Man sentenced for shouting antisemitic abuse

A man has been sentenced to 10 weeks’ imprisonment for shouting antisemitic and other racist slurs in public before making violent threats toward a police officer.

Police were called to Seven Kings station in Ilford, London, on 11 November 2023, to reports of a man threatening members of the public.

When they arrived and searched Diljan Akhtar, 51,  he shouted antisemitic slurs, linked to the Israel/Hamas conflict.

A member of the public also reported to the police that he was subjected to a separate racist slur by Akhtar outside a nearby restaurant.

Akhtar admitted four offences and his sentence was increased when he appeared at Stratford Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday, January 2, to take into account the racist words he said.

The court considered a community order but decided custody was appropriate, taking into account the fact this offence was the second breach of a suspended sentence, adding two weeks to his sentence.

Beata Murphy, the CPS prosecutor for this case, said: “There is no place for hate of any kind on the streets of London.

“We will continue to support victims and witnesses who come forward to report examples of any hate crime they have experienced, prosecuting perpetrators whenever our legal test is met.”

Jaswant Narwal, London hate crime lead and Chief Crown Prosecutor for London North, said: “The CPS continues to take tackling antisemitic hate crime extremely seriously as we know these offences have a devastating impact on victims, families and communities.

“We are working closely with the police and communities to explore further how to combat these crimes and mitigate the corrosive effects of these racist actions.”