A man is searched at the sentencing of a far-right German extremist in Chemnitz, Germany, Sept. 8, 2021. Photo: Reuters.

A far-right German radical has been given a one-year suspended sentence for an attack on a Jewish restaurant owner during nationalist riots in the town of Chemnitz in Aug. 2018.

German media outlet Deutsche Welle reported Thursday that the suspect, identified as “Kevin A.”, was sentenced after being found guilty of breaching the peace and bodily harm.

Kevin A., 30, and at least 10 other men threw rocks and other objects at Uwe Dziuballa, owner of the Schalom restaurant, during a wave of far-right violence following the stabbing death of a Chemnitz man committed by an Iraqi and a Syrian.

Dziuballa recalled his court testimony to DW, saying, “When I looked over and saw [the defendant], something happened that I had hoped for.”

“The hate-filled eyes from that night had stayed with me, and I had hoped that when I looked over to look a completely normal person in the eye, it would calm me down,” he said. “And when he seemed a little nervous — he couldn’t maintain eye contact — a certain calm came over me.”

“I’m sort of happy with that,” Dziuballa said. “It’s out my head now because of that.”

The prosecution had relied partially on DNA evidence at the scene of the Schalom restaurant attack, which was challenged by the defense.

The judge, Dominik Börner, said that there was a plethora of further evidence of the suspect’s guilt, including chat messages that placed the defendant in Chemnitz at the time of the attack and far-right material found on his phone.

Kevin A. had a previous criminal record for drug dealing and breach of the peace in an incident that also involved rock-throwing.

The suspension of the sentence caused some surprise, but Börner cited the minor injuries caused to Dziuballa, the lack of extensive property damage, and the defendant’s lack of a criminal record from the previous two years.