(source)Asian killers face 30 years if judge calls attack racist

Ricordate?

Asian killers face 30 years if judge calls attack racist

THREE Asians who boasted about killing a white man by repeatedly stamping on his head were convicted of murder yesterday.

Christopher Yates, 30, was attacked in the campus of his former university after walking a female friend to the bus stop.

Every bone in his face was broken and one gang member stole his phone as he lay dying.

Sajid Zulfiqar, 26, Zahid Bashir, 24, and Imran Maqsood, 22, showed no emotion when told that each faces life in jail with a recommendation that they serve a minimum of 30 years if the judge decides the motive was racist.

They will be sentenced tomorrow.

An Old Bailey jury unanimously convicted them of murder. Bashir and Maqsood were also found guilty of violent disorder. On the day of the attack the trio had been drinking all day in the West End of London and stopped at East London University car park to smoke cannabis on their way home.

Mr Yates had been celebrating a friend’s birthday at pubs in Ilford. He walked a female friend to a bus stop in Dagenham, East London, at about 4.30am, to make sure that she returned home safely.

On his way home he passed the Asian men, all from Ilford, and asked why they were arguing. Zulfiqar hit him in the face and, as he fell, the others kicked and stamped on his head. Witnesses said that the attack, last November, was like hearing a game of football. Mr Yates was dead by the time an ambulance arrived.

Anthony Leonard, QC, said severe force was used, adding: “There was extensive fracturing to the facial bones as a result of multiple stamps."

“There were no signs that he had tried to defend himself, because it happened very quickly.”

Mr Yates lived with his mother and was working as a data inputter after graduating in computer studies.

As he lay dying, his phone was stolen by Junaid Khan. As the attackers walked away Zulfiqar, known as “Fatty”, boasted about what he had done and added: “That will teach him to interfere in Paki business.” Kajanan Shrithanan, a witness, said: “He seemed to be boasting about it. He was laughing and joking.”

The unemployed men then went on a rampage, damaging a car in Ilford and racially abusing its black owner, before assaulting staff in a curry house and a black passer-by.

They fled to an hotel run by a friend in Pontefract, West Yorkshire, and were planning to fly from Manchester to Pakistan when police caught them.

Khan, who stole the phone, was given community service.

Gang's 'drink fuelled rampage'

Three British-born Pakistani men are facing life sentences after being convicted of murdering a white graduate in London while drunk. BBC News Website looks at the case in detail.

Fammi indovinare: sarà colpa degli alcolici.

Three young men get very drunk, shout racist abuse, assault a waiter in a curry house and get involved in a series of brawls, climaxing with an attack on an innocent man who crosses their path.

Famm indovinare:

It sounds like a night of violence of the type which blights the name of many city centres. Except that the victim, 30-year-old graduate Christopher Yates, was white, and the killers were all British-born Pakistani men from Muslim families.

Except, quindi normalmente dobbiamo dare per scontato che avvenga il contrario.

Binge drinking

On Tuesday Imran Maqsood, 21, and his friends Zahid Bashir, 23, and 25-year-old Sajid Zulfiqar were found guilty of murder.

Sentenced on Thursday, Judge Martin Stephens QC told them they must serve at least 15 years for the attack.

Maqsood, Bashir and Zulfiqar eschewed their parents' religion and culture - although they paid lip service to it - and chose instead to imitate some of their white peers with frequent bouts of binge drinking.

Ho capito! Anche questa volta dev'essere colpa della maggioranza opprimente che opprime la minoranza oppressa con i modelli oppressa della società occidentale opprimente.

The crime itself took place during Ramadan, the holiest month for Muslim families when communities come together to reflect and do good deeds.

Ah ecco.

The Old Bailey heard that on 7 November last year the three men got drunk on beer and brandy in the West End before heading back towards their homes in Ilford, east London.

Mr Yates, a data inputter, dropped a female friend off at a bus stop and then took a short cut through the car park of the University of East London in Barking.

There he found Zulfiqar, Bashir and Maqsood, who were still drinking.

Without provocation they knocked him to the ground and began kicking and stamping on his head.

Afterwards one witness said she heard Zulfiqar saying in Urdu: "We killed the white man."

"Oooga-booga."

Another witness overheard them say: "That will teach the white man for interfering in Paki business."

'Ferocious attack'

Mr Yates died of extensive fracturing of the facial bones, caused by multiple kicking and stamping.

Anthony Leonard QC, prosecuting, said: "It was a ferocious attack... In particular his head was stamped on with some force...When the assault was over the defendants moved to a nearby road where they damaged several vehicles and set off car alarms as well as threatening householders."

They racially abused a black resident and then moved on to a curry house where they assaulted an Asian waiter.

Ci siete tutti? Siete pronti con il post-it?

While the attack on Mr Yates may have had the hallmarks of racism, judge Martin Stephens said the evidence suggested otherwise.

Ma è chiaro! Non l'avevate capito?

"Between you that morning, you attacked people of all races, white, black and Asian," he said.

Ah ecco! Allora se il naziskin dice "sporco negro" a uno e "muso giallo" all'altro non è razzista! Mi sembra tutto molto chiaro.

Naturalmente è colpa degli alcolici, imposti alla minoranza oppressa come modello durante il Ramadan:

"These, in my judgment, were random attacks carried out on people who had the misfortune to come across you in your drink-fuelled rampage."

Giving evidence, Maqsood said: "We were all drunk and acting like idiots in the City. I had a few fights in the City. I acted like an idiot at the Ali curry house but the bottom line is I didn't hurt Mr Yates."

Ecco perché ti hanno condannato per omicidio: perché sei una minoranza oppressa.

They posed a "cut-throat" defence, all seeking to blame each other for Mr Yates' murder.

Secret girlfriend

The trial painted a picture of three men whose drinking and womanising was kept secret from their families.

Colpa dei modelli occidentali.

The Old Bailey heard Maqsood's parents had no idea he drank alcohol and he even had a secret girlfriend, Sophie Shah.

Defence counsel, David Nathan, asked: "Were your parents aware of the relationship you had been having with Sophie Shah?"

Maqsood, who was born in Burnley, Lancashire, replied: "No. It's something I wouldn't do [tell them]. In our religion you don't tell your parents. They might get upset."

Mr Nathan asked: "Was the relationship you were having something which was approved of in your religion before marriage?"

"No," Maqsood replied.

Ms Shah broke up with him while he was on remand at Belmarsh prison and she gave evidence at his trial, claiming he had confessed to his involvement in the killing of Mr Yates.

Fled to Yorkshire

After the killing the men fled to Yorkshire and stayed at a friend's hotel in Pontefract.

Police believe they were planning to flee the country from Manchester Airport, which has daily flights to Pakistan.

Mr Leonard said: "All three men were concerned that this would be made out to be a racist incident."

"This would be made out to be", un complotto del feroce occidente per calunniare e diffamare i nostri allegri eroi.

The court heard that a hotel porter overheard them discussing the reaction in the Muslim community, which would be outraged because they had been drinking alcohol during Ramadan.

Eh certo, poco importa che abbiano accoppato un disgraziato, l'importante è non bere durante il Ramadan.

Detective Chief Inspector Tony Boxall, who led the inquiry, said the incident was initially treated as a racially motivated attack.

But he said: "Although classed as a racial incident there is no direct evidence it was racially motivated."

Che strano!

"Comments were made (by the killers) which could be perceived as racist but whether it was racially-motivated is something which only the defendants will know."

E non è forse vero per tutti gli hate crime e le leggi speciali? Naturalmente no, in alcuni casi possiamo determinare scientificamente la presenza di odio.

Badombe> Guardando il colore dell'aggressore?

Ma questo non è razzismo, è giustizia.

A fourth man, Junaid Khan, who admitted stealing Mr Yates' mobile phone while he lay on the ground, was sentenced earlier this year.

Campus killers jailed for life

THREE Ilford men who kicked a man to death because they said he had interfered in "Paki business" have been jailed for life.

Imran Maqsood, 22, of Richmond Rd, Sajid Zulfiqar, 26, of Sunnyside Rd, Zarhid Bashir, 24, of Meath Rd, were given life at the Old Bailey for murdering Christopher Yates.

The three men targeted the 30-year-old graduate (below) as he walked a friend to a bus stop on November 7 last year.

After a prolonged attack Mr Yates died from facial injuries the following day.

The court was told that a woman overheard Zulfiqar boast in Urdu that Yates had been killed for interfering in "Paki business".

Judge Martin Stephens told Maqsood, Zulfiqar and Bashir they would spend at least 15 years behind bars but said he did not believe the attack was motivated by race.

Mr Stephens said: "The jury has convicted all three of you of the callous and brutal murder of a decent man who was doing you no harm.

Pronti con il post-it?

"I cannot see that there is conduant evidence that this attack was within the meaning of the term 'racially aggravated'. I have come to the view that I should not treat this as a racially aggravated attack."

Detective Chief Inspector Tony Boxall said the murder had had a devastating impact on Mr Yates's family and friends.

DCI Boxall added: "Our thoughts and sympathies are with them at this difficult time."

"On Saturday November 6, 2004, Christopher had enjoyed a night out with friends."

"In the early hours of Sunday morning, he walked a female friend to a bus stop ensuring she got on the bus safely, before making his own way home. Minutes later Christopher was brutally murdered.

"Christopher was attacked by three men. He had little or no opportunity to defend himself. He was knocked to the ground where the attack continued, and sustained horrific facial injuries."

"I would like to thank Christopher's family for their support during this investigation and hope that the convictions of those responsible for his death provide some small comfort for them."

Not racist: trio who said 'we killed a white man'

THREE Asians who kicked a computer expert to death during a drink and drug-fuelled rampage were yesterday jailed for life.

Sajid Zulfiqar, 25, Zahid Bashir, 23, and Imran Maqsood, 21, literally smashed Christopher Yates's face in and bragged afterwards: "We killed a white man."

Hate crime? Dove? Ma dai.

But Judge Martin Stephens, QC, said the attack was not racist because as part of their rampage the killers had also assaulted black and Asian people. He added: "Between you, you stamped on his face. Witnesses thought you were playing football with something."

The gang had been rowing at the University of East London campus. Mr Yates, of Barking, had simply asked them what was going on.

Zulfiqar hit him in the face and when he fell down all three men stamped on his head. They had been drinking vodka and smoking cannabis..

Zulfiqar, Bashir and Maqsood, all from Ilford, East London, were convicted of murder and jailed for a minimum of 15 years at the Old Bailey.

Cerchiamo ancora.

Race crime prosecutions up by 29%

Race hate crime cases rose by almost a third in England and Wales in 2004-05, latest figures from the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) have shown.

The CPS prosecuted 4,660 defendants for racially aggravated offences, up by 29% from 3,616 for the previous year.

The CPS said better co-ordination with police and lawyers had increased the confidence of victims to prosecute.

A separate EU report praised the UK's response to London's bombings, saying it limited a backlash against Muslims.

The Muslim Council of Britain said the figures were "troubling" especially as they were for the period before 7 July.

The latest figures are for the year to March.

CPS director of equality Seamus Taylor acknowledged there had been a "trend increase" in racist crime in recent years.

"But there's also a range of other significant factors," he told BBC News.

"We increasingly take responsibility for the charge that's decided in these cases, working closely with the police in police stations.

"There's increased awareness of these crimes in communities and our policy is increasingly getting out to communities that we want to firmly and fairly and robustly prosecute such cases," he said.

Glossario - communities: minoranze oppresse.

Religiously aggravated cases dropped to 34 from 49 the previous year, with 23 of the victims' actual or perceived religion being Muslim.

It was Christian in four, Hindu in two and Mormon in one. In four cases the religion was unknown.

'Revenge' attacks

Sir Iqbal Sacranie, secretary general of the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) said the CPS figures were "obviously very troubling".

"What adds to our concern is that they refer to race hate incidents prior to the July 7 atrocities after which we saw a large number of 'revenge' attacks against Muslims.

"We would urge people from all communities to report these kinds of racist attacks to the police immediately.

"There must be no toleration at all of race hate or faith hate crimes."

In a separate report into the aftermath of the London bomb attacks, an EU body praised the united response of British authorities and communities, saying this had limited a potential backlash against ordinary Muslims.

Analysing figures for hate crimes around 7 July, the day of the London suicide bombings, the European Monitoring Centre on Racism found an increase in incidents immediately before and after the attacks - before the rate quickly fell back again to recent levels.

Witness testimony

The CPS found that despite efforts to boost confidence in the system, an additional 5% of charges were dropped because there was no witness testimony.

In those cases the witnesses refused to give evidence or failed to turn up to court.

Of 6,200 charges brought, 2,506 were dropped.

Of those, 480 were because the witness failed to show up and 293 because they would not co-operate.

'Full confidence'

The Commission for Racial Equality said the figures suggested a "difficult social problem that continues to blight the lives of many of Britain's ethnic minorities".

E del morto cosa ne facciamo, lo buttiamo sotto il tappeto insieme a Menezes?

It said the increase was due in part to the success of the police and CRE working together, but a spokesman added: "We are concerned that more people are refusing to give evidence.

"Until all victims and witnesses of these crimes have full confidence that the justice system will deal with them, we will never know the true extent of the problem."

The number of racist incidents passed to prosecutors by the police was up 22% to 5,788.

Assaults, criminal damage or public order offences made up most of the charges but there were also four murders.

Wales race prosecutions rise 55%

Race crime prosecutions in Wales rose by 55% last year, compared to a 29% increase across the UK as a whole.

Peccato che, come l'attento lettore avrà notato, la definizione di race crime viene inventata caso per caso.

The number of prosecutions for racially-aggravated offences rose from 269 to 419 for the year up to March 2005.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), which compiled the figures, said they reflected a trend as more people were more prepared to report race crime.

Most were in south Wales, where there were 241 prosecutions (155 previously).

In the Gwent Police area the figure rose from 57 to 74 while there was a slight fall in Dyfed-Powys from 29 to 26.

In the North Wales Police area there were 78 prosecutions, compared to 28 last year.

The chief crown prosecutor for Wales, Chris Woolley, said one of the reasons behind the rise was changing attitudes, with more people willing to come forward to report such crimes.

Most of the incidents reported were for public order offences, with about 10% assaults.

"In south Wales we have the biggest urban population and we think the police and CPS are actually doing quite a good job, reflecting the views of the community, encouraging people to come forward and report crime, and we're taking action on it," Mr Woolley told BBC Radio Wales.

The CPS did not think the rise in crime reported reflected an actual increase in crime, he added.

"We think it's more likely that people are ready to report it, ready to support us through a prosecution," Mr Woolley said.

"There has been a trend upwards since the figures were introduced in 2000."

Naz Malik, director of the All-Wales Ethnic Minority Association, said: "What I find rather pleasing - and that we can celebrate - is that people from all kinds of different cultures and racial backgrounds are taking the issue of race and race crime very seriously and are prepared to stand up and be counted."

Aled Edwards, chair of the Welsh Refugee Council, added: "The freakery of racism is still abhorrent and all the indicators say it is happening and we should fight and be robust in our response to that."

Me ne sono accorto, leggendo il giornale.

The figures were released as seven people were arrested over an attack on three men in what police believe was a racially-motivated incident.

The three men - aged 21, 24 and 51 - needed treatment at Cardiff's University Hospital of Wales, after the attack on 3 November in the Tremorfa area of the city.

Ethnic minority leaders in Cardiff are holding talks with police after the attack on the men, who were on their way to a mosque.

A South Wales Police spokesman said: "The events are being treated as racially motivated."

Compitino per l'attento lettore: per quale oscuro motivo la definizione di hate crime e race crime è stranamente elastica, come si può evincere dall'archivio?

Irlanda, 15enne cattolico ucciso a bastonate