A MAN who set his sleeping mate on fire in a Jackass-style stunt that went wrong has been blasted by a Gold Coast judge for his "brainless" prank.
Shane Evan Thomas, 20, faced Southport District Court, pleading guilty to grievous bodily harm after creeping up on his friend while he slept, spraying him with a deodorant can and setting him alight.
The Boxing Day 2008 stunt at Hollywell, on the northern Gold Coast, resulted in his friend receiving burns to 10 per cent of his body, stretching from his calves to his buttocks.
He had difficulty sitting down for several months.
The two former friends no longer speak.
Thomas, originally from England, told police he did not think his friend would get hurt, adding he had previously been a victim of the same stunt himself.
Judge Katherine McGinness told him he was guilty of complete and utter stupidity which could have had far more serious consequences.
"Your act on that particular evening was brainless," she said.
Appearing for the prosecution, Paul Kay told the court the kind of behaviour displayed by Thomas was "glorified on television", particularly by Jackass, where the concept of mates inflicting pain on themselves and each other had spawned a TV show and movie franchise.
Judge McGinness sentenced Thomas to 200 hours' community service.
Thomas refused to talk to members of the media outside the court.
