Polish man remanded in custody over alleged arson, threats and antisemitic vandalism of house in Stamford Hill

A Polish man has been remanded in custody after being arrested on suspicion of two counts of arson and the antisemitic vandalism of a house owned by a Jewish family in Stamford Hill.

It is alleged that the man moved into the property as a squatter, refused to move out and procured chemicals and weapons before saying that he would stab members of the Jewish family that owned the property and setting fire to bins outside two homes where he believed that they lived at approximately 23:30 on Friday night.

Volunteers from Stamford Hill Shomrim, the Jewish neighbourhood watch patrol, operate a 24-hour response service and went to the scene of the incident to assist police in understanding the significance of the graffiti found there. There they found what appeared to be illegal drugs and deranged graffiti, including hundreds of Stars of David and the number 666, which in Christian numerology is used to refer to Satan.

Stamford Hill Shomrim is monitoring the trial, including the remand status of the defendant.

We commend Stamford Hill Shomrim and the Metropolitan Police Service for their extremely swift response to this disturbing incident and we will follow the case with interest.