Severely disabled Mark Lee was distraught when his mobility scooter was stolen and he was forced to hobble home on crutches in Witney late at night.

The thoughtless thieves who took the scooter were three teenage girls, who took the £800 machine for a lark. Two of them have now had to confront their victim to face up to the results of their behaviour, in the only case brought so far this year by a specialist youth police officer under the restorative justice system.

They heard face-to-face about the distress it caused 46-year-old Mr Lee, who was left with cerebral palsy after a head injury. He had parked his scooter outside Izi's cafe and bar in the town's Market Square to meet some friends.

At 10.30pm he went outside to return to his home in Wadard's Meadow, on the town's Cogges estate, but the vehicle was gone.

He had to set out on crutches and it took him about 45 minutes to walk a quarter of a mile before police came to help him. He had reported the theft on his mobile phone. Police found the scooter and the three girls near the town's youth centre.

Two girls, aged 14 and 16, both received official police cautions, while a third, said to be the ringleader, refused to meet Mr Lee. She was taken to youth court, where she was ordered to follow an action plan, including anger management classes, for three months.

Mr Lee said yesterday: "I wanted them to learn how it felt to be in my shoes and to learn a lesson from it. I have no grudge against them. I just want them to be sensible in future."

The restorative justice meeting was set up by youth issues officer Pc Chris Skae. He said: "Restorative justice gives a face to a crime. This scooter is crucial for Mark, because he is severely handicapped with cerebral palsy.

"Meeting the girls face to face worked. Mark didn't want revenge, he just wanted them to know the pain, hardship and inconvenience they put him to.

"Both the girls' mums came in and one (of the girls) was in tears half the time.

"They said they apologised, they were just messing around, and did not realise what it could mean for him."

FOCUS ON VICTIM: Promoted by Sir Charles Pollard when he was Chief Constable of Thames Valley Police, restorative justice focuses on the victims of crime rather than on the punishment of the offender.

Based on the system used by New Zealand's Maori people, it brings them together in a formal setting, usually a police station, with a mediator. The victim first speaks about the effect of the crime on his or her life and their feelings about it. The offender then tries to explain his or her behaviour and to confront the consequences.

A study in the US found that there was a 32 per cent reduction in repeat offending among juveniles who took part in restorative justice.