A decorated Dutch soldier has been given 100 hours community service by a military court for headbutting a policeman.

Marco Kroon, who was awarded the Netherlands’ highest honour for bravery in 2009, was taken to court for abusive and insulting behaviour towards police officers during the last carnival Sunday in Den Bosch last March. He was arrested while peeing in public.

The court was shown a video which shows Kroon being cuffed and jerking his head in the direction of one of the arresting officers. He says that the gesture was a reflex because the handcuffs hurt and that he will appeal against the sentence.

Kroon had been suspended during the trial and is unclear if he will be able to keep his job.

Kroon has previously been acquitted of a charge of possessing drugs and weapons, and last year reported a breach of protocol during a secret mission in Afghanistan when he said he had been kidnapped and then found and killed one of his kidnappers.