A teenager found with a massive kitchen knife hidden down his trousers told cops: “I don’t know how that got there.”

Police searched 19-year-olds Shaqib Ali and Deniz Bakir on Friday night because they were suspected of dealing drugs outside Cargo Nightclub in Rivington Street, Shoreditch.

When officers asked Ali whether he was in possession of anything he shouldn’t be, he replied: “No, I don’t carry knives.” But a few seconds later, when an eight-inch blade was found in his waistband, Ali made the not-so-believable claim.

Bakir was also found to have an large, easily accessible, black-handled kitchen knife concealed in his waistband.

The pair each admitted possession of an offensive weapon and were handed immediate custodial sentences at Thames Magistrates Court yesterday – because it was the second and third time cops had caught them carrying weapons in the space of 10 months.

Bakir had already been given a four-month suspended sentence in May for possession of a knife, and was jailed for six months in August when he was again found with a weapon.

Ali, meanwhile, had been given a 12-week suspended sentence and community order in September for carrying a knife and possession of cannabis.

A warrant had already been issued for his arrest because he had breached the community order – by failing to inform the court of a change of address, and not attending a rehab centre.

Ali, of Cecil Road, Brent, was sentenced to 38 weeks’ detention in a young offenders’ institution, and Bakir of Aylesbury Close, Forest Gate, was given a six-month term.

Det Insp Paul Ridley, who is leading the fight against knives for Hackney CID, said the case demonstrated the “overwhelming importance” of targeted intelligence-led stop and search.

“The fact that the weapons were easily accessible in a densely populated area of Shoreditch on a Friday night clearly increases the stakes and risk these men posed,” he said.

“Due to their previous offending history and in line with sentencing guidelines an immediate custodial sentence was the only option for these defendants, and I truly hope this will serve as a deterrent to others.”

Police say one in three suspects stopped and searched last year on the streets of Hackney was carrying a knife, leading to the seizure of 369 weapons.