A man who brutally attacked a would-be burglar leaving him with a broken back has been jailed for four years. Arthur Wilkinson and an accomplice beat Stephen Pugh when they discovered him and two other men trying to steal quad bikes from the defendant's compound in Horden, near Peterlee, east Durham, in January. Wilkinson’s barrister told the court that the defendant had been suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder at the time, and how one of the men had pushed him to the ground. Wilkinson, 52, drove wounded Mr Pugh to the University Hospital of North Durham in Durham with serious injuries, with the defendant claiming that he had found him in that condition. The 34-year-old suffered a broken back bone, a double fracture to his leg, a smashed nose, a fractured left arm and bruising all over his body. The court heard how Mr Pugh was hit with a wooden bat as well as being kicked and punched. Wilkinson, of Peterlee, denied causing grievous bodily harm with intent, but admitted it after a trial began in September. Robert Adams, prosecuting, told Teesside Crown Court another man had been questioned about his involvement in the brutal attack but no charges were ever made against the man who was named by Wilkinson. Mr Pugh has needed 13 operations since the attack at a yard owned by Wilkinson. In mitigation, Stephen Constantine said a psychiatric report showed that Wilkinson was suffering from post traumatic stress disorder after suffering a violent attack in 2007 which led to him having flashbacks. Mr Constantine told the court how Wilkinson had been pushed to the ground by one of the three men he discovered trying to steal two quad bikes from his compound. Judge George Moorhouse sentenced Wilkinson for four years after taking into consideration his guilty plea and the contents of his psychiatric report.