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Man Convicted for Knife Threat Against Preacher at Speakers' Corner

Sentencing is set for December 12 pending a probation assessment on an alcohol-treatment referral.

Overview

  • Ahmed Mohammed, 34, confronted preacher Daniel Ayettey during a May sermon, returned with a knife, and said, "I am going to stab you."
  • Prosecutor Nicholas Mesure told Southwark Crown Court that Mohammed first tried to pull Ayettey from his ladder before fleeing and coming back armed.
  • The court heard Mohammed has 29 convictions for 67 offences over seven years and had pleaded guilty earlier in May to theft from a Marble Arch Sainsbury's.
  • Judge Martin Griffith noted the sustained offending as the court weighed options for the knife offence, which carries a maximum four-year sentence.
  • Proceedings also recorded an outstanding Home Office application and cited recent violent episodes at the Hyde Park free-speech site for context.