SIX thugs were jailed for a combined total of more than 70 years this week after a man was kidnapped and subjected to a sadistic three day ordeal in Uxbridge.

A man in his 30s was taken from a barber shop in west London on June 18 last year, tied up in a house in St Lukes Close and hacked at with such force it caused the blade of a bread knife to snap, said a Met Police spokesman.

Darren Vassell, 35, Derek Johnston, 40, and Jamal McLaughlin, 34, were all imprisoned for kidnap and false imprisonment at the Old Bailey on Thursday after they forced the man to get inside a van, demanding £2,500 over a perceived debt.

The scene was captured on a nearby shop’s CCTV and two days later the Human Trafficking and Kidnap Unit tracked down the victim and sent armed officers from the Met to get him out.

Detective Sergeant Tim Mustoe, from the Met's Organised Crime Command, said on Thursday: "These men subjected their victim to a violent and sadistic torture over a sustained period.

“I hope today's sentences bring the victim some solace and reassure the public that the Met will relentlessly pursue those who commit crime."

During his time kept in St Lukes Close - his hands bound together with electrical wires - the victim was brutally assaulted by Johnston, Vassell and his brother Marvin Vassell, 30, and Aaron Ellis, 22.

Police described how he was repeatedly hit around the head and body with an iron bar and had a computer monitor thrown at his head.

Ellis heated a metal fork on a gas hob and repeatedly burned the victim's legs, while the brothers took turns stabbing him in the arms.

After being found, he was taken to hospital by the London Ambulance Service for treatment.

He was discharged several days later but is said to be still recovering from his ordeal.

Darren Vassell, 35, pleaded guilty to kidnap, blackmail, two counts of false imprisonment and causing grievous bodily harm and was sentenced to a total of 18 years imprisonment.

His brother Marvin Vassell, 30, pleaded guilty to blackmail, false imprisonment and causing grievous bodily harm and was jailed for a total of 13 years and six months.

Derek Johnston, 40, pleaded guilty to kidnap, blackmail, two counts of false imprisonment and causing grievous bodily harm and was sentenced to 21 years imprisonment.

Aaron Ellis, 22, pleaded guilty to false imprisonment and causing grievous bodily harm and was jailed for a total of nine years.

Jamal McLaughlin, 34, was found guilty of kidnap, blackmail, false imprisonment and was sentenced to a total of six years imprisonment.

Carlton Rodney, 50, was found guilty of blackmail and sentenced to a total of four years. He was found not guilty of kidnap and false imprisonment.