on July 22 last year.

In the completely unprovoked attack, he repeatedly punched his victim even after he had fallen out cold to the ground.

Pankiewicz, 37, then grabbed the unconscious man by the neck and dragged him into the road, throwing him in front of an oncoming bus, which managed to stop just in time.

The victim suffered serious injuries including bleeding to the brain, a broken leg and broken ribs as a result of the attack, and was hospitalised for three weeks.

When police arrested Pankiewicz he head-butted the window of a police car, smashing the glass with his face and causing himself minor facial injuries.

In court, Pankiewicz brazenly denied Grievous Bodily Harm with intent, claiming that the victim had stolen his phone.

However, his claim was disproved by both CCTV and the fact that the victim did not have the phone in his possession.

Pankiewicz, of no fixed address, was convicted unanimously by a jury at the Inner London Crown Court on March 16.

He was sentenced at the same court on Friday to serve 12 years in prison, and will be deported after his sentence.

Detective Constable James Bateman from Lambeth Police's CID said: "This was an unprovoked and violent attack against a vulnerable man in which the victim received serious injuries.

"Pankiewicz initially gave no explanation for the assault, before claiming in court that the victim had stolen his phone, a claim we were able to disprove. He has shown no remorse for his actions at any stage.

"The level of violence, its sustained nature and the impact on the victim has been immense and has deeply affected him.

"This sentence will hopefully help the victim to get some form of closure to an event in his life which has been so traumatic.