A racist McDonald's customer has been jailed after asking a Muslim employee if he was going to chop off his head.

Patrick Maughan drunkenly harassed the assistant manager of the restaurant by making reference to the ISIS-style beheadings and then mimicking the way Muslim people pray.

Maughan pleaded guilty to the unprovoked attack towards Mohamed Mahroof and security guard Mansoor Bahar in June.

The 65-year-old was jailed for the tirade when he appeared at Crawley Magistrates’ Court last Wednesday charged with two counts of racial and religiously aggravated intentional harassment.

He was sentenced to 12 weeks in prison for the racist rant at a branch in Langley Green, West Sussex.

This was just six days after he had been sentenced for another racially aggravated crime.

Melanie Wotton, prosecuting, said: “At about 7pm Maughan went into McDonald’s where Mr Mahroof was working as an assistant manager and Mr Bahar as a security guard."

“Maughan leant over the counter and read Mr Mahroof’s name badge before asking him ‘Are you Mohamed?’ and adding ‘Are you a Muslim’?"

“Mr Mahroof responded by saying ‘yes’ and when Maughan asked him again he ignored him," Wotton said. “Maughan then said ‘I’m Christian, you are a Muslim, do you want to chop off my head’? and he made a gesture across his throat to show a beheading.”

He was asked to leave, but after turning away, he returned to the counter to harass Mohamed some more.

Ms Wotton added: "Speaking to Mr Mahroof, Maughan again said 'You Muslim, you want to chop off my head'. He then knelt down and pretended to pray to mimic how a Muslim would pray."

Laura French, defending, said: "He is embarrassed and deeply regrets his actions. He says that wasn't the type of language he would usually use."

"He feels ashamed. He was in a drunken state and responded in a foolish way."

The court heard Maughan was given a 15-month community order in June for a separate incident of racially aggravated harassment.