A teenager who drove into a petrol station manager and left him with permanent serious injuries has been found guilty of grievous bodily harm with intent.

Lekshmanan Asokkumar, the manager of the Texaco station at West Kingsdown, near Sevenoaks, Kent, tried to stop Joshua Charnley, 19, when he went to drive off without paying, on July 31 last year.

Charnley drove at Mr Asokkumar, and he was carried on the bonnet of the car for half a mile down the A20 before falling off. Mr Asokkumar suffered a fractured skull and liver damage and was flown by air ambulance to Kings College Hospital, where he was in intensive care.

The court was told Charnley had used his Hyundai car as a weapon. Kent Police said he had no driving licence and no insurance and had altered the registration number with black tape.

Charnley has been remanded in custody and will be sentenced on Friday. The maximum punishment he could be facing would be a life sentence.