Man who wielded knife in antisemitic incident in Golders Green avoids prison
Earlier this year, brave staff members of a kosher supermarket in Golders Green defended themselves against a man wielding a knife in an antisemitic incident.
Campaign Against Antisemitism spoke with a member of staff involved, who told us that the assailant – Gabriel Abdullah, 34 – entered the shop demanding to know the staff’s feelings on what was happening “in Palestine”.
One staff member refused to engage, explaining that he did not wish to discuss politics. He and another staff member then escorted the suspect out of the shop.
Shortly after, Mr Abdullah allegedly attempted to grab at the neck of one of the staff members. Defending himself with Krav Maga martial arts moves that he remembered learning as a youth, the staff member tried to restrain him before hearing people around him yell: “Knife, knife!”
At this point, the staff member quickly backed away, and the suspect began moving towards him.
Thinking quickly, he grabbed a nearby shopping trolley, pushing it into the body of the suspect in order to create distance.
The staff member told us that he retreated into the shop, where Mr Abdullah then followed, before leaving and making his way across the road into a building.
He then left that building approximately five minutes later in a change of clothes, apparently wearing traditional Muslim garb, and began walking up the road.
One of the staff members then ran ahead of him so that he could view his face to confirm that this was the same man from minutes earlier.
Shortly thereafter, Mr Abdullah was apprehended by the Shomrim North West London neighbourhood watch patrol and the Metropolitan Police, and arrested on suspicion of possession of an offensive weapon, criminal damage and racially-aggravated affray.
He pleaded guilty in February to causing affray and being in possession of a knife, before Judge Sir Charles Gregory Bourne. The racially-aggravated element had apparently been dropped, despite the evidence.
Mr Abdullah has now been sentenced at HM Prison Wormwood Scrubs, as Harrow Crown Court is temporarily closed. Judge Corinne Searle sentenced him to eighteen months’ imprisonment, suspended for two years, and twelve months’ imprisonment, also suspended for two years.
The suspended sentences are to be served concurrently. He has also been given a nine-month alcohol treatment requirement, after claiming that he was intoxicated during the incident having tried to self-medicate his alleged paranoid schizophrenia. He has also been given a 30-day rehabilitation requirement.
One of the victims, Yosef Reitman, with whom Campaign Against Antisemitism is in contact, expressed shock at the lenient sentence.
Stephen Silverman, Director of Investigations and Enforcement at Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “Once again the Jewish community has been let down by the justice system. Brave attendants at the kosher supermarket defended themselves from a clearly antisemitic knifeman and the Shomrim neighbourhood watch group apprehended him, with support from police. But then, once the justice system stepped in, everything seemed to go wrong. The racially-aggravated charge was apparently quietly dropped, the assailant pleaded guilty to minor charges and he walked away from court effectively a free man.
“This is by no means the first time that this has happened. Why is it that every perpetrator who commits a violent act against religious Jews is let off? What do violent antisemites need to do to a Jew before a court agrees that they deserve to go to prison? We are in contact with one of the victims and are examining legal options to try to remedy this travesty of justice.”
