A MAN who wrongly thought his goddaughter had been approached by a paedophile has been jailed for threatening to kill the innocent man.

Liam Bryan held a knife to the victim's throat after forcing his way into the house where the complainant was visiting relatives.

The 28-year-old had spent the day drinking with friends when the threat of violence erupted in Hampden Way, Thornaby, last month.

Teesside Crown Court heard how the complainant tried to escape Bryan before the defendant forced his way into the kitchen, grabbing him by the throat.

Paul Newcombe, prosecuting, said there were five children in the house at the time of the incident, which left the complainant feeling angry and upset.

He said: "The defendant barged into the kitchen and grabbed the victim by the T-shirt with one hand and with the other, while holding a knife, he placed it to his throat and shouted 'I'm going to kill you'."

Bryan, of Shackleton Close, Thornaby, pleaded guilty to affray and possession of a bladed article. A charge of aggravated burglary was left on file.

In mitigation, Paul Abrahams, said his client had overreacted to the wholly inaccurate information about the man being a paedophile.

He said: "I want to make it clear that I cast no aspersions towards the complainant and that there is no justification for what he did."

Judge Howard Crowson jailed Bryan for a total of 15 months for both offences.

He said: "On that day, following a misunderstanding on your behalf, you demanded to speak to the complainant, you were obviously angry, he tried to avoid you and he shut himself in the house.

"You forced your way in and threatened him with a knife."