TWO brothers are behind bars for a double stabbing after one of them was accused of stealing money and tobacco from a neighbour.

The victim was slashed across the back by both Neil and Robert Maxwell when trouble flared in the block of flats in Stockton.

Teesside Crown Court heard how he was left with three deep wounds - the longest measuring 24cm - in the attack last October.

Neil Maxwell, 36, was locked up for two years and three months, and his 32-year-old brother was given three years today.

The men, both of Tilery Way, Stockton, admitted unlawful wounding as they were due to go on trial for wounding with intent.

The judge, Recorder Tahir Khan, told them their victim had done nothing to deserve his injuries, which he described as "horrendous".

Prosecutor Shaun Dryden told the court that the three men lived in the same block of flats in Norton Road, Stockton, at the time.

Neil Maxwell and his girlfriend had visited the victim and his partner, who later noticed a pouch of tobacco and £50 missing.

The following day, Maxwell was confronted by his neighbour and accused of taking his belongings, Mr Dryden told the court.

Maxwell later turned up with his brother - both armed with knives - at the victim's flat and stabbed him following a scuffle.

Ben Pegman, for Robert Maxwell, said: "He bitterly regrets the offences and his role . . . it was never his argument."

Jim Withyman, for Neil Maxwell, said he was "a thoughtful and quietly spoken" man, and added: "He is shocked by what he did."

The court heard that both men have previous convictions for robbery, and the missing items were later found in the victim's flat.

Mr Recorder Khan told them: "Your victim did not do anything to instigate this attack upon him.

"I have no doubt you were the aggressors in the incident, and it is equally clear you must each have armed yourself.

"He was bleeding profusely, and when one looks at the photographs one can understand why because the wounds were horrendous."