Pat Dollard

Tweet

Yeah, right. The only spell he is under is Islam…

UK - An illegal immigrant who went berserk and knifed two men after they sacked him from an Indian restaurant claimed to have been under a “black magic” spell, a court heard.Mohammed Ahmad, aged 26, slashed two men in east London in a video store in September 2005 and went on the run for more than a month.

Ahmad, originally from Bangladesh, resurfaced in Swansea where he got a job at the Himachal Indian restaurant in High Street.

But within days he was sacked and he knifed both the owner and his son in front of horrified customers, Southwark Crown Court heard. Ahmad was arrested as the two men chased him up Swansea High Street where he was confronted by British Transport Police officers near the railway station.

He later told police he had been experiencing hallucinations and believed a friend in his home country had been practising black magic on him.

Following the first attack -which resulted in one man losing a kidney and three litres of blood, and another needing stitches – Ahmad went on the run, before pitching up in Swansea.

Ahmad fled the scene and later got a job at the Himachal Indian restaurant, where he was also offered accommodation upstairs.

Prosecutor Daniel Robinson said: “Things didn’t work out and the owners found that Mr Ahmad was rude to customers.

So on October 22, 2005, they took the decision to dispense with his services after he had been told that his work wasn’t satisfactory.”

Ahmad then complained to the owner Gulam Saleh, and son Mustafizur Rahman, about his pay.

“During this argument, Mr Ahmad took a knife from his waistband and lunged at Gulam Saleh with it,” said Mr Robinson.

“He went for his chest, but Mr Saleh raised his left arm, which caught the blow. Mustafizur Rahman tried to get in between the two men and, as a result, when the defendant lunged again he was stabbed in the chest.

“The incident was witnessed by customers and staff members and Mr Ahmad ran from the restaurant up the street, knife in hand.

“He was chased by the two men whom he had injured, and somewhere near the railway station, he came to the attention of British Transport Police officers.

“He threw the knife in the direction of Mr Saleh and police arrested him shortly after.”

Both men needed treatment for their injuries. Mr Salah suffered a 15cm wound to his forearm and Mr Rahman needed stitches for the wound in his chest.

In interview, Ahmad denied responsibility for the London and Swansea attacks, claiming in both cases the other men had wielded knives.

The court heard that Ahmad had arrived in the UK illegally from Bangladesh in 2000.

Ronald Jaffa, for Ahmad, said: “At the time of these offences, this defendant was mentally unwell, falling short of being able to say he didn’t know what he was doing.”

Mr Jaffa said Ahmad had spoken of “thought influences”, and added: “While he was in Bangladesh, there was a belief that a friend was doing some black magic on him.”

Judge Gregory Stone passed an indeterminate prison sentence for public protection and ordered Ahmad to serve a minimum of four-and-a-half years.

The judge said a psychiatrist’s report stated there was a real risk of Ahmad becoming violent again.

He added that he intended to recommend Ahmad for deportation but could not do so because immigration papers had not yet been served.

Ahmad, of no fixed address, admitted one count of wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm and three counts of unlawful wounding.

A further hearing regarding deportation will now take place on February 1.